The first round of Ecuador’s presidential election has not yielded an absolute winner, writes AP news agency. The leftist Luisa González received the most people with more than a third of the votes and will compete in October in the second round against the only 35-year-old Daniel Noboa, who received almost a quarter of the votes.
Elections in the South American country took place under a state of national emergency following the assassination of presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio earlier this month. Tens of thousands of police and military personnel patrolled voting booths and candidates wore body armor and helmets to vote on Sunday. Christian Zurita, who replaced Villavicencio on the ballot, received about 16 percent of the vote.
Luisa González, who received the most votes on Sunday, is an outspoken supporter of left-wing former president Rafael Correa, who was convicted of corruption in Ecuador and has lived in Belgium for several years. Her rival Daniel Noboa is the son of a very wealthy businessman, who made his money by exporting bananas. Ecuador’s elections were called early by conservative President Guillermo Lasso after he dissolved parliament to avoid impeachment.
Read also: Assassination of presidential candidate Villavicencio casts shadow over Ecuador’s first round of elections