Rightist businessman Ricardo Martinelli has been declared the winner in Panama's presidential election.

右派商人Ricardo Martinelli已经声明赢得巴拿马的总统竞选。

Martinelli defeated the ruling party candidate

With 43.68% of the votes counted, the National Electoral Board announced that Mr Martinelli, of the Democratic Change party, had won.

Correspondents say he had tapped into the concerns of the poor by promising¹ to get tough on crime and corruption².

He defeated centre-left rival Balbina Herrera of the ruling Revolutionary Democratic Party (PRD).

Presidents in Panama are elected for a single, five-year term, and the incumbent³（在职者）, the PRD's Martin Torrijos, is standing⁴ down.

Mr Martinelli will face a series of economic challenges as the global economic downturn hits the crucial trade link of the Panama Canal.

He had stood for（代表） president in 2004 and only gained around 5% of the vote.

But the BBC's Will Grant, reporting from the region, says this time around he appeared more in touch with the concerns of poor Panamanians by promising to clamp down on（进行压制） political corruption and get tough on violent crime.

He has been critical of Mr Torrijos and Ms Herrera, whom he accuses of failing to tackle poverty while lining⁵ their pockets in the process.

In 2006 President Torrijos won a referendum（公民投票，请示书） on his proposal to widen the Panama canal, and economic growth during his administration has averaged around 8.5%.

But Mr Martinelli spent heavily on marketing⁶, an estimated $35m, and with his wife he crossed the country giving grants and other financial incentives⁷（福利金） to students.

He now faces a complicated task in government, our correspondent says.

Panama receives a little under one-third of its tax revenues from the canal, but amid the global economic crisis traffic through the canal has slowed significantly.