Varela retains leadership of Panamanistas

By early afternoon Saturday it was clear that Juan Carlos Varela would retain his seat as president of the Panamanista Party with a massive majority.

His opponent Jose Antonio Dominguez acknowledged  that  win  in the race to renew the management structures of the party was  "indisputable” and called to congratulate him and encourage him to work for the unity of the group ahead of the 2014 elections, as the country's next president must be a Panamanista.

arela who has been conducting a presidential style campaign to maintain his hold on the party reins, is currently the country’s Vice President and Foreign Minister. There have been growing signs of a split between the party  he leads and the Democratic Change (CD) party, with which it is allied.

An earlier agreement with President Ricardo Martinelli, promising  support and endorsement for a run at the presidency in 2014 has become clouded, with  Martinelli saying that the decision will not be his, but the CD party, which he founded and leads.
The recent election of a CD deputy to serve as President of the Assembly, when Panamanista members believed it was the turn of the junior member of the ruling coalition has caused friction between  serving legislators.

Lawyer and political analyst, Ebrahim Asvat, felt that the Panamanista Party  should remain in the alliance with Democratic Change,until at least a year before the 2014 elections as a matter of tactics.