The political landscape Juan Carlos Varela is set to face in Panama

Three weeks removed from this year’s presidential election, Juan Carlos Varela has barely begun to adjust to his new position.

The newly-elected Panamanian president, and former vice-president, was elected on May 4th with over 39% of the vote. He now takes the reigns of a government that has overseen the rise of one of Latin America’s most promising economies, while at the same time being undermined by accusations of corruption, bureaucratic inefficiency, and the conglomeration of power.

SEE ALSO: Juan Carlos Varela wins elections in Panama

As vice-president under the previous administration, Varela underwent a very public split with then president, Ricardo Martinelli. The former vice-president was particularly critical of Martinelli’s centralization and concentration of power in the executive office, which he believed exceeded its legal limitations. Because of the dispute, Varela was stripped of most of his responsibilities while still in office.

However, because of constitutional restrictions on term limits, Martinelli was not eligible for re-election. Even so, his so-called protégé of the Democratic Change party—José Domingo Arias—was the favorite to win the election after the final round of opinion polls was released. And yet, in a surprising turn, the opposition candidate—Varela of the Pañamenista Party—ended up pulling out the victory earlier this month.

Much like the two potential candidates vying for the presidency in Colombia—incumbent Juan Manuel Santos and challenger Oscar Ivan Zuluaga— the landscape Varela faces does not center on the economy, but on governmental integrity instead. While the election in Colombia has focused on the two remaining candidates’ differing opinion on granting the FARC militia greater participatory rights in Colombian democracy, the Panamanian election’s focal point was that of governmental corruption and inefficiency.

In both instances, the neighboring economies aren’t the voters’ core preoccupation; instead, voters see government’s actions themselves as the greatest impediment to progress. Bolstered by commercial investment because of the Panama Canal and increasing foreign investment from wealthy Latin Americans—especially Venezuelans—looking to resettle in a more stable democracy, Panama has seen GDP growth average 8% over the past five years. Further, under Martinelli, Panama City’s infrastructure underwent some massive renovations as the Central American metropolis now counts with a subway system and major highway over the old part of town.

And yet, with Manuel Noriega’s military dictatorship from 1983-1989 still fresh in the minds of most Panamanian voters, the worry amongst most of them is the return of an illiberal democratic system to their burgeoning state. While in office, Martinelli manifested some worrisome traits of the autocratic type: even now, while out of office, he still remains head of the party with the most seats in the National Assembly.

Amidst these circumstances, the newly elect Varela enters office with a mandate to clean up government by making it more efficient and more transparent. As The Economist reports,“His other priority, [should be] to change the constitution to strengthen the independence of the Supreme Court, the comptroller-general and other organs of government over which Mr. Martinelli sought to centralize control…” The president has already called for the appointment of a new attorney general and embarked on his quest to further legitimize Panamanian democracy.

The road is long, but as of now, the Panama Varela has been handed stands out as a clear beacon of light amongst an array of unstable, violent, and impoverished Central American states.

SEE ALSO: US adviser helps candidate win Panama presidency