For the first time in Costa Rica’s history, the nation’s Legislative Assembly found itself at the center of a dramatic and unprecedented debate: whether to strip sitting President Rodrigo Chaves of his immunity so he could face prosecution on corruption charges. The high-stakes session, which began on September 22, 2025, drew national attention, with lawmakers, legal experts, and ordinary citizens eagerly watching the outcome.
The move to remove presidential immunity was not a simple one. According to the Associated Press, Costa Rica’s unicameral Congress required a supermajority—38 out of 57 votes—to lift Chaves’s legal protections. In the end, only 34 lawmakers voted in favor, while 21 opposed and two were absent, causing the effort to fall short. This outcome meant that President Chaves would retain his immunity, at least for now, and the corruption case against him would not proceed to trial during his current term.
The allegations at the heart of this political firestorm are both specific and serious. Prosecutors accuse President Chaves of concusión—abuse of power to benefit someone else—a charge that carries a potential prison sentence of up to eight years. As reported by AFP, the case centers on claims that Chaves pressured a video producer, who had secured a contract funded by the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI), to pass along $32,000 to Federico Cruz, a former campaign adviser and close friend. The contract itself was reportedly paid for using an “apparently improper procedure,” raising further questions about government procurement practices.
Chaves, who has been in office since 2022, has vigorously denied any wrongdoing. He has repeatedly characterized the accusations as part of a broader campaign to undermine his administration. “This is an attempt at a judicial coup, a show to delegitimize a government chosen by the people,” Chaves declared in remarks last week, as quoted by AFP. He also announced he would not appear before the plenary session to present a rebuttal, stating he did not want to give “a veneer of legitimacy” to the proceedings.
The process leading up to the historic vote was marked by intense debate and division, both within the special legislative committee tasked with reviewing the case and among the broader Assembly. The committee’s chair, opposition lawmaker Andrea Álvarez, argued that there were “sufficient technical elements that justify voting yes to lifting the immunity.” She further warned, “This government has threatened our institutional framework, and if we do not respect the institutional framework, that is where the foundations of our country begin to erode.”
Not everyone agreed. Daniel Vargas, a lawmaker from Chaves’s own Social Democratic Progress Party and a member of the committee, countered that the evidence was not persuasive enough to warrant such a drastic step. “The accusation does not contain sufficient elements that show probable cause to recommend to the legislative plenary the lifting of immunity. I did not find seriousness and consistency in the accusatory document,” Vargas said. He went a step further, calling the request “an instrument of political persecution against Rodrigo Chaves.”
That claim was quickly rejected by Álvarez, who insisted the process was grounded in law and evidence. “The president did not provide a single piece of evidence” for his claim of political persecution, she said, underscoring the seriousness with which the committee considered the matter.
The roots of the controversy stretch back to July 1, 2025, when Costa Rica’s Supreme Court approved the Prosecutor’s Office’s request to seek the removal of Chaves’s immunity. The high court would have presided over the trial had the Assembly voted to strip the president’s protections. The panel of three lawmakers who initially reviewed the case reflected the Assembly’s broader divisions: two recommended lifting immunity, while one did not.
Adding to the complexity, Culture Minister Jorge Rodríguez also faces a request to lift his immunity on similar charges, suggesting that the investigation’s reach could extend beyond the president himself.
Throughout the debate, the specter of political motivations loomed large. Chaves, known for his populist rhetoric and frequent criticism of the Supreme Court, Congress, the Prosecutor’s Office, and the media, painted the proceedings as a coordinated effort to weaken his administration. His supporters echoed these sentiments, while opposition lawmakers argued that the rule of law and institutional integrity were at stake.
Despite the gravity of the allegations and the unprecedented nature of the vote, the outcome was anything but assured. As Devdiscourse highlighted, some opposition lawmakers had signaled in advance that they would not support lifting the president’s immunity, further complicating the arithmetic for Chaves’s critics. Ultimately, the vote fell short, leaving many to wonder what comes next for both the president and the country’s political system.
One potential answer lies in the future. Chaves’s term is set to end in May 2026, but the story may not end there. Laura Fernández, the Social Democratic Progress Party’s presidential candidate for the next election, has already stated she would invite Chaves to join her Cabinet if she wins. This move would effectively grant him another four years of immunity from prosecution, a prospect sure to fuel further debate about accountability and justice at the highest levels of government.
Meanwhile, the broader implications for Costa Rica’s democracy remain a subject of concern. The attempt to lift presidential immunity, even if unsuccessful, has set a precedent and raised important questions about the balance of power, the independence of legal institutions, and the mechanisms available to hold public officials accountable. As opposition leader Rodrigo Arias noted when opening the special session, “The accusation process against Mr. Rodrigo Alberto Jesús Chaves Robles is initiated, in order to decide whether the lifting of his immunity is appropriate.” The fact that such a process unfolded at all speaks to the maturity and challenges of Costa Rica’s democratic system.
For now, President Rodrigo Chaves remains in office, shielded by the very immunity that has become the subject of such fierce debate. Yet the echoes of this historic vote are likely to reverberate for years to come, shaping the country’s political landscape and its ongoing struggle to balance power, justice, and the will of the people.
