The presidential candidate of the ruling PAIS Alliance party Lenin Moreno (C, Front) speaks during a press conference in Quito, capital of Ecuador, on Feb. 20, 2017. Xinhua SIPA USA/PA Images. All rights reserved.
Sufgragus interruptus you could call it, although there was not much pleasure to be had, just a lot of adrenalin. And, in the end, no definite result, merely a promise that we will know within three days. Electoral Kundalini perhaps.
Some things are clear though: Lenin Moreno, the ruling party’s candidate, won a clear first round victory, more than ten percent in front of his main rival, banker Guillermo Lasso. The win was expected; on that, at least, the myriad polls agreed. The difficulty for Moreno is that there are still votes to come in from outside the country that could tip the balance: he is still slightly short of the 40% needed to avoid a run-off. And it is a second round that he would rather avoid, and one that his nearest challenger would dearly welcome.
