President of Ecuador, Rafael Correa celebrates with the supporters of Alianza País (AP), the tenth anniversary of the citizen revolution denominated 'La Decade Ganada' in Guayaquil, Ecuador, Sunday, January 15, 2017. NurPhoto SIPA USA/PA Images. All rights reserved.
There is hardly what you would call air of expectancy surrounding the presidential elections due to be held on the 19th of February; the general impression of the eight candidates is that they’re a particularly colorless bunch. The judgment may be unfair. Candidates rarely have an opportunity to show their worth on the national stage before winning power, and for those that do, a lofty public image is not necessarily an advantage: Gordon Brown, the ‘big clunking fist’, comes to mind, although there are others.
In this particular Ecuadorian election the candidates suffer a further disadvantage: the yard stick is clearly the actual president, Rafael Correa, the longest serving and most popular president in the country’s history, whose enormous presence has overshadowed everything and everyone during his ten years in power, including the candidates hoping to take his place.
