QUITO, Ecuador (AP) — Ecuador’s fledgling president got a resounding victory Sunday in a referendum that he touted as a way to crack down on criminal gangs behind a spiraling wave of violence.
An official quick count showed that Ecuadorians overwhelmingly voted “yes” to all nine questions focused on tightening security measures, rejecting only two more controversial economic proposals.
The quick count was announced by the head of the Electoral National Council, Diana Atamaint. It confirmed a private exit poll released hours before that indicated a resounding victory and sign of support for President Daniel Noboa, the scion of a wealthy banana exporting family.
Among the measures approved are President Noboa’s call to deploy the army in the fight against the gangs, to loosen obstacles for extraditing accused criminals and to lengthen prison sentences for convicted drug traffickers.
4 Germans caught marking Hitler's birthday outside Nazi dictator's birthplace in Austria
4 dead in Ecuador traffic accident
Rallies held against toxic water release
Russia withstands sanctions pressure, Putin says
Malaysia: 10 killed after two military helicopters collide during training
Foreign Ministry urges US to conduct swift probe into San Francisco consulate car crash
Xi Congratulates Felix Tshisekedi on Reelection as DR Congo's President
China's first runway status light system put into operation in Shanghai
Lawyer, 50, who paid off her tax bill with client's £132,000 divorce settlement avoids jail
Hezbollah field commander, 3 fighters killed in Israeli strikes in S. Lebanon
The Guess Who and B.T.O. rocker Randy Bachman has prized instruments up for auction
Protests erupt as concerns rise in ROK, Philippines