Moreno wins Ecuador election:
Lat/Am
Ruling party candidate Lenin Moreno has won Ecuador’s tight presidential election, the head of the country’s National Electoral Council said Tuesday, bucking a trend of right-wing electoral victories in South America after 15 years of leftist domination.
Juan Pablo Pozo, president of the electoral council, announced the election win by the leftist Moreno in a nationwide broadcast. He said the results were “official, irreversible” with 99.65 percent of the votes counted.
He said Moreno won slightly over 51 percent of the vote, compared with 49 percent for opposition challenger Guillermo Lasso, who is contesting the results over allegations of fraud.
Pozo said both political organizations can present objections through institutional and legal channels.
Moreno declared that “the people have decided democratically” and said he accepted his victory “with humility, at the same time hoping that the other candidate will accept it with dignity.”
Lasso, a conservative banker, vowed to continue fighting against the installation of an “illegitimate” government. He said on Wednesday he would present evidence backing up his demand for a recount. (AP)