Ecuador Defines the Calendar for Early Elections

On Tuesday night, Ecuador’s National Electoral Council (CNE) approved a US$80 million budget for early presidential and legislative elections to be held on August 20.

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Of that amount, US$48.3 million will be used for both the legislative elections and the first round of the presidential elections.

In the event that none of the presidential candidates manage to reach 51 percent of the votes, the CNE will allocate US$31.6 million for a second electoral round, which would be held on October 15.

“Every penny will be invested for democracy and to have clear and transparent elections,” CNE President Diana Atamaint said, specifying that the budget could decrease if there were no second round of elections.

During Tuesday’s meeting, the CNE members also defined the schedule to follow for the anticipated presidential and legislative elections.

Political parties may register candidates from May 28 to June 10. Once the CNE approves the candidates, the political campaign will take place from August 8 to 17.

Subsequently, 13 million Ecuadorians authorized to vote will go to the polls on August 20 to elect the president and vice president of the republic as well as the new members of the National Assembly.