Diario Extra – Panama calm after the tensions and triumph of the Social Democrat Cortizo

Panama, (EFE). – Calm reigns Monday in Panama after the tension of the eve of the presidential election winning the Social Democrat Laurentino Cortizo, the Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD), party of opposition, which also heads the unicameral Parliament with 29 of the 71 seats.

The scrutiny of votes advanced on Monday and reached 95.63%, confirming the triumph of Cortizo with 33.19% (634.969 votes), while his main candidate, the main opponent Rómul Roux, Liberal Democratic Party (CD )), obtained 31.02% (593,569 votes).

Roux has not yet acknowledged the triumph of the PRD candidate and said that he would wait to review all physical acts because, as he reported last night, "irregularities" were recorded, extreme that the electoral court rejected.

But the narrowness of the difference between Cortizo and Roux and the claims of the latter led the electoral authorities to postpone Sunday, until the trend is "stable" and irreversible, the announcement of the winner of the presidential elections, which finally C came around midnight when they announced that he was the PRD candidate.

"The announcement of the official proclamation will correspond in the coming days to the National Council of Control, which will then proceed to a formal proclamation to be held Thursday at the Atlapa Convention Center," said the Panamanian capital yesterday evening. . President of the Electoral Tribunal, Judge Heriberto Araúz.

Cortizo, former Minister of Agriculture and International Trade Expert, has received the announcement of his victory with "humility" and calling for unity across the country to face the challenges that will arise as of July 1, when he will replace Juan Carlos Varela. at the head of the executive for the period 2019-2024.

According to the 66-year-old politician, it is about fighting corruption, modernizing the state through constitutional reform by the legislature and reviving the economy that has held back its growth for more than five years.

The PRD, a historic party that has not won the presidency since the 2004 elections, won by Martin Torrijos (2004-2009), was the winner of the elections. In addition, it reaped rewards in Parliament and increased at least three, up to 29, the number of deputies in relation to the current legislature.

The preliminary count also gives the PRD candidate José Luis Fábrega the triumph of the election of the mayor of the Panamanian capital with more than 40% of the votes.

In Parliament, the CD, founded by former President Ricardo Martinelli (2009-2014) in pre-trial detention while she was being prosecuted for alleged political spying and embezzlement, had 17 seats, compared with 25 on 25 that he had won in the last election of 2014.

The ruling Panameñista party has only ambaded eight MPs, half of those who won the 2014 elections, a result as disappointing as that of its presidential candidate, José Blandón, who has not won. got only 10.59% of the votes. % tables.

The independent forces achieved a historic result: the presidential candidate, Ricardo Lombana, represented 19.13% of the vote, while four MPs filtered through the unicameral Parliament, well above the current legislature, where the only legislator without party is Ana Matilde Gómez.