Mulino wins elections in Panama supported by former president Martinelli

From start to finish, disqualified former president Ricardo Martinelli imposed his popularity in Sunday’s presidential elections in Panama, the youngest democracy in the region. José Raúl Mulino, the successor of the former president disqualified for corruption, was elected new president of Panama, winning by a wide margin over his direct adversaries, who saw the votes divided among themselves while the candidate who promised to return money to the pockets of Panamanians prevailed.

«I am pleased, on behalf of the Electoral Court, to inform you that according to our unofficial results transmission system, you are currently the unofficial winner of the presidential election in the 2024 general elections.“, the president of the Electoral Court, Alfredo Juncá, informed Mulino in a video call.

Mulino replied that he received “with pleasure the results expressed“, a decision of the Panamanian people that assumes”with great responsibility and humility“, following a “very difficult” campaign full of obstacles, in which they tried to “boycott” a party “legally constituted might have a presidential candidate«.

With more than 90% of the votes counted, Mulino won 34.4% of the ballots, compared to 25% for the anti-system Ricardo Lombana, of the Movimiento Otro Camino (Movement Another Way) (Moca), 16% for former president Martín Torrijos (2004-2009), of the Partido Popular (PP), and 11.2% for Rómulo Roux, of Cambio Democrático (CD).

All of them admitted defeat, the last of them being Lombana, who was running as the great candidate once morest corruption, attributed to the figure of former president Ricardo Martinelli.

«We are the main opposition force in the Republic of Panama“, Lombana said in his speech.

The few polls had already predicted this by placing Mulino at the head of the list of the eight presidential candidates, followed in most cases by former president Martín Torrijos, Lombana and Roux alternating in the position, with a “technical tie” between them.