Cartes's victory marks a return to power for the Colorado Party which ruled Paraguay for 61 years until 2008.He will fill a post left vacant after President Fernando Lugo's impeachment last year. Many on the left people party have argued Lugo's ousting amounted to a coup, after his reform programme was blocked by opposition from landowning elites and agribusiness interests. Cartes won out over his main challenger, Efrain Alegre whose centre-right Liberal party took power following Lugo's removal.
