The young man of Palestinian origin, Najib Abukila, won the first round of the presidential election of El Salvador by winning 53% of the votes in this smaller but more populous country in Latin America.
"At this moment, we can state with absolute certainty that we won the presidency of the Republic of El Salvador," said Abuela, 37, who is known as Spanish Nayeb Pocelli in front of his supporters at a rally in San Salvador.
Najib Abukaila Qattan, who was mayor of El Salvador from 2015 until last year, is rooted in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, born in San Salvador, from a Palestinian father who died two years ago and a Salvadoran mother. Her four-year-old husband, Naguib Aboukila, married four years ago from Salvadoran Gabriela Rodríguez and is known for his ongoing campaign against corruption and bribery.
The wealthy businessman Carlos Cayeja, a member of the National Republican Alliance and the left-wing party's candidate, former foreign minister Hugo Martinez, approved the victory of Abu Bakila, who ran under the banner of the conservative party, the Grand Alliance for Unity.
Abu Bakila, who will be the sixth president since the end of the 1992 civil war in 1992, pledged during his campaign to increase investment in education and fight corruption, but his main task would be to implement new programs to enhance security.
Abukaila will serve a five-year non-renewable term at a time when the right-wing National Republican Alliance (NRP) party controls the parliamentary majority until the next legislative elections in at least 2021.
More than 5.2 million people were invited to cast their ballots in a peaceful election in a typical festive atmosphere in such circumstances in El Salvador.