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Ecuador elects young businessman turned politician, following governmental scandal

2 mins read
October 16, 2023

The 35-year-old conservative, Daniel Noboa, defeated Luisa González from the progressive Citizen Revolution Movement party. Noboa ran a campaign focused on stronger enforcement of violent crime and bringing a “New Ecuador” as the previous presidency ended in a corruption trial and murders have become a national concern.

Daniel Noboa
Daniel Noboa, President-elect of Ecuador during a political rally. He wears a vest since a candidate, Fernando Villavicencio, was shot to death during a campaign rally | © Daniel Noboa, Twitter

Last night, the National Electoral Council of Ecuador (CNE) announced that the general election favored the moderate National Democratic Action party (ADN), presided by Daniel Noboa. He left behind Luisa González of the left-wing Citizen Revolution party (RC), known for its proximity to the movement called “correísmo” after the president of Ecuador between 2007 and 2017, Rafael Correa.

Noboa was able to preside over these general elections which had an 82,33% turnout according to the CNE. He will be the youngest person ever to serve as Ecuadorian president. González would have been the first woman to assume this role if the results had been in her favor.

Daniel Noboa is the son of Álvaro Noboa, one of the richest businessmen in the country who built an empire in fertilizers, plastics, or also with the banana brand Bonita. Daniel was a businessman before becoming a politician, founding an entertainment company when he was 18 years old. In 2021, he was elected as a representative in the National Assembly, the main legislative body of Ecuador.

These elections occurred as a result of a political crisis that engulfed the previous presidency.

Guillermo Lasso was elected president of Ecuador for a term ranging from 2021 to 2025, however, in May of 2023, Lasso utilized a constitutional mechanism to end his term prematurely and summon new elections, due to being engulfed in a corruption scandal.

Daniel Noboa
Daniel Noboa during a meeting with young Ecuadorians | © Daniel Noboa, Twitter

Lasso was accused of being involved in a large-scale government corruption case involving the president himself as well as other politicians and figures involved in drug trafficking, based on information first brought forward in an extensive investigation by Ecuadorian media La Posta in January 2021. The case involved colluding with drug traffickers, forgery of official documents leading to misuse of public funds and helping some companies avoid regulations.

Lasso was brought on trial to the National Assembly in May 2023 to testify. However, before the trial reached a verdict, Lasso invoked Article 148 of the Constitution, allowing the president of Ecuador to dissolve the National Assembly under specific conditions. Since he was on trial by the National Assembly, its dissolution meant the trial was null, and new elections had to be celebrated. The reason afforded by Lasso was the “severe political crisis” in the government, caused by the trial.

Daniel Noboa’s campaign promised stricter law enforcement, amidst the increase in gun violence and murders in the country. According to the Ecuadorian Government’s Institute of Statistics, the year 2022 had the highest peak of intentional homicides in the country since the data started being collected in 2014. In 2022, Ecuador had 4,823 intentional homicides, almost twice the number in 2021. This increase has been attributed to drug trafficking.

In addition to the statistical increase of violence, the presidential campaign was marked by the murder of one of the candidates, Fernando Villavicencio. He was assassinated via gunshots at the exit of a campaign rally with supporters. Members of the group responsible were arrested and claimed to be part of a criminal organization.

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Alexander Saraff Marcos

Alexander is a writer for Newsendip.
He is a dual citizen of the United States and Spain and lives between Spain and France. He graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with a major in philosophy and a minor in French. He loves watching e-sport on his spare time.