Ecuador votes for a new President

It does not sound like a job many would want as the last three Ecuadorian presidents have been thrown out of office, but 13 candidates are battling for the office in today’s election. 9.2 million electors are voting but opinion polls say a second round is likely as none of the frontrunners are forecast to be able to win outright.

The top two will go forward to the second round. These are likely to be one of Latin America’s richest men, banana billionaire Alvaro Noboa, who is running for a third time, and Rafael Correa. Despite being a Harvard-trained economist, Correa is a left-winger promising to lead a “citizen’s revolution”, and is an admirer of America’s bugbear, Hugo Chavez of Venezuela.

Analysts say Correa has built his lead through an imaginative campaign, charisma, and telling the people what they want to hear.

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