Retired Army Colonel Elected President of Ecuador

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Monday, November 25, 2002

Retired Army Colonel Elected President of Ecuador

Lucio Gutierrez, a retired army colonel, won Sunday's presidential election runoff in Ecuador, thus becoming the South American country's 52nd president, said the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE).

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Lucio Gutierrez, a retired army colonel, won Sunday's presidential election runoff in Ecuador, thus becoming the South American country's 52nd president, said the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE).

According to preliminary results released by the TSE Sunday evening, Gutierrez, a candidate from the January 21 Patriotic Society Party, won 2.7048 million votes, or 54.35 percent of the 97.69 percent of votes counted so far. Gutierrez's major contender Alvaro Noboa, of the Institutional National Action Renovating Party, garnered 2.2716 million votes, or 45.65 percent of the accounted votes, said TSE.

Noboa, a banana tycoon, conceded defeat to Gutierrez in a speech following the announcement.

Sunday's voting was peaceful as polling stations remained open to voters from 7:00 am (1200 GMT) to 5:00 pm (2200 GMT).

Official results will not be released until voting finishes in the southern city of Riobamba, where voting has been postponed until Dec. 1 due to a state of emergency declared in the city after a series of explosions at an ammunition depot on Tuesday that killed seven people.

About 8.15 million citizens have registered to vote in the 37,275 voting centers throughout the country's 22 provinces.

Meanwhile, some 150 international observers from seven international organizations, such as the European Union (EU), the Organization of American States and the Andean Parliament, monitored the election process.

In the first-round of presidential elections held on October 20, Gutierrez won 20.32 percent of the total votes and Noboa got 17.36 percent, followed by nine other candidates.

Gutierrez, 45, led a group of junior officials who joined 5,000Indian protesters to oust President Jamil Mahuad in January 2000, amid a severe economic crisis. After being sacked from the army, Gutierrez formed his own Political Party, a center-left party.

He has pledged to crack down on corruption, pay social debts, boost national production and improve security.

Noboa, 52, has run for the second time this year. He took part in the race in 1998 as the candidate from the Roldosista Ecuadorian Party.

Noboa is considered the richest man in the country, owning nearly 100 companies, including banana, flour, vehicle importing, cardboard and paper businesses, both at home and abroad.

Noboa based his campaign of five proposals: fighting crime, promotion of agriculture, attraction of investment from both Ecuadorian and foreign investors, and a strong anti-corruption andanti-drug campaign.

Ecuador, a nation of 12 million people located on the northwestern shoulder of South America, has been troubled for years by political turmoil and economic instability. Since 1996, this small Andean nation has had five presidents.

Gutierrez is set to take the oath of office on January 15, 2003.

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