WASHINGTON, USA – The Electoral Observation Mission of the Organization of American States (OAS), headed by the former vice president of Panama Isabel De Saint Malo, expresses its recognition of the people of Ecuador for a peaceful electoral process with a high level of citizen participation, despite the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
During election day, the Mission was deployed in the provinces of de Pichincha, Manabí, Los Ríos, Azuay and Guayas, and observed the voting process and the vote count at voting centers.
The Mission observed delays of more than one hour in the opening of voting centers, as well as long lines and crowds outside them. However, the Mission was aware of the installation of 100 percent of the polling stations throughout the country and the implementation of different measures that sped up the voting process.
As had been announced, the National Electoral Council released results on the night of the election. The official information strongly showed the need for a second electoral round, with a clear ticket in the first place, and a narrow margin between the tickets that occupy second and third place.
Monday morning, the official count is at 83.60 percent, so the Mission calls on the population to calmly await the results, the political actors to behave responsibly, and the National Electoral Council to provide guarantees of transparency, certainty and legal security to all those involved in the process.
The Electoral Observation Mission will remain on the ground until 100 percent of the vote has been completed and will be present for the second round. In addition, it will present a preliminary report in the coming days that will detail what was observed during the first round and will provide recommendations for the second round to be held in April.
