Election: Voters choose President Correa successor

Ecuadorians voted yesterday in the first round of elections to choose a new president. Left-wing incumbent Rafael Correa is standing down after leading the country for a decade. His former vice-president Lenin Moreno is expected to lead Sunday’s vote, but is facing a strong challenge from conservative Guillermo Lasso, who has vowed to cut spending […]

Ecuadorians voted yesterday in the first round of elections to choose a new president.
Left-wing incumbent Rafael Correa is standing down after leading the country for a decade.
His former vice-president Lenin Moreno is expected to lead Sunday’s vote, but is facing a strong challenge from conservative Guillermo Lasso, who has vowed to cut spending and taxes.
Candidates need to win 40% of the vote to avoid a second round run-off.
Mr Moreno, a key figure in Mr Correa’s cabinet between 2007 and 2013, is predicted to win Sunday’s vote, but not with enough to avoid the second round run-off.
Centre-right Mr Lasso, a former banker who wants to create a million jobs, is his closest rival.
Voting is mandatory in Ecuador, and there are 12 million registered voters. The polls opened at 07:00 local time (12:00 GMT), and closed at 17:00 local time (22:00 GMT). Results are expected from about 20:00 (01:00 Monday, GMT).