CNE will approve the start of the electoral period

The National Electoral Council (CNE) will approve this Thursday, May 18, 2023, the beginning of the electoral period to elect the president, vice president and assembly members in Ecuador.

The CNE affirmed that it received the notification from the Presidency of the Republic about the decree of the mutual death.

The Electoral Institution reported on the activity a day after President Guillermo Lasso opted for the constitutional mechanism of mutual death and dissolved the National Assembly.

It is known that the CNE issued a call to the plenary for this Thursday night, at 8:00 p.m., in order to organize the new election process.

In the call for this Thursday there are four points:

1. Knowledge of the Resolving Act of the Plenary of the National Electoral Council of the ordinary session No. 24-PLE-CNE-2023 of Wednesday, May 10, 2023;
2. Knowledge and resolution of the draft Resolution of the Declaration of the start of the Electoral Process and approval of the start of the Electoral Period for the 2023 Presidential and Legislative Elections, in accordance with Presidential Decree 741 of Wednesday, May 17, 2023;
3. Knowledge and resolution regarding the Planning Project, Agenda Proposal and Call of the First Consultative Council for the 2023 Presidential and Legislative Elections; and,
4. Knowledge and resolution regarding the appointment of Directors of the Provincial Electoral Delegations.

In an interview in the morning, the president of the CNE, Diana Atamaint, mentioned that the elections will be in August.

Dates for Ecuador elections

The head of the CNE also reported that the tentative dates are: August 20 for the first round and October 15, if there is a second electoral round.

“I believe that in the month of November the new authorities will be installed,” he added, and emphasized that for Ecuadorians residing abroad, the telematic vote will be chosen, due to the lack of time to transfer the ballots.

It was mentioned that there will be no campaign to change addresses and that the same register that was used in the 2023 sectional elections will be used. That is, 13.45 million Ecuadorians will be called to vote.

Elections under pressure

Atamaint stressed that they still do not have a budget and that it will be announced in the coming days, along with the electoral calendar that would tentatively start on May 24.

Candidate registration will be online, like past elections. The difference will be in the times, therefore, the CNE staff will support the process.

Regarding the electoral campaign, it will only be eight days. It is expected that the members of the polling stations will change.