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Cortizo declared ‘virtual winner’ in Panama president race
PANAMA CITY — Panama’s Electoral Court declared opposition candidate Laurentino Cortizo the “virtual winner” in the country’s tight presidential election late Sunday.
The vote followed a campaign focused on corruption and slowing economic growth in this Central America trade and financial hub and turned into the tightest presidential contest in recent years.
After scrutinizing the results from 92% of polling stations, electoral court magistrate Heriberto Araúz said in a televised announcement shortly before midnight that Cortizo had a narrow lead of 2 percentage points over businessman Rómulo Roux. The unexpectedly close race pitted the candidates of the country’s two most important opposition political forces.