TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras — Ricardo Maduro, a political newcomer who promised a New York City-style crackdown on crime, was officially declared the winner of Honduras' presidential election on Monday and promised more "democracy, transparency and equality for all."
With more than 40 percent of the vote counted, the National Election Tribunal declared Maduro of the Nationalist Party the winner with a projected 53 percent of the vote, compared with 44 percent for his main rival, Rafael Pineda of the ruling Liberal Party.
Pineda accepted defeat, saying "God and the Honduran people have expressed their will."
Maduro's supporters celebrated in Tegucigalpa, driving cheering, honking caravans through the streets.
"We'll start by ensuring that everybody obeys the law as it has never been obeyed before," said Maduro, a 54-year-old businessman with interests ranging from agriculture to hotels. He served as president of the Central Bank under former President Rafael Callejas from 1990 to 1994.
"I won't just simply run the nation, but reform it with more democracy, transparency and equality for all, especially those with less," he said.
While Sunday's election was largely peaceful, violence leading up to the vote underscored the central issue of what to do with a generation of young Hondurans who have grown up amid crime and poverty.
A Nationalist Party congressional candidate was killed by gunmen Friday, and shots were fired at a Liberal Party office Saturday. No suspects were immediately identified.
Economic hardship has also forced hundreds of thousands of Hondurans to seek work in the United States, where voting booths were set up for them in several cities.
Local television showed scenes of Maduro supporters cheering after they voted in Miami. Supporters of the Liberal Party in New Orleans — where Pineda had a slight edge — celebrated with a traditional Honduran meal of yucca and pork skin.
The Liberal Party, which fielded Pineda, a 71-year-old former grade school teacher, governed through some of the roughest times in the history of this Central American country of 6.5 million. Hurricane Mitch hit the country in 1998, killing thousands and causing billions of dollars in damage.
Pineda, who heads the congress, had said he wanted "to make Honduras one big school" with more educational spending. He offered to improve public services with money gained by cracking down on tax evaders.
But Saida Burgos, a 47-year-old housewife who has been robbed three times at knife and gunpoint, voted for Maduro because of his anti-crime program. "The level of public safety here is about as low as it can get," Burgos said.
Maduro is expected to target the tens of thousands of "mara," gang members who frequently stage turf battles and deal drugs.
His tough approach worried voters like Cinthia Baldin, 25. "A lot of innocent people may get hurt. Some young people are in the gangs because they've got no other option," said Baldin, a Pineda supporter.
Maduro's own son was killed by gunmen in 1997. Maduro visited New York City earlier this year, where he met with police and aides to Mayor Rudy Giuliani, and came back saying he wanted to copy the "zero tolerance" anti-crime program that dramatically improved safety there.
The program encouraged police to crack down on minor offenses as a way of discouraging more serious lawbreaking. It also used detailed computer analysis to track criminal trends in each police precinct.
The 3.4 million registered voters in the country — where minimum wages are around $100 per month — also voted for all 128 seats in Congress and nearly 300 mayorships. Neither of the two parties appeared likely to win a majority in congress, leaving them with the prospect of seeking alliances with small parties.