2023-10-16 01:24:38
Entrepreneur Daniel Noboa has won the presidential elections in Ecuador. His left-wing opponent Luisa Gonzalez congratulated Noboa on his victory while the runoff election was being counted. After counting almost 90 percent of the votes, Noboa came to 52 percent, as the electoral office announced on Sunday evening (local time) in the capital Quito. Gonzales received 48 percent of the vote. Gonzales is considered a protégé of ex-President Rafael Correa, who was convicted of corruption.
The 35-year-old Noboa, son of entrepreneur and former presidential candidate Alvaro Noboa, ran on the promise of improving the economy and creating jobs for young people. Around a quarter of the 13 million Ecuadorians eligible to vote are between 18 and 29 years old. The 35-year-old himself was elected the youngest president in history.
Noboa is considered a center-right politician. His father, Álvaro Noboa, ran for president five times. If he wins, González would have become Ecuador’s first female president. She won the first round of elections with 33.6 percent of the vote. González belongs to the camp of ex-president Rafael Correa (2007-2017), who was convicted of corruption and lives in exile in Belgium.
However, Noboa will only hold the office for around 18 months from mid-December – until the end of the term of office intended for current President Guillermo Lasso. The conservative dissolved parliament in May after two years in office when it initiated impeachment proceedings against him over allegations of embezzlement. According to the constitution, early elections were necessary.
The South American country with around 18 million inhabitants is struggling with an increasing wave of violence and the growing influence of drug cartels. Hundreds of prisoners were killed in clashes in prisons alone. Noboa has announced that it will house dangerous criminals on prison ships.
However, Noboa will only hold the office for around 18 months from mid-December – until the end of the term of office intended for current President Guillermo Lasso. The conservative dissolved parliament in May after two years in office when it initiated impeachment proceedings against him over allegations of embezzlement. According to the constitution, early elections were necessary.
Eleven days before the first round of elections in August, presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio, who vowed to fight corruption, was shot dead after a campaign rally in the capital Quito. Seven men who were arrested as suspects in the case were found dead in prisons a few days ago.
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