QUITO, Ecuador (AP) – Voters in Ecuador appeared to be turning to a conservative businessman in Sunday’s presidential election, disapproving of a leftist movement that held the presidency for more than a decade marked by an economic boom and then years of recession. while in neighboring Peru, a crowded field of 18 candidates would almost certainly result in a second round of presidential elections in June.
Voters in Ecuador and Peru have cast their votes under strict public health measures over the coronavirus pandemic, which has recently intensified in both countries, leading to the return of lockdowns and growing concerns about their already battered economies. Peruvians also elected a new congress.
Ecuador’s Electoral Council had not declared an official winner in the contest to replace President Lenín Moreno next month, but the results released by the agency showed that former banker Guillermo Lasso had about 53% of the vote and left-wing Andrés Arauz 47%. with just over 90% of the votes counted. Arauz led the first round of voting by more than 30% on Feb. 7, while Lasso reached the final by finishing about half a percentage point ahead of environmentalist and indigenous candidate Yaku Pérez.
Arauz was backed by former President Rafael Correa, a major force in the South American country, despite a corruption conviction that led him to flee to Belgium beyond the reach of Ecuadorian prosecutors. Moreno was also an ally of Correa, but turned against him during his tenure.
“Correa’s negatives outweighed expectations of a new, unknown candidate who had no career and who was not campaigning very well,” said Grace M. Jaramillo, an adjunct professor at the University of British Columbia whose research is also Latin. America includes. “He didn’t speak to all audiences … to the entire population, and he couldn’t respond to allegations of human rights from the Correista era.”
Correa reigned as an ally of the Cuban Fidel Castro and the Venezuelan Hugo Chavez from 2007 to 2017. He oversaw a period of economic growth fueled by an oil boom and loans from China that allowed him to expand social programs, build roads and schools, and pursue other projects.
But Correa increasingly acted against opponents, the press and the business community during his last tenure, arguing with indigenous groups over development projects. Ecuador also experienced an economic slowdown in 2015, largely driven by the fall in oil prices.
Lasso finished second in the previous two presidential games. He is in favor of free market policies and Ecuador’s rapprochement with international organizations. During the campaign, he proposed raising the minimum wage to $ 500, finding ways to get more youth and women into the labor market, and cutting rates on farm equipment.
“For years I dreamed of being able to serve Ecuadorians so that the country progresses so that we can all live better,” Lasso said in front of a room full of supporters despite guidelines for social distance. “Today you decided that this is so.”
Accompanied by his wife, María de Lourdes Alcívar, Lasso said that from May 24, he will dedicate himself to “building a national project that will keep listening to everyone, because this project will be yours”.
Despite his outspoken conservative stance on issues such as marriage equality, he promised to accept other stances.
Election officials had no plans to officially declare a winner on Sunday, but at least one head of state congratulated Lasso on the election result. Uruguayan President Luis Lacalle Pou tweeted that he had spoken to Lasso “to congratulate him on his success and to work together on the problems common to our countries.”
Ecuador is deep in a recession that many fear will worsen as lockdowns return due to a spike in COVID-19 cases. According to data from Johns Hopkins University in the United States, Ecuador has recorded more than 344,000 cases and more than 17,200 deaths as of Sunday.
The new president’s main task will be “to depolarize the country,” Jaramillo said. “There will be no signs of governance if the new government does not reach out and generate a platform where agreements with the (National) Assembly are possible.”
Peru’s election turned into a popularity contest in which one candidate even talked about how he suppresses his sexual desires. The crowded field of presidential hopefuls came months after the country’s political chaos reached new levels in November, when three men were president in one week after one was impeached by Congress over corruption charges and protests that forced his successor To act in favor of the third party. .
All former Peruvian presidents who have ruled since 1985 have become entangled in corruption charges, some imprisoned or arrested in their mansions. One of them died by suicide before the police could arrest him.
Claudia Navas, a political, social and security risk analyst at the global firm Control Risks, said the fragmented elections were the result of an 11-party political system lacking ideological cohesion. She said Peruvians generally do not trust politicians, with corruption being a major cause of disenchantment in the political system.
Navas said the congressional elections would likely result in a fragmented legislature without a party having a clear majority, and political alliances will remain short-lived. She said the new Congress would also likely continue to exercise its impeachment authority to bolster its own influence and block any initiative that threatens its own power.
So we will probably continue to see significant legislative populism. This implies measures that seek to meet public needs and short-term requirements at the expense of medium and long-term sustainability, ”said Navas. “Regardless of who wins, we believe that the president is somewhat unlikely to complete his or her term because of the populist stance of Congress and the risk of political instability is likely to remain with the government.
To avoid a run-off in June, a candidate would need more than 50% of the vote, and an exit poll found that the lead candidate would only get about 16% support. The poll led conservative left-wing teacher Pedro Castillo, followed by right-wing economist Hernando de Soto and Keiko Fujimori, the opposition leader and daughter of polarizing former president Alberto Fujimori.
The country is one of the hardest hit by COVID-19, with more than 1.6 million cases and more than 54,600 dead as of Sunday.
Associated Press writer Regina Garcia Cano covered this story from Mexico City and AP writer Gonzalo Solano from Quito.