PUNXSUTAWNEY, Pa. (AP) — It's already been a long, cold winter across much of the United States, and on Monday, Punxsutawney Phil's handlers will announce whether the weather-predicting groundhog says there's more of the same to come.
When Phil is said to have seen his shadow upon emergence from a tree stump in rural Pennsylvania, that's considered a forecast for six more weeks of winter. If he doesn't see his shadow, an early spring is said to be on the way.
Tens of thousands of people will be on hand at Gobbler's Knob for the annual ritual that goes back more than a century, with ties to ancient farming traditions in Europe. Punxsutawney's festivities have grown considerably since the 1993 movie “Groundhog Day,” starring Bill Murray.
Last year’s announcement was six more weeks of winter, by far Phil’s more common assessment and not much of a surprise during the first week of February. His top-hatted handlers in the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club insist Phil’s “groundhogese” of winks, purrs, chatters and nods are being interpreted when they relate the meterological marmot’s muses about the days ahead.
Phil isn't the only animal being consulted for long-term weather forecasts Monday. There are formal and informal Groundhog Day events in many places in the U.S., Canada and beyond.
Groundhog Day falls on Feb. 2, the midpoint between the shortest, darkest day of the year on the winter solstice and the spring equinox. It’s a time of year that also figures in the Celtic calendar and the Christian holiday of Candlemas.
Scolforo reported from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
FILE - Groundhog Club handler A.J. Dereume holds Punxsutawney Phil, the weather prognosticating groundhog, during the 137th celebration of Groundhog Day on Gobbler's Knob in Punxsutawney, Pa., Feb. 2, 2023. (AP Photo/Barry Reeger, File)
CARTAGO, Costa Rica (AP) — Preliminary and partial results showed the Costa Rican president’s handpicked successor poised to win the presidency in a crowded field after Sunday's election.
The Supreme Electoral Tribunal reported that with votes from 88.4% of polling places tallied, conservative populist Laura Fernández of the Sovereign People's Party had 48.5% of the vote. Her closest challenger was economist Álvaro Ramos of the National Liberation Party with 33.3%.
Ramos conceded Sunday night and pledged to lead a “constructive opposition,” but one that would not let those in power get away with anything.
“In democracy dissent is allowed, criticizing is allowed,” he said.
Fernández spoke to her supporters after Ramos conceded and President Rodrigo Chaves congratulated her.
“Costa Rica has voted and it has voted to continue the change, a change that only seeks to rescue and perfect our democratic institutions and return them to you, to the sovereign people, to create more well-being and prosperity for our people,” Fernández said.
“The mandate the sovereign people give me is clear: the change will be deep and irreversible,” she said.
At least 40% of the total vote is required to win the presidential election in the first round. Otherwise, the top two candidates will go to a runoff on April 5.
Fernández campaigned on continuing the policies of the term-limited Chaves.
The historically peaceful Central American nation’s crime surge in recent years could be a deciding factor for many voters. Some fault Chaves' presidency for failing to bring those rates down, but many see his confrontational style as the best chance for Costa Rica to tame the violence.
Fernández was previously Chaves’ minister of national planning and economic policy and, more recently, his minister of the presidency.
She is Chaves' favored successor and was considered the frontrunner headed into Sunday's election.
Costa Ricans also voted for the 57-seat National Assembly. Chaves’ party is expected to make gains, but perhaps not achieve the supermajority he and Fernández have called for, which would allow their party to choose Supreme Court magistrates, for example.
Twenty contenders were seeking the presidency, but no candidate other than Fernández and Ramos reached 5% in the preliminary and partial results.
Some 3.7 million Costa Ricans are eligible to vote. They began casting their ballots at 6 a.m. Sunday and voting continued until 6 p.m.
Ronald Loaiza, an electrical engineer, was one of the first to vote amid rain and cold early Sunday at a school in Cartago, about 25 kilometers (15 miles) east of San Jose. He came early so that he could accompany his father to vote later in another town.
“I hope that it’s a democratic celebration, that the people come out to vote,” he said. “It’s very important that we exercise the right that this country gives us, that we’re conscious of our democracy.”
Four years ago, Chaves ran an outsider campaign that carried him to victory over the country's traditional parties, despite the fact that he had briefly served as economy minister in a previous administration. His framing of traditional parties as corrupt and self-interested resonated in a country with high unemployment and a soaring budget deficit.
Presidential candidate Laura Fernández addresses supporters after polls closed in San Jose, Costa Rica, Sunday, Feb. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Carlos Borbon)
FILE - Costa Rica President Rodrigo Chaves attends the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Jan. 18, 2023. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber, File)
Costa Rica's presidential candidate Laura Fernandez prepares to cast her vote at a polling station in Cartago, Costa Rica, Sunday, Feb. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Carlos Borbon)
FILE - Costa Rica's former finance minister Rodrigo Chaves speaks to supporters at his headquarters in San Jose, Costa Rica, after winning a presidential runoff election, April 3, 2022. (AP Photo/Carlos Gonzalez, File)
Costa Rica's presidential candidate Laura Fernandez prepares to cast her vote at a polling station in Cartago, Costa Rica, Sunday, Feb. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Carlos Borbon)
