Pena’s conservative Colorado Party was facing a tough challenge from the left over corruption, and poverty.
Santiago Pena is on track for victory in Paraguay’s election, which would return the conservative Colorado Party to government after a tightly-contested campaign that threatened to end its seven-decade hold on power.
The 44-year-old economist and former finance minister had nearly 43 percent of votes cast, with nearly 96 percent of ballots counted, the country’s electoral body said.
Left-wing rival Efrain Alegre, 60, of the Concertacion centre-left coalition was on 28 percent, it said.
Some 4.8 million of the South American country’s 7.5 million people were eligible to vote in the election for the president and legislature.
“Thank you for this Colorado victory, thank you for this Paraguayan victory,” Pena said in a speech. Alegre had yet to concede, but current President Mario Abdo congratulated Pena on Twitter, calling him “president-elect”.
Alegre, a lawyer, had a narrow lead in opinion polls heading into the vote, raising the prospect that he might unseat the Colorado Party that has governed almost continually since 1947 — through a dictatorship and since the return of democracy in 1989.
Though they differ on economic and international policy, the two frontrunners are both socially conservative, defending strong anti-abortion rights and anti-gay marriage stances in an overwhelmingly Catholic nation.
Paraguay is among only 13 countries to recognise Taipei over Beijing, and Alegre had promised to reconsider this if he won.
China considers self-ruled, democratic Taiwan part of its territory, has not ruled out the use of force to take control of the island, and has sought to isolate Taiwan on the international stage.
Honduras shifted allegiance to Beijing in March, following Nicaragua in 2021, El Salvador in 2018, Panama in 2017, and Costa Rica in 2007.
Pena has said he would retain ties with Taiwan, but move Paraguay’s embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
Paraguay previously moved its embassy in 2018, but reversed its decision within months.
Alegre had campaigned on corruption in the Colorado Party, which has seen two of its top members recently hit with sanctions by the United States over alleged corruption.
They include Pena’s political mentor and president of the Colorado Party, former President Horacio Cartes.
Paraguay is ranked 137 out of 180 countries on Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index.
Other election issues included poverty, social inequality and escalating crime.
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