El Salvador Hangs a Left

Mauricio Funes, leader of El Salvador's left-most political party, is expected to win presidential election there. The party, known locally as the Frente, is the political offspring of leftist guerrilla groups involved in the nation's civil war.

Funes himself was not a fighter. An outspoken critic of the government, he was a long-time television journalist for El Salvador's Channel 12, reports the Miami Herald.

Critics call Funes a communist who will realign relations towards Venezuela and away from the United States and set up an unworkable economic model that will ruin the nation. Supporters contend Funes will be able to allow economic growth while also reducing poverty and inequality, and Funes has pledged to keep friendly relations with the U.S.