se Miguel CORRALES
(PLN) 44.6%

Legislative branch: unicameral Legislative Assembly or Asamblea
Legislativa (57 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote
to serve four-year terms)

elections: last held 1 February 1998 (next to be held 3 February
2002)

election results: percent of vote by party - PUSC 41%, PLN 35%,
minority parties 24%; seats by party - PUSC 27, PLN 23, minority
parties 7

Judicial branch: Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (22 justices are
elected for eight-year terms by the Legislative Assembly)

Political parties and leaders: Agricultural Labor Action or PALA
[Carlos Alberto SOLIS Blanco]; Costa Rican Renovation Party or PRC
[Justo OROZCO]; Democratic Force Party or PFD [Jose M. NUNEZ];
Libertarian Movement Party or PML [Otto GUEVARA Guth]; National
Christian Alliance Party or ANC [Alejandro MADRIGAL]; National
Independent Party or PNI [Jorge GONZALEZ Marten]; National
Integration Party or PIN [Walter MUNOZ Cespedes]; National
Liberation Party or PLN [Sonia PICADO]; Social Christian Unity Party
or PUSC [Luis Manuel CHACON]

note: mainly a two-party system - PUSC and PLN; numerous small
parties share less than 25% of population's support

Political pressure groups and leaders: Authentic Confederation of
Democratic Workers or CATD (Communist Party affiliate); Chamber of
Coffee Growers; Confederated Union of Workers or CUT (Communist
Party affiliate); Costa Rican Confederation of Democratic Workers or
CCTD (Liberation Party affiliate); Federation of Public Service
Workers or FTSP; National Association for Economic Development or
ANFE; National Association of Educators or ANDE; Rerum Novarum or
CTRN (PLN affiliate) [Gilbert Brown]

International organization participation: BCIE, CACM, ECLAC, FAO,
G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS,
ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU,
LAES, LAIA (observer), NAM (observer), OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, UN,
UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO,
WTrO

Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador
Jaime DAREMBLUM Rosenstein

chancery: 2114 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone: [1] (202) 234-2945

FAX: [1] (202) 265-4795

consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Denver, Houston,
Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Phoenix, San Antonio, San
Francisco, St. Paul, and Tampa

consulate(s): Austin

Diplomatic representation