The political party of the late Ecuadorian presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio has designated Christian Zurita, a close friend and associate, as their chosen contender in the upcoming tumultuous elections in the nation.
Christian Zurita, aged 53 and a resident of Quito, is renowned as an investigative journalist. Similar to Villavicencio, he has extensively covered issues of domestic corruption. Following Villavicencio’s tragic assassination on Wednesday, the centrist Construye party has presented Zurita as their second candidate.
Officially endorsed by Construye as their candidate, Zurita, unfortunately, won’t be able to participate in the sole pre-election debate due to a delay in paperwork processing, as explained by Diana Atamaint, the president of the National Electoral Council. This debate, featuring the remaining seven presidential candidates, is scheduled for 7 p.m. local time (8 p.m. EDT) on Sunday, with the election slated for August 20.
Zurita has outlined his campaign strategy, which focuses on combating crime—an agenda he co-authored with Villavicencio. He made these remarks during a press conference held at an Ecuadorian capital hotel on Sunday, alongside vice-presidential candidate Andrea Gonzalez, who is an environmental activist. Both candidates appeared in police-issued bulletproof vests.