Luisa Gonzalez wants to be Ecuador’s president. Will Correa weigh her down?
Even small fluctuations in support could tilt the election. Experts believe the run-off may come down to relatively small margins, given how tight the first round of voting was.
The general election took place on February 9. But the outcome was a shocker.
President Noboa had rallied his supporters with the slogan “Una Sola Vuelta” — one single round. His intention was to deliver a landslide in the first vote. But he failed to meet the 50-percent threshold needed to prevent a run-off.
Instead, he earned 44 percent of the vote. So did Gonzalez. Noboa had an edge of only about 16,000 ballots, in a country of 13.7 million registered voters.
The second round is likewise expected to be a nail-biter. A poll this month from the Ecuadorian firm Comunicaliza found Gonzalez with 49.7 percent support, to Noboa”s 50.3. Other polls showed her slightly ahead.
Part of Gonzalez”s strategy has been to set herself apart from Noboa, the 37-year-old heir to a banana industry fortune. At a televised debate in late March, she highlighted their class differences in a segment about healthcare accessibility.
“Maybe it doesn”t matter to you because you travel in your private plane to New York and Miami, but it does matter to the rest of us,” she said.
Gonzalez, a lawyer, was born in 1977 in Quito and raised in Manabí, a coastal province that has become a stronghold for Correa”s governing philosophy, correísmo.
She identifies as “montubia”, part of a mestizo group from the area.
In her campaign messages, she often highlights her humble roots, saying she grew up with limited means in the rural town of Canuto. Her election, she says, would be a victory for other working-class people.
“On April 13, Manabi will raise its voice with dignity,” she posted before the run-off vote. “No more contempt for our humble people, no more exclusion or abandonment.”
Source: Apps Support