Leftist Arauz To Face Indigenous Perez In Ecuador Presidential Runoff: Official Projection

Quito, Feb 8 (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 8th Feb, 2021 ) :Leftist economist Andres Arauz will face indigenous candidate Yaku Perez in a presidential election runoff in Ecuador, according to an official projection by the country's National Electoral Council.

Arauz came out top with 31.5 percent of the vote, with Perez on 20.04 percent, following Sunday's polls that were marred by long lines of people waiting to cast ballots as coronavirus restrictions caused chaos.

Right-wing ex-banker Guillermo Lasso, who was initially expected to face Arauz in a runoff, received 19.97 percent, according to the electoral body's first count.

To win outright, a candidate needs 50 percent plus one vote or 40 percent and a 10-point lead over the nearest rival.

Arauz, a protege of former president Rafael Correa, claimed a "resounding victory in all regions of our beautiful country" although he urged supporters to wait for official results before celebrating.

The projection was based on 90.4 percent of the results from the 2,425 polling stations selected for the quick count, according to Election Council president Diana Atamaint.

The vote took place amid a backdrop of economic problems exacerbated by a second wave of the coronavirus pandemic that has swept Latin America and claimed 15,000 lives in Ecuador.

Strict health precautions appeared to slow voting, and may have discouraged some from casting their ballots as long lines stretched outside polling stations.

"I hope that at last we will elect a president who is not corrupt, and that there are changes, Sebastian Amaguaya, 23, told AFP as he waited to vote.

The country's 13.1 million voters were choosing a successor to unpopular socialist President Lenin Moreno and the 137 members of the unicameral congress.

The field had been congested, with 16 candidates, including Ximena Pena, the only woman.

- End to austerity? - Arauz, 36, represents the Union of Hope (UNES) coalition of left-wing parties, while lawyer Perez, 51, is from the left-wing Pachakutik party.

Arauz's mentor Correa -- a two-time president who currently lives in Belgium to evade a conviction for corruption -- remains a strong force in the country.

"People have voted not in direct support to Arauz but because he is the Correa candidate," political scientist Karen Garzon Sherdek, from the International University SEK, told AFP.

"Thank you dear Ecuador!" Correa tweeted as the results came in. "The Citizen Revolution has won overwhelmingly, despite a dirty campaign and 4 years of brutal persecution and infamy." Arauz has promised to return the country to a socialist path after a four-year, austerity-driven hiatus under Moreno.

He has pledged to disburse $1,000 to a million families during his first month in office, as well as a special tax on the rich.

- Under pressure - Ecuador is mired in debt as the profits of an oil boom during the Correa presidency dried up under Moreno as the price of crude crashed.

National debt rose from 26 percent of GDP to 44 percent during Moreno's term.

The coronavirus epidemic has piled on the pressure, with some $6.4 billion in losses attributed directly to the health crisis, according to government data.

Ecuador's economy is forecast to contract 8.9 percent in 2020, while unemployment reached 8.6 percent last September -- more than doubling in nine months.

Moreno, his popularity at an all-time low of seven percent, did not seek reelection. His four-year term will end on May 24.