Nicaraguan exiles sink roots in Costa Rica as Ortega set for re-election

FILE PHOTO: Nicaraguans exiled in Costa Rica protest against the government of President Daniel Ortega, ahead of the country's presidential elections in November, in San Jose, Costa Rica October 24, 2021. REUTERS/Mayela Lopez/File Photo

UPALA, Costa Rica (Reuters) - Nicaraguans forced to flee across the country's southern border into Costa Rica expressed a mix of anger, pain and resignation ahead of Sunday's election, where President Daniel Ortega is expected to extend his long rule after cracking down on rivals.

Francisca Ramirez and over 40 of her relatives belong to a diaspora of tens of thousands of exiles in Costa Rica and beyond that could grow if Ortega tightens his grip.