Ecuador’s April runoff election for president will test the lasting influence of former leftist President Rafael Correa when his protege, lawyer Luisa González, goes up against the conservative incumbent Daniel Noboa.

Noboa says his deployment of the military on the streets and within prisons has reduced violent deaths by 15%, led to a drastic fall in prison violence, and helped in the capture of major gang leaders.

Ecuadorian voters are preparing to cast their ballots for a new president for the second time in 18 months amid an unprecedented security crisis in the country.

A lawyer with limited political experience, Luisa González is vying for Ecuador’s presidency for a second time

The Latin American country’s incumbent centre-right leader Daniel Noboa faces a tight race against left-wing challenger Luisa González.

Ecuador is likely to choose its next president in a runoff election later this year as early results of a first-round vote Sunday showed a tight battle between conservative President Daniel Noboa and leftist lawyer Luisa González.

Ecuadors incumbent president Daniel Noboa is leading the presidential election with 45.6% of the vote, with nearly 30% of ballot boxes counted. His closest rival, Luisa Gonzalez, has 42.9%, making the race

Ecuador’s center-right President Daniel Noboa is likely to fall short of securing an outright majority in the country’s general election, according to preliminary results Sunday, setting the stage for a run-off vote against his nearest leftist rival.

Incumbent President Daniel Noboa clutched onto a razor-thin lead in violence-hit Ecuador's election Sunday, after a stronger-than-expected challenge from a leftist rival who looked set to force a second-round run-off.