There is no democracy without elections. Although this is not the only thing that defines it, it is related to sovereign rights. Elections will be held in Ecuador on Sunday under extraordinary conditions, but that in itself makes August 20 a day of enormous historical value.

The short election campaign concentrated parties and movements in the diffusion of their presidential candidates, and ambitious members of the assembly appeared discreetly. In Guayas alone, 215 are registered, and at the national level more than 1,200 who intend to reach the National Assembly, a function of the state of immense importance due to the duties and powers given to it by the Constitution.

On Sunday, the last Assembly of 137 deputies is elected, by 2025 there would be 152, everything will depend on the result of the population census

It not only owns the President and Vice President of the Republic and other officials, but also passes laws, supervises, has the authority to participate in constitutional reform, remove leaders and others registered in Article 120.

The August 20 election was called after President Guillermo Lasso signed a decree on the death cross, a legal norm that was applied for the first time. This revealed gaps that the next president and members of the assembly must review.

Find out how many ballots you’ll get in the early presidential and legislative elections on August 20, 2023, and everything you need to know to be prepared

The figure of the National Assembly has a transcendental value for governance. The election of its members is as important as the election of the president.

According to the Code of Democracy, voters are obliged to cast their votes. In these conditions, they must be informed about the plans for the work of political parties or in accordance with the postulate to rule from Carondelet in order to have clarity about their decision.

From 2021 you cannot choose between party lists or movements, that is another unresolved issue. Reform is needed to respect the right to choose.

Another fact that makes this election different is the painful murder of the candidate (Fernando Villavicencio) eleven days before the election. The difficulty to register his replacement warns of other reforms that will make the country that has changed as a result of organized crime. (OR)