Ecuador opposition candidate, doubling down on fraud claims, loses coalition backing

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By Alexandra Valencia

QUITO (Reuters) -Ecuador’s leftist presidential challenger Luisa Gonzalez plans to formally challenge the result of Sunday’s election, claiming widespread fraud, although she has lost the support of a key allied party in disputing her defeat.

Election authorities and outside observers have said incumbent President Daniel Noboa secured a full term after sweeping the runoff vote that was held after a tight first round in February.

Noboa leads the official vote tally by more than 1 million votes with 55.62% support, while Gonzalez has 44.38%, with almost all votes counted, according to official data.

Noboa said in an interview with CNN this week that his win was so large it was “not up for discussion.”

Gonzalez has alleged since Sunday that there was “grotesque” fraud and said late on Wednesday she would contest the results with the elections authority, without saying when. Results must be challenged within two days after the vote count closes.

In a video posted on social media, Gonzalez said thousands of ballots with irregularities had been identified and should be annulled. 

“All of these findings, which are very serious, will be presented to authorities,” Gonzalez said, adding that officials were “unfortunately, under the thumb of those in power.”

The head of the elections body, Diana Atamaint, said in an interview with TV station NTN24 on Wednesday that it had “not received a single request for a recount of a single ballot.” 

She added that Gonzalez was free to submit a complaint and the authority would review it, and that if the politician was confident that fraud had been committed, she could file a criminal complaint with prosecutors.

Observer missions from the Organization of American States and the European Union, as well as the U.S., have all said that Noboa handily won the vote. EU observers called the election transparent and well-organized, and strongly rejected claims of fraud. 

In recent days, Gonzalez’s opposition coalition has fallen apart over her fraud claims, with members of her own Citizens’ Revolution party recognizing Noboa’s win.

On Wednesday, her largest allied party, the RETO Movement, congratulated Noboa, leaving few backers of Gonzalez, who is a protege of former socialist President Rafael Correa.

Her defeat and subsequent claims of fraud seem “to have left Correismo (Gonzalez’s coalition) in complete disarray,” analysts at investment group BancTrust said on Thursday.

They added this would improve Noboa’s chances of forming a majority bloc in the National Assembly.

The president’s National Democratic Action Party holds 66 seats out of the assembly’s 151. The government has said it is negotiating with smaller parties to garner their support.

Ecuador’s Foreign Ministry said unused ballots from Sunday’s election, transported in diplomatic pouches, were stolen in Venezuela by armed men who allegedly claimed to be members of the Bolivarian National Intelligence Service.

In a statement, the ministry condemned the incident as a violation of international diplomatic norms and said the ballots were intended for Ecuadorean voters in Caracas.

The Venezuelan government rejected the accusation.

“They want us to believe that their electoral failure can be covered up with these diplomatic lies,” Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yvan Gil said on his Telegram account.

The incident does not affect the outcome of the vote, as authorities had already suspended voting in Venezuela on Ecuador’s election.

(Reporting by Alexandra ValenciaAdditional reporting by Kylie MadryEditing by Frances Kerry and Rod Nickel)