Elections results in Costa Rica have put Laura Chinchilla on course to be the country's first woman president.
Initial results from Sunday's vote gave her an almost unassailable lead and the main opposition contender, Otton Solis, has conceded.
With 47% of votes, Mrs Chinchilla, 50, was 20 percentage points ahead and over the 40% threshold for an outright win.
A former deputy to outgoing President Oscar Arias, she pledges to continue moderate free-market policies.
Mr Solis - who was narrowly defeated by Mr Arias in Costa Rica's previous presidential vote - was quick to declare Mrs Chinchilla the winner.
"With a lot of respect, we accept the reality," the AFP news agency quoted him as telling supporters.
Critics of Mrs Chinchilla say she is too close to Mr Arias, and that he will continue to control government policies.
The party of Mr Arias, a Nobel Peace Prize winner, has dominated politics for decades in what is one of Latin America's most stable countries.
The country abolished its army in 1949 and has become known in recent years for tourism and progressive environmental policies.
(taken from http://news.bbc.co.uk/)
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