Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum. Photo: File photo.Â
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has opted not to declare a position on the presidential elections in Ecuador, where current President Daniel Noboa is leading the results with 55.88% of valid votes compared to 44.12% for the Citizen Revolution Party candidate, Luisa González, according to data from the National Electoral Council (CNE) with over 90% of the votes counted.
This Monday, April 14, during her morning press conference at the National Palace, Sheinbaum stated that she would wait for the results of the vote recounting to be announced before expressing her position. “We are going to wait. Luisa, the candidate, does not recognize Noboa’s victory. We are going to wait,” the president said.
The election result has not been recognized by González, who represents the Citizen Revolution movement led by former President Rafael Correa (2007–2017). She has announced that she will request a recount, citing irregularities in the electoral process.
This rejection adds to the political tensions that have marked relations between Ecuador and Mexico, which have been strained for a year.
The diplomatic tensions arose after the Ecuadorian police invaded the Mexican embassy in Quito on Noboa’s orders to arrest former Vice President Jorge Glas, who is facing a new corruption trial that is seen by many analysts as political persecution via legal tools, also known as lawfare. This incident exacerbated the differences between the two countries and highlighted the political tensions that persist in the region.
President Boric’s fast recognition
Meanwhile, Chilean President Gabriel Boric acknowledged the disputed results of the second round of elections held this Sunday in Ecuador, despite multiple allegations of fraud and the non-recognition of the results by Luisa González.
Boric made the statement via social media, where he congratulated Noboa for “contributing to strengthening democracy in Ecuador.”
“From Chile, we salute the Ecuadorian people for their democratic participation yesterday. I congratulate President-elect Daniel Noboa on this new term that begins, and we also recognize those, like Luisa González, who have contributed to strengthening democratic debate with vision and courage,” Boric’s message reads.
Ecuador: Leftist Presidential Candidate Luisa González Denounces Electoral Fraud
The Chilean president’s behavior contrasts with what he expressed after the results of Venezuela’s presidential election on July 28 of last year, in which President Nicolás Maduro was reelected.
This was highlighted by renowned journalist Ignacio Ramonet, who described it as “curious” that Boric did not demand the voting records from Ecuador as he did after the presidential elections in Venezuela.
On that occasion, the Chilean president echoed the allegations of fraud filed by far-right candidate Edmundo González, as well as by MarĂa Corina Machado, who, through a parallel National Electoral Council (CNE), tried to convince the world of a result different from the one announced by Venezuelan electoral authorities.
(Telesur) with Orinoco Tribune content
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/JRE/SF
