Ecuador Votes

Conservative lawmaker Daniel Noboa defeated leftist Luisa Gonzalez in Ecuador's presidential race Sunday, garnering roughly 52% of the vote and capping a six-month campaign that saw one of its leading candidates assassinated amid a wider surge in gang-related violence.

At 35, Noboa will become the youngest president in Ecuador's history, achieving the goal his father Álvaro Noboa—the country's wealthiest individual—aspired to five times. Noboa has held positions in his father's businesses—including Bonita bananas, a major exporter of the fruit—and was elected to the National Assembly in 2021. His campaign focused on reducing record crime levels, increasing youth employment, and expanding healthcare access while reducing taxes.

The irregular election was called after current president, Guillermo Lasso, utilized a constitutional mechanism in April that both dissolved the legislature and triggered new elections as he faced an impeachment trial over embezzlement charges. Noboa will face reelection in just a year and a half.