The two candidates vying for Ecuador’s presidency in a second-round run-off never campaigned in Cochapamba. Their faces are nowhere to be seen in this remote Indigenous community in the Ecuadorian highlands. Yet, their eyes are set on this and other small towns across the Andean country that will be key in the April 13 election, which will give the winner a full four-year term.
People here are loyal to Indigenous leader Leonidas Iza, who appeared on Sunday’s ballot but finished a distant third after receiving half a million votes. In April, however, they will have to decide between President Daniel Noboa or leftist lawyer Luisa González.
