Ecuador Electoral Court Fines Two Amigo Movement Leaders US$9,200 Each
ECUADOR · POLITICS
Key Facts
- —The country Ecuador is an Andean nation of about 18 million people that holds local elections for mayors and prefects on 29 November.
- —The background Amigo is a political movement that gave a ballot line to followers of former president Rafael Correa, the main opposition force.
- —Why now The TCE, Ecuador’s electoral court, ruled on a complaint over Amigo’s campaign accounts from the April 2024 referendum.
- —What happened On Friday 2 October judge Guillermo Ortega fined Amigo’s former legal representative and its finance officer US$9,200 each.
- —The numbers The fine equals 20 basic monthly wages; the law allowed up to 70, plus loss of political rights.
- —What it means for you It adds to a run of rulings against opposition parties before the 29 November vote, a source of political noise.
- —Still open The ruling is a first-instance decision that can be appealed to the court’s full bench, and Amigo remains suspended.
Ecuador’s electoral court has fined two leaders of the Amigo movement US$9,200 each over campaign accounts from the April 2024 referendum. The ruling came on Friday 2 October, eight weeks before local elections on 29 November.
Judge Guillermo Ortega Caicedo of the Tribunal Contencioso Electoral (TCE) declined to strip the two of their political rights, Expreso reported. He cleared the party’s current legal representative.
Who Is the Amigo Movement
Amigo stands for Acción Movilizadora Independiente Generando Oportunidades, or Independent Mobilising Action Generating Opportunities. It is a registered political movement that few outside Ecuador had heard of.
That changed when it took in candidates from Revolución Ciudadana, the movement of former president Rafael Correa. Correa’s party had lost its own place on the ballot, Expreso reported, so Amigo became the vehicle for Ecuador’s largest opposition force.
What the Court Found
The complaint came from José Cabrera, president of the CNE, the National Electoral Council that runs elections. He filed it on 15 July 2026, and the TCE judge admitted it nine days later, Primicias reported.
The case turned on Article 281 of Ecuador’s electoral law, known as the Code of Democracy. It requires parties to report on time how much money they received, from whom and how they spent it.
According to Expreso, the judge found that the Amigo movement backed its campaign income with a single unsupported receipt. It registered for a tax number and opened its campaign bank account late.
Spending on social media and billboard design went unreported, and fees for professionals were not documented. The party then let a 15-day correction period pass without a reply.
The Fines and Who Pays Them
Luis Andrés Benites Orellana, the party’s finance officer, and Víctor Fernando Bravo Encalada, its legal representative during the correction period, were each fined US$9,200. That equals 20 basic monthly wages, the unit Ecuador’s electoral law uses for fines.
They have three months to pay into a CNE account once the ruling is final, or face forced collection. Francisco David Loor Pisco, the current legal representative, was cleared because he took office on 28 November 2025, after the deadline had passed.
The law allowed far more. Fines can reach 70 basic wages, and offenders can lose their political rights for two to four years, Primicias reported.
Why the Judge Stopped Short of a Ban
Judge Ortega rejected the suspension of political rights. In his words, as quoted by Expreso, the failure “did not cause a direct or significant negative effect on the results” of the vote.
The ruling punishes poor bookkeeping. It does not find that the Amigo movement bought votes or hid illegal money.
A Party Already on the Sidelines
The fine lands on a party that cannot run in November anyway. On 17 July another TCE judge provisionally suspended the Amigo movement for nine months at the request of Prosecutor General Carlos Alarcón.
That suspension rests on a separate money-laundering investigation, Expreso reported, and is not affected by Friday’s ruling. Revolución Ciudadana itself was suspended in March in a case over alleged Venezuela-linked campaign funds.
The opposition says these decisions add up to a plan to keep it off the ballot, a charge the government rejects. The dispute is set out in the opposition’s complaint against President Daniel Noboa.
The court has sanctioned other parties too. In a similar case over 2024 referendum accounts, two leaders of Pachakutik, the indigenous movement’s party, were fined US$12,050 each, Expreso reported.
What Comes Next
The ruling is a first-instance decision by a single judge. The two leaders can appeal to the TCE’s full bench, as Pachakutik did in its own case in September, which would delay any payment.
On 29 November Ecuadorians elect mayors, provincial prefects and members of a citizen oversight council, Primicias reported. The Amigo movement will not be on that ballot unless its suspension is lifted, so the bigger test remains the money-laundering case.
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What is the Amigo movement in Ecuador?
It is a small political party that took in candidates from Revolución Ciudadana, the movement of former president Rafael Correa. The Amigo movement is provisionally suspended for nine months from 17 July 2026.
Why were its leaders fined?
The TCE found the party did not properly report its income and spending in the April 2024 referendum campaign. Two officials were fined US$9,200 each.
Does the fine ban the party or its leaders from politics?
No. The judge refused to suspend their political rights, saying the failure did not affect the vote’s result. The separate suspension of the Amigo movement stems from a money-laundering investigation.
Can the ruling be appealed?
Yes. First-instance TCE rulings can be appealed to the court’s full bench, as the Pachakutik party did in a similar case in September.
Sources: Expreso, 3 October 2026; Primicias, 25 July 2026; Expreso, July 2026; Expreso, 25 September 2026; Primicias, 27 March 2026.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief