Colombian President Gustavo Petro. Photo: AFP/File photo.
Amidst the irregularities that characterized the second round of general elections in Ecuador, held last Sunday, April 13, Colombian President Gustavo Petro has announced that he “cannot recognize the [results of the] elections in Ecuador,” regarding the irregularities that have characterized the second round of general elections in Ecuador, held last Sunday, April 13, and the count tallied by the National Electoral Council (CNE).
Petro justified his stance by citing irregularities highlighted by the Organization of American States (OAS) and the state of emergency decreed by the then-president and reelection-aspiring candidate, Daniel Noboa, in seven provinces of the country—where more than half of the electoral roll is concentrated, with leftist orientation—hours before the vote.
“The Army directed the election day, the polling stations, and the vote count,” Petro explained. “There are no free elections under a state of siege.”
La OEA señala irregularidades en las elecciones del Ecuador.
En siete provincias se decreto el estado de excepción. El ejército dirigió la jornada electoral, las mesas durante las elecciones, y el conteo de votos
No hay elecciones libres bajo estado de sitio.
No puedo…
— Gustavo Petro (@petrogustavo) April 16, 2025
Regional reactions
Just hours after the CNE announced the runoff results and declared far-right candidate Daniel Noboa the winner, Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro claimed the reelection constituted “a scandalous and shameful fraud organized by the NGO founded by María Corina Machado, Súmate, with funds from US imperialism.”
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum opted to delay a recognition of the results on Ecuador’s presidential elections and suspended her remarks. “We’ll wait,” Sheinbaum said. “Luisa, the candidate, doesn’t recognize Noboa’s victory. We’ll wait.” This stance heightens political tensions between the two nations, whose relationship has already been strained for over a year.
Mexico’s Sheinbaum Delays Recognition of Ecuador’s Electoral Results (+Chile’s Boric)
Domestic criticism
Meanwhile, former Ecuadorian president and historic leader of the Citizens’ Revolution, Rafael Correa, dismissed the CNE’s published data as “impossible.” “We got the same 44% as the first round. These gangsters could have hidden it a little more,” he denounced, using the hashtag #Fraud.
Since Sunday night, Luisa González, the presidential candidate of the Citizens’ Revolution movement—a historic alliance of leftist and indigenous movements and parties—has alleged electoral fraud and rejected the CNE’s results, which declared Daniel Noboa the winner. Noboa also never formally requested leave during the electoral process, as required by law.
(Telesur) with Orinoco Tribune content
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/JRE/AU
