Dominican Republic's President Abinader Wins Resounding Re-election

Dominican Republic President Luis Abinader clinched a second term in office with a commanding election win, endorsing his handling of the economy and tough policies toward migration from Haiti, results showed Monday

Santo Domingo, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 20th May, 2024) Dominican Republic President Luis Abinader clinched a second term in office with a commanding election win, endorsing his handling of the economy and tough policies toward migration from Haiti, results showed Monday.

The two nations share the Caribbean island of Hispaniola, but the much more prosperous Dominican Republic stands in stark contrast to its poverty and gang violence-plagued neighbor.

Abinader's rivals quickly conceded defeat after Sunday's vote, with a little over half of ballots counted handing him 51.74 percent of the total. His nearest competitor, former president Leonel Fernandez, had scored 29.34 percent.

The president's Modern Revolutionary Party (PRM) was also headed for a majority in Congress.

"The people have expressed themselves clearly... I accept the trust I have received and the obligation not to disappoint," Abinader said in a speech before hundreds of supporters at his campaign headquarters in the capital Santo Domingo.

Nelson Espinal, a Dominican specialist in public litigation at Harvard, told AFP that the Dominican Republic was a "very conservative" country and that Abinader's tough migration politics had played a key role in his popularity.

"The disastrous situation of Haiti, a failed state, makes the Dominican people very vigilant and very cautious" regarding relations with their neighbor, he said.

The election "consolidates, strengthens" Abinader's power, Espinal added.