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GUAYAQUIL, Ecuador — A runoff election later in the year is anticipated in Ecuador’s presidential race, as early voting results revealed a narrow margin between incumbent conservative President Daniel Noboa and leftist attorney Luisa González.
Reports from Ecuador’s National Electoral Council, which has tallied 66% of the votes, indicated that Noboa garnered over 3.09 million votes, accounting for 44.7%, while González closely followed with over 3.02 million votes, equating to 43.8%. The remaining candidates collectively trailed significantly behind the two frontrunners.
This election mirrors the events of 2023, where voters opted for the youthful millionaire Noboa over González, who is aligned with the country’s most notable president of this century.
All candidates participated in the race with promises to mitigate the rampant crime that has altered daily life over the past four years.
The surge in violence across Ecuador correlates with narcotic trafficking from neighboring Colombia and Peru. Many citizens have fallen victim to crime, leading their personal and shared experiences to influence the pressing decision regarding whether to allow a third president in four years to effect change, or to grant Noboa additional time in office.
Ecuador’s electoral authority noted that over 83% of approximately 13.7 million eligible voters cast their ballots, as voting is compulsory in the nation.
In the bustling port city of Guayaquil, voters lined up outside a public university amid light rain and later under intense sunlight, anticipating the participation of tens of thousands.
“The current president is a disaster for me,” stated Marta Barres, 35, who brought her three teenagers to vote. “Can he make any difference in another four years? No, he has not accomplished anything.”
Barres, who pays $25 monthly to a local gang to evade harassment and violence, expressed her support for González, whom she believes is capable of addressing crime-related issues and bolstering the economy.
To secure an outright victory, a candidate must achieve either 50% of the vote or at least 40% with a 10-point lead over the closest competitor. A runoff, if necessary, is scheduled for April 13.
Over 100,000 police and military personnel were mobilized nationwide to ensure election security, including at polling locations. Notably, at a voting site in the Pacific coast community of Olón, at least 50 officers accompanied Noboa, who cast his ballot alongside his wife and their toddler.
Noboa had previously triumphed over González in an October runoff during a snap election prompted by the then-President Guillermo Lasso’s decision to dissolve the National Assembly, cut his own term short, and call for new elections. Both Noboa and González had brief experiences as lawmakers before embarking on their presidential campaigns in 2023.
At 37 years old, Noboa is a wealthy heir in the banana industry who initiated an event management company at 18 before joining his family business, Noboa Corp. His political journey initiated in 2021 when he won a seat in the National Assembly, later chairing its Economic Development Commission.
Under Noboa’s leadership, the homicide rate decreased from 46.18 per 100,000 people in 2023 to 38.76 per 100,000 in the subsequent year. Nevertheless, these figures continue to be substantially higher than the 6.85 per 100,000 recorded in 2019. His aggressive strategies for combatting crime have drawn scrutiny domestically and internationally for potentially straining the limits of legal and governance norms.
These controversial methods encompass the internal armed conflict declaration issued in January 2024 to mobilize military forces in crime-riddled areas, along with last year’s contentious police raid on Mexico’s embassy in Quito to apprehend former Vice President Jorge Glas, a fugitive and convicted criminal residing there.
Nevertheless, Noboa’s assertive tactics have secured him votes. “I voted for Noboa due to his capabilities and his direct confrontation with drug trafficking and corruption,” stated Pablo Votruba, a retired physician in Quito.
González, aged 47, has held several government positions during Correa’s presidency from 2007 to 2017, a period characterized by spending initiatives and a gradual increase in authoritarianism. In 2020, she was sentenced to prison in absentia due to corruption accusations.
She served as a lawmaker until May 2023 when Lasso dissolved the National Assembly. Known to few prior to being named as her party’s candidate for the snap elections, she has since captured the public’s attention.
“They are the fear; we are the hope, the hope for change and better days ahead,” she remarked to reporters after voting in her hometown of Canuto, located in northwestern Ecuador.
Meanwhile, soldiers hindered presidential candidate Andrea González—unrelated to Luisa—from entering her assigned polling station with her security detail. After a brief discussion, she was permitted entry along only with her chief of security.
Architecture student Keila Torres hesitated over her voting decision while waiting in Guayaquil, expressing skepticism that any candidate could effectively tackle the underlying crime issues due to entrenched governmental corruption.
“If I had the option, I wouldn’t be here,” Torres said, recounting her experiences of witnessing three robberies on public buses over the last four years and narrowly avoiding a carjacking last December. “Things are not going to change.”
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