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Ecuador votes: Noboa fights against drug war and high murder rate!
Important presidential elections are coming up in Ecuador on February 10, 2025. Incumbent President Noboa is fighting drug crime and security crises, while his rival challenger González is promising a return to welfare state principles. Who will win the election?
Ecuador votes: Noboa fights against drug war and high murder rate!
The elections in Ecuador are just around the corner and the excitement is literally palpable! Next Sunday, almost 14 million Ecuadorians who are eligible to vote will not only be able to elect a new president, but also elect the members of the National Assembly and the Andean Parliament. The current President Daniel Noboa is in a delicate position: in order to win the elections in the first round, he needs a share of the vote of over 50 percent or a lead of at least ten percentage points. If this does not succeed, a runoff election on April 13th will have to decide who will be at the helm of the country, which is plagued by violence and drug-related crime, and how vienna.at reported.
Noboa, who has only been in office since November 2023 and, at 37, is one of the youngest presidents in the world, faces pressing challenges. Guillermo Lasso's previous term ended in the dissolution of Parliament, and Noboa had to deal with a catastrophic security situation during his short term in office. Ecuador now has the highest murder rate in Latin America, which made the security debate a central campaign issue. At his last appearance, Noboa even had to wear a bulletproof vest because the criminal gangs have penetrated state institutions. Critics accuse him of not sufficiently reforming investigations and police work and speak of an authoritarian regime taz.de reported.
Competition in the race for the presidency
One of his main opponents is Luisa González, who is supported by former President Rafael Correa, who is living in exile after being convicted of corruption. González, who supports social reforms and strengthening the welfare state, had already run against Noboa in the previous elections. There is speculation about whether voters are ready to go back to Correa and his Revolución Ciudadana party after recent authoritarian tendencies, which were criticized during his time in office.
The situation in the country is also reflected in the decisions of Noboa, who has taken numerous risky steps to combat the drug cartels and the escalating violence. An example of the precarious situation was the murder of presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio during his campaign rally. Noboa was indomitable and in the past had even classified the drug cartels as terrorist organizations. While the murder rate increased in 2024, the question remains whether his strength is enough to triumph in the election and effectively combat violence.