Buenos Aires Herald 
Over 13 million Ecuadorians are expected to head to the polls on Sunday to vote in a polarized presidential runoff. The Ecuador election faces off President Daniel Noboa, who seeks to continue in power, and opposition leader Luisa González, who is backed by the left-wing former incumbent Rafael Correa.
In February, Noboa — who runs under the coalition Acción Democrática Nacional (ADN) — and González (Movimiento Revolución Ciudadana) were side-by-side in the general election, taking 44.15% and 44% of the respective vote share.
With such a slim margin between both candidates in the general election, every vote will count to define what Ecuador’s political landscape will look like over the next four years. Whichever candidate wins will face the difficult challenge to oversee a violence and security crisis that has risen in recent years. Organized crime is a major issue while an energy deficit and economic problems are what Ecuador’s next president will need to address after taking office on May 24.
Neither candidate will begin their tenure with a majority in the National Assembly, meaning they will be tasked with negotiating and forming alliances in order for bills to be passed.
Noboa is Ecuador’s youngest-ever president, at 37, and has been in office just shy of 18 months. He won a snap election in May 2023 after his predecessor Guillermo Lasso had invoked a constitutional clause known as two-way death. This action also dissolved the country’s national assembly.
Son of Álvaro Noboa, a banana business giant who also ran for president several times, the incumbent president is backed by the United States and has a liberal economic stance. “Our policy is to have a good relationship with the U.S.,” he said in an event with Ecuadorian migrants in the United States in late March. “Our stance is to give [them] opportunities in our country, because we have to give a fight against the [migration] problem from the root.” Around the same time, he met with Trump in Mar-a-Lago. He later said in an interview that the meeting was “fairly positive” but didn’t give further details of their talks.
González, on the other hand, has made campaign promises to bring back progressive, Correa-era policies to Ecuador. She has focused her efforts on social justice to solve the country’s security problems. If elected, she would be Ecuador’s first ever female president.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has also publicly backed her. González has promised to re-establish diplomatic relations with Mexico and Venezuela if she wins.
Ecuador has been under an “internal armed conflict” state declared by Noboa since January 2024 as part of the fight against organized crime. On Saturday, Noboa declared a state of emergency for the ninth time since he became president. It will be in place for 60 days in five provinces, suspending constitutional rights and guarantees. He also established a 10 p.m.-5 a.m. curfew for 22 cities and closed all land borders for election day.