Country went out to vote on Sunday, 9, amid the economic crisis and the war against the cartels of drug trafficking
First polls Boca de ballot indicates that it could be reelected in the first round in Ecuador, with just over 50% of the votes. The investigation, however, is underway and the numbers are not yet official. The country went out to vote on Sunday, 9, amid the economic crisis and the war against the cartels of drug trafficking. In all, 16 candidates competed for the presidency of Ecuador, but only two were competitive: Daniel Noboa, the current president, and Luisa González, sponsored by former President Rafael Correa (2007-2017).
According to the ballot box, noboa could reach 50.12% of the votes, while Luisa González would have 42.2%. With this result, if confirmed, the president would be reelected in the first round. The margin of error of the survey is 2.98%. To confirm to secure victory on Sunday, you must have more than 50% of the votes or 40%, provided that the advantage for the runner -up is ten percentage points. The second round, if necessary, will be played in April.
Daniel Noboa, heir to the “Empire of Bananas”, was elected in 2023 for a mandate buffer after then -President Guilherme Lasso dissolved the National Assembly of Ecuador and anticipated the elections to avoid an impeachment process for corruption.
In power, he faced a rebellion of criminals, who even broke into a live TV studio, and decreed internal armed conflict against gangs. The homicide rate fell at first, but went up and reached a record level for the month in January. In addition to violence, the president faced blackouts caused by severe drought. Still, he appeared as a favorite in the research.
The participation was 83% of almost 14 million Ecuadorians able to vote, according to the National Electoral Council. “The vote occurred with absolute normality, prevailing order, safety and the peaceful environment,” said CNE President Diana Atamaint.
Ecuador closed the borders before voting and reinforced security in the electoral sections throughout the country with 100,000 agents. In some provinces, voters have undergone magazines or metal detectors.
The election had 1,600 national and international observers and ran smoothly. Although emergency services warned of “serious allegations of possible attack on democracy,” no significant incident has been recorded.
“Here in Ecuador the results are presented in real time, no minutes are hidden, people are informed that we respect their votes deposited at the polls,” said Diana Atamaint when opening the vote. It was a probable allusion to Venezuela, where Chavismo proclaimed Nicolás Maduro’s victory without ever presenting the minutes.
Earlier, Luisa González had denounced “irregularities” in the process, referring to Daniel Noboa’s reluctance to graduate from the presidency during the election campaign. “It violated the law and the constitution,” she said when he vote.
The constitution of the Ecuador obliges presidents seeking reelection to request removal. However, he refused to leave the presidency to Vice Veronica Abad, whom he called “unfair”, and appointed the Secretary of Public Administration Cynthia Gellibert as responsible for the presidency, only on the days when he was in electoral activities.
*With information from Estadão Content
Posted by Fernando Dias
