José Raúl Mulino, a marginal conservative candidate in Panama’s 2024 presidential election, won Sunday’s general election with a nearly 10 percentage point lead over his closest rival.
Mulino, a 64-year-old lawyer and former security minister, is implementing a crackdown on immigration by “closing” the dangerous Darien Gap jungle trail shared by Panama and Colombia, which is used by thousands of migrants from South America and elsewhere. sued. The region is used to reach the United States. Mulino also vowed to improve Panama’s economy.
Migrants, mostly from Haiti, cross the infamous Darien Valley toward the United States near Acandi, Colombia, on October 7, 2021. (John Moore/Getty Images)
Now the president-elect, he ran as a candidate to replace former president Ricardo Martinelli (2009-2014), who was barred from running for a new term by a local court. declared In 2023, he will be sentenced to 10 years in prison for money laundering.
Martinelli, whose appeal was rejected by the Panama Supreme Court, asked: exile Martinelli was taken into custody at the Nicaraguan embassy in Panama City in February, where he has remained since then after local authorities refused to allow him to leave Panama safely.
Former Panama President Ricardo Martinelli (AP Photo/Eric Batista, File)
Mulino will take office for a five-year term on July 1, replacing current center-left President Laurentino Cortizo.Mr. Cortizo was not eligible for re-election under Panamanian constitution. state The president cannot be re-elected for two consecutive terms.
with a vote rate of over 98% tabulated At the time of writing, the Panama Electoral Tribunal announced that Mulino, who ran as the candidate of Save Panama, a coalition made up of Martinelli’s conservative Goals Realization Party and the centrist Alliance Party, received 34.32% of the vote. obtained.
Ricardo Lombana, candidate from the “green” party of the Movement for a Different Path (MOCA), came in second place with 24.75% of the vote, followed by Martín Torris of the center-right People’s Party with 16.01%. Voter turnout was estimated at 77.63%.
“Mission accomplished, dammit!” Mulino Shouted out He opened his victory speech on Sunday by saying that leading Panama is a “huge task” and that the most important part of a successful presidential campaign now is that “the sentiments of this country’s incorrigible majority are… He argued that empathizing with the cry of They believed in our proposal because they had hope of getting out of the hole they had fallen into over the past 10 years. ”
Mr. Mulino promised his allies that he would promote a “pro-investment, pro-private-enterprise government,” but also stressed: “We must not forget those who are hungry, those who need drinking water.” These are very big challenges. ”
Panama’s next president assured his supporters that he would not be an “entertainer” or a “TikTok dancer” and said he would work “very hard” for Panama, while at the same time “building the foundations of a new national unity with our people.” “I hope to build this,” he vowed. No matter where you’re from, we’re bringing together the best people in this country from different regions. ”
Additionally, Mulino vowed to protect freedom of speech and human rights during his administration. Mr. Mulino also took this opportunity to express his gratitude to former President Martinelli.
My friends, mission accomplished, Ricardo. I did not imagine this scenario when you invited me to become Vice President, but now it was my turn, and I took it with great responsibility and humility. Panamanians, it’s our vote, a huge number, and what I need most is our strong vote.
April, Mulino swore If elected president, he said he would “close” the Darien divide and formally deport immigrants in accordance with human rights rules. However, Mulino did not provide any details at the time of writing of this article about what his plan to close the infamous jungle trail entails.
Luis Almagro, Director General of the Organization of American States (OAS), said: Extended He congratulated Mr. Mulino and paid tribute to the Panamanians who took part in Sunday’s elections. Mr. Almagro said in his statement that the Central American country can look to the OAS to continue expanding its democracy, human rights, security and sustainable development agenda.
Christian K. Caruso is a Venezuelan writer who chronicles life under socialism. You can follow him on Twitter here.
