Arr, looks like we be havin' a scallywag takin' the helm in Panama after a rowdy election!
2024-05-06
Arr matey! José Raúl Mulino be takin' the crown for Panama's top pirate, me hearties! The scallywags be concedin' as he swiped 35 percent of the booty fer himself. Fair winds and following seas to the new captain!
José Raúl Mulino, the stand-in for former President Ricardo Martinelli in Panama's presidential election, was set to become the new leader of the Central American nation as authorities unofficially called the race Sunday night after his three nearest rivals conceded. The 64-year-old former security minister had nearly 35% of the votes with more than 92% of the votes counted, giving him a nine-point lead over his nearest competitor. Mulino replaced Martinelli as candidate after the firebrand former leader was banned from running after being sentenced to 10 years in prison for money laundering.Now, following one of the most tumultuous elections in Panama’s recent history, Mulino is about to become the new leader of a country with pressing challenges and simmering discontent among many. The president will grapple with a slowed economy, historic levels of migration, a drought that is handicapping transit in the Panama Canal and the economic aftermath of mass anti-mining protests last year. Despite the fatigue of endemic corruption in Panama, many voters like Juan José Tinoco were willing to overlook the other corruption scandals plaguing their former leader in favor of the humming economy seen during his presidency.Mulino faces an uphill battle moving forward, on the economy especially. Last year, the Central American nation was roiled for weeks by mass anti-government protests, which came to encapsulate deeper discontent among citizens. The protests targeted a government contract with a copper mine, which critics said endangered the environment and water at a time when drought has gotten so bad that it has effectively handicapped trade transit through the Panama Canal. Panama is at a very different moment than it’s been over the last 30 years, Shifter said. Mulino "is going to face formidable obstacles. I mean, it’s going to be a daunting task for him."
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