Rio Tinto can expect Mongolia to continue pushing for a better deal over the $US6.75 billion Oyu Tolgoi copper project after a landslide presidential election result, but experts say a strong performance by a globally minded tech entrepreneur could be a sign the nation’s combative political culture is evolving.

The man who was Mongolian prime minister until January, Khurelsukh Ukhnaa, was on Wednesday elected president of the nation that houses Rio’s most important growth project.