The right-wing incumbent is set to face his left-leaning rival, Luisa Gonzalez, in a second round of voting in April.

Daniel Noboa stunned voters when, with only a brief stint as a lawmaker and no established political machinery, he outperformed several presidential candidates in a snap election and advanced to a runoff against the protegee of Ecuador’s most influential president this century.

Noboa, first elected in 2023 to finish out his predecessor's term, says his deployment of the military on the streets and within prisons, among other measures, has reduced violent deaths by 15%, led to a drastic fall in prison violence, and facilitated the capture of major gang leaders.

President Daniel Noboa held a narrow lead in violence-hit Ecuador's election Sunday, amid a fierce challenge from a leftist rival who looked set to force a second-round run-off.

President Daniel Noboa voted in Ecuador's presidential election on Sunday. Noboa and Luis González are the clear front-runners among the pool of 16 candidates. All promised voters to reduce the widespread crime.

Ecuador’s President Daniel Noboa claimed, without evidence, that the first round of the country’s presidential race was rife with “irregularities” after he made it to the second round vote in April with a slim lead,