In anticipation of unprecedented violence, including the death of a candidate this month, police and forces are on high alert in Ecuador as a special election to choose a new president will take place on Sunday.
A supporter of exiled former president Rafael Correa and a millionaire with a security background, who promised to be tough on crime is among the front-runners.
In order to protect the vote against additional violence, the authorities have deployed more than 100,000 police and armed forces. The majority of voters in Ecuador are required to cast ballots, however, turnout may be less than expected due to people's fear of leaving their homes.
Diana Atamint, the nation's top electoral authority, asked voters to unite and stand against violence on Sunday.
Atamint, president of the National Electoral Council, marked the start of the election by telling Ecuadorians that voting “should be a strong democratic message of unity and hope to face the violence that threatens our country, even though pain overwhelms us.”
Candidate Fernando Villavicencio was shot and killed on August 9, as he was leaving a campaign rally in Quito, the capital of the formerly tranquil South American nation. The assassination has increased people's anxiety about going outdoors and becoming a victim of one of the many crimes that have grown frequent, including robberies, kidnappings, extortions, killings, and others.
Villavicencio was the third and most notable of several political leaders killed this year.
(Photo: AP/ Reuters)
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