Buenos Aires [Argentina], October 16: Voting has got under way in Ecuador's presidential elections with voters given a choice between the country's first female president and its youngest ever.
Leftist politician Luisa Gonzalez from the camp of ex-president Rafael Correa, who has been convicted of corruption, and banana entrepreneur Daniel Noboa are facing off following a campaign overshadowed by political violence.
Noboa of the centre-right National Democratic Action alliance turns 36 in November. He is the heir to his father Alvaro Noboa's banana business empire.
The outcome of the run-off vote will be a historic first, no matter which of the two contenders wins: leftist politician Luisa Gonzalez from the camp of ex-president Rafael Correa, who has been convicted of corruption, and banana entrepreneur Daniel Noboa.
Voters have a choice between having their first female president or the youngest ever in Ecuador's history.
The campaign leading up to Sunday's elections was overshadowed by the death of presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio, who was shot dead on August 9 after a campaign event in Quito. The government blamed organized crime for Villavicencio's death.
Ecuador serves as a transit country for cocaine and crime syndicates fight over the routes for drug trafficking. Villavicencio had promised to crack down on corruption and crime.
Last weekend, seven suspects thought to have been linked to his murder were found dead in prison.
The first round of voting in Ecuador's presidential elections place on August 20, in which Gonzalez came out on top. However none of the candidates achieved the neccessary majority of the votes.
The elections had been brought forward after conservative President Guillermo Lasso dissolved the National Assembly amid impeachment proceedings against him for alleged embezzlement.
Source:Qatar Tribune