Mulino a late entry to Panama election [Video]

Panama City –

José Raúl Mulino said he was practically retired from politics just over six months ago.

Now, he’ll be Panama’s president for the next five years.

Standing before a pack of supporters Sunday night, Mulino said: “I never imagined this.”

In a historic and tumultuous election, preliminary results put Mulino on top to lead the normally sleepy Central American nation through a moment of political tension, historic migration and a struggling economy.

The 64-year-old lawyer, whose last position in politics was as minister of security in then President Ricardo Martinelli’s 2009-2014 administration, was initially tapped by the popular former leader to be his running mate after Martinelli’s wife declined.

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But then Martinelli was disqualified from running after he was sentenced to more than 10 years in prison for a money laundering conviction. Mulino took his …