Santos sweeps to victory in Colombia

Colombia’s former Defence Minister Juan Manuel Santos has won the country’s presidency in a landslide victory.

He took 69 percent of the vote in the run-off against the former Mayor of Bogota Antanas Mockus.

Santos has promised to continue the pro-business and security policies of his predecessor Alvaro Uribe.

Mockus and his small Green party had campaigned on a call for cleaner government but was unable to stop Santos who was closely identified with the popular Uribe.

He was unable to stand for a third term under Colombia’s constitution but his fight against left wing FARC rebels during his time in office had the backing of much of the country.

In a sharp reminder of the lingering conflict facing Santos, seven police officers died in a land mine blast and troops killed six rebels on election day.

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