Electoral Officals have indicated that left-wing candidate Andrés Manuel López Obrador had won Mexico's Presidential Elections with a handsome margin of 53% of votes.

Obrador, a former mayor of Mexico City, who was the front-runner before the country went to vote, was given that same margin in exit polls according to one survey by Parametria.

His competitor Jose Antonio Meade, a former finance minister and candidate for the centre-right Institutional Revolutionary Party, has already conceded defeat in a speech to his supporters. "He will have the responsibility to conduct the executive power, and for the good of Mexico I wish him well," Meade said.

Soon after Meade's speech, Ricardo Anaya Cortes, who led a coalition of parties and was considered the strongest challenger to Obrador, also threw in the towel. Jaime Rodríguez Calderon, known as El Bronco, also conceded defeat.

The CNN quoted Obrador as saying, "Today, they have recognized our victory." He is known by his initials AMLO, and he spoke to a crowd of jubilant supporters at an event in Mexico City late Sunday local time after the preliminary results were declared.

Sitting President Enrique Peña Nieto called Lopez Obrador shortly beforehand to congratulate him and pledged to help him carry out an orderly transition.

Within hours of his opponents conceding defeat, U.S. President Donald Trump congratulated Obrador in a tweet, saying he looked forward to working with him. "There is much to be done that will benefit both the United States and Mexico," Trump said.

Obrador will have to contend with Trump's threats to pull out of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and his calls for the construction of a border wall between the two countries, among other divisive talking points. During his campaign, Lopez Obrador has promised to pushed back against plans for a border wall in a book he wrote titled "Oye Trump, or "Listen Trump." He also pledged to propose to keep NAFTA. He has been the candidate most critical of Donald Trump and has said he will make the U.S. president "see reason".

Sunday's election is the culmination of one of Mexico's deadliest campaigns in decades with more than 130 political candidates and party workers killed as candidates promised to crack down on drug cartels and gang violence in the country.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 02, 2018 10:15 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).