A 35-year-old businessman with little experience in politics has been elected the youngest-ever president of Ecuador.
Daniel Noboa won 52.1 per cent of the vote after South Americans went to the polls on Sunday, compared with opponent Luisa González’s 47.9 per cent.
His political career only began in 2021, when he got a seat in the National Assembly and chaired its Economic Development Commission.
Mr Noboa’s father Álvaro, who unsuccessfully ran for president five times, is the richest man in Ecuador.
His corporation started in the growing and shipping of bananas — Ecuador’s main crop — and now includes more than 128 companies in dozens of countries.
Mr Noboa will only lead until May 2025 - this is the remainder of former president Guillermo Lasso’s term, which was cut short when he dissolved parliament during an impeachment trial and triggered an early election.
He has come into power at a time when Ecuadorians’ main concern is reportedly about safety amid rampant drug-trafficking-related violence.
The government’s inability to tackle the unrest was laid bare in August, with the assassination of presidential candidate and anti-corruption crusader Fernando Villavicencio.
Since then, other politicians and leaders have been killed or kidnapped, car bombs have exploded in multiple cities, including the capital, Quito, and inmates have rioted in prisons. Earlier this month, seven men whom authorities identified as suspects in Mr Villavicencio’s slaying were killed while in custody.
The incoming president’s goal is “to return peace to the country, to give education to the youth again, to be able to provide employment to the many people who are looking for it.”
To that end, Mr Noboa said, he will immediately begin to work to “rebuild a country that has been seriously hit by violence, corruption and hatred.”
Ms González, a leftist lawyer and ally of exiled former President Rafael Correa, conceded defeat and urged Noboa to fulfil his campaign promises.
