Ecuador embarks on the final stages of assembling its electoral board for the upcoming extraordinary presidential and legislative elections scheduled for August 20.
Political parties have until Tuesday to register their candidates with the National Electoral Council (CNE).
The registration phase for alliances and internal elections to select candidates concluded last Saturday.
Three candidates are currently in the presidential race, all of whom have satisfied the necessary legal requirements and faced no opposition to their registration.
However, five other prospective candidates who have announced their intention to participate have not yet completed the formal registration process with the CNE.
One woman and seven men are vying for the presidency at this preliminary stage.
The successful candidate will finish the term of current President, former conservative banker Guillermo Lasso, originally set to end in May 2025.
Lasso, who began his term in May 2021, cut it short after invoking the constitutional provision known as “cross death” on May 17, thereby dissolving the National Assembly (Congress) and triggering early elections.
The President made this decision in response to a severe political crisis and internal turmoil resulting from an impeachment trial he faced in the Legislature, where the opposition was seeking his removal from office.
Thus far, the confirmed presidential candidates include Daniel Noboa, a former legislator, and businessman representing the National Democratic Alliance, a coalition of the People, Equality, and Democracy political groups, and Mover.
Noboa, 36, is the son of five-time presidential candidate and businessman Alvaro Noboa.
Other confirmed candidates include politician Bolivar Armijos, running for the Amigo movement, and Otto Sonnenholzner, former vice president of Ecuador from 2018 to 2020, running for the “Actuemos” alliance composed of the Avanza party and SUMA.
Pre-candidates include Yaku Pérez, an indigenous leader and former presidential candidate in 2021; Jan Topic, a security businessman; and former legislator Luisa González, running for the Citizen Revolution movement led by former President Rafael Correa (2007-2017).
Former legislator Fernando Villavicencio and businessman Xavier Hervas, who participated in the 2021 presidential elections, also feature in the list of pre-candidates.
News Ecuador, English news Ecuador, presidential elections Ecuador 2024, political news Ecuador, Luisa González, Bolivar Armijos, Otto Sonnenholzner, Fernando Villavicencio, Xavier Hervas, Daniel Noboa,