It took Rafael Correa thirteen months to become famous in Ecuador with his transformation from dishonest Economy Minister Alfredo Palacio – successor to Lucio Gutiérrez – to presidential candidate who won the second round. This happened between August 2005, when the doors were opening and everyone around the Palace questioned, until November 2006, when he received 56.67% of the vote, in a historic return to Álvaro Noboi who won the first return, and who with that partial victory prevented Correa from setting himself up as outsider.

It is the latest record of political escalation flash this marks the recent electoral history of Ecuador, because, except in cases such as Jaime Roldós and León Febres-Cordero, other presidents needed two or even three campaigns, with the investment of many economic resources, to present themselves forgetfully and at the same time impulsively electorate.

Political groups gather around presidential candidates

Since 1979, when democracy was re-established, everyone has had to expose a political career, be it student, union or some public office, when they aspired to reach Carondelet. Which, mixed with charisma, character, the kindness they conveyed or their alleged erudition, managed to make good candidates, albeit wretched rulers. Gutiérrez’s case was special because he became a star because he was among the leaders of a government collapse very similar to the one he himself would suffer years later, in that five-government decade.

The election calendar for early elections in 2023 remained the same

All this preamble comes to the point when we ask ourselves how so close as in August and October – if there are two rounds – we elect a president who should rule the last year and a half of the current mandate. Should one inevitably come among “acquaintances” who had a career, good or bad, in Creole politics? Is there time for the “unknown” to announce itself and become a valid and winning option at a time of deep political and security crisis?

One can only hope that the Ecuadorian voter, in a fit of reason, will be able to make the right choice, despite the adversity.

Optimists say that we should look at the past so that it does not repeat itself, but political analysts, on the other hand, believe that it is necessary to look at the past because it marks trends, points to deep features and enables a better understanding of the electorate, which is usually predictable. An electorate that rarely surprises us, and when it seems that it does, it’s because an unusual confirmation of a caudillo’s vote has happened. Borrowed voices. Or because the appropriate digital tool was used effectively.

The upcoming elections will be an unprecedented experience for the country. The applications that started this week end tomorrow, and the campaign, no matter how quickly it starts, will give very little time to get to know and digest the profiles and proposals.

But what is most worrisome is the result that remains of this constitutional experiment that so far seemed to be effective in ending the dictatorships of the 1970s, or totalitarian attempts like that of the now former Peruvian president Castillo, who tried to end his political crisis by eliminating your opponent.

One can only hope that the Ecuadorian voter, in a fit of reason, will be able to make the right choice, despite the adversity. (OR)