This Wednesday, or in the early hours of Thursday for Europe, a deadly shooting disrupted Ecuador’s presidential race, claiming the life of Fernando Villavicencio after a campaign event held just 11 days before the snap election. President Guillermo Lasso declared a state of exception across the country, already in place in three regions due to rising violence, and ordered the Armed Forces to guarantee peace and secure the electoral process. Officials insisted that organized crime would feel the full force of the law in response. The attack paused campaign activities as a deep unease spread nationwide. Critics and supporters alike debated whether Ecuador had become a failed state, with voices like former president Rafael Correa in exile arguing on the side of alarm. Villavicencio, the frontrunner in the polls on the Movimiento Construye slate, was seen as a lightning rod for public anger and concern about security. Polls had suggested unclear prospects for his main rival, Luisa González, but the violence intensified a sense of danger that had shadowed the campaign for days. The media reflected a growing conviction that government officials had been slow to address security threats, prompting calls that the mafias behind the killings were attempting to sow terror while authorities urged citizens to remain calm and vigilant.
