The Ecuadorian presidential candidate who was fatally shot at a political rally was unafraid to take on criminal networks and a political elite he accused of corruption at the hands of organized crime.
Fernando Villavicencio, who was a journalist before entering politics, waged a yearslong battle against the forces that he saw transforming Ecuador, including crime that had seeped into nearly every aspect of life, from street robbery to cocaine trafficking and corrupt government contracting.
