The president of the Dominican Republic, Danilo Medina, always appeared in polls as the favorite for re-election. Medina will have another four-year term and will have the challenge of making economic growth reduce poverty.
On 15 May, the Dominicans went to the polls and faced difficulties. The voting centers opened two hours late due to defects with digital recording electronic machines and layoffs of technical assistants on the eve of the vote.
With 58% of cleared polls, Danilo Medina was re-elected with 61.96 % of the votes against the Modern Revolutionary Party’s Luis Abinader’s 35.23%. Medina is considered a popular ruler because his style of government used in campaigns and increased economic growth through tourism.
The president, 64, is an economist and belongs to the Dominican Liberation Party which has been in power for 12 years. In 2012 he was elected for the first time without the immediate re-election option, but in 2015 pushed through a constitutional reform that allowed the second term dispute.
Despite having the majority in Congress with 24 of the 32 seats in the Senate and 112 of 190 deputies, Medina will have the challenge of reducing poverty, which affects 40% of the 10 million Dominicans. According to the British NGO Oxfam, 20% of the poor do not receive even 5 % of the country’s wealth, while the richest 20% benefit from 50%. Oxfam is one of the international non-governmental organizations spearheading the relief work in emergency situations in the world to end poverty and inequality.
