Dominican Republic President Abinader wins second term
Al Jazeera
Partial results hand Luis Abinader victory, showing approval for his tough policies towards migration from neighbouring Haiti.
Dominican Republic President Luis Abinader has won a second term in elections, clinching victory in the first round, according to preliminary results.
The hugely popular president vowed unity and impartial leadership as he declared victory after rivals conceded on Sunday night, having secured a sufficiently wide margin to win without needing to go to a second-round face-off.
Abinader’s win appears to be an endorsement of his handling of the economy and tough policies towards migration from neighbouring Haiti.
With just over half of voting centres reporting late on Sunday, Abinader held 58.85 percent of the vote. His closest rival, three-time former President Leonel Fernandez, was sat on 27.29 percent, preliminary data from electoral authorities showed.
While final results were pending, Abinader, 56, had clearly won well over the 50 percent needed to rule out a run-off election. That prompted Fernandez, and another rival, Abel Martinez, to concede.
