Ecuador’s military troops and police will step up security in the country’s most violent areas for a national referendum on Nov. 16, officials said Monday, deploying tens of thousands of personnel and an array of aircraft and drones to protect voters and polling places.
The National Electoral Council (CNE) and security forces established a joint security table that will bring together more than 20 institutions to coordinate measures and emergency responses for the plebiscite, army General Kleber Guaytarilla said during the session that formalized the plan.
Guaytarilla said military intelligence has already identified localities with heightened vulnerabilities and that work is underway to shore up protections for both voters and voting centers. The government specifically cited Guayaquil, where a car bomb exploded on Oct. 14 near a major shopping mall and an office belonging to the president’s family, and coastal provinces including Manabi, Los Rios, and El Oro as the areas to receive special attention because of unprecedented violence the authorities have blamed on organized crime groups.
Ecuador will deploy 61,500 troops to guard the public during the referendum
For the referendum, the armed forces will deploy 61,500 troops and the National Police will supply 57,460 officers, Guaytarilla said. The security operation will also include three aircraft and 41 drones, officials added.
Police General Renato Cevallos told the security table that explosive-ordnance teams are in place across the country and prepared to respond quickly to any threat on voting day. More than 13.9 million Ecuadorians are registered to vote on Nov. 16 on a four-question referendum that includes a proposal to convene a constituent assembly to draft a new constitution, the CNE said.
Diana Atamaint, president of the CNE, addressed a separate political dispute that has surfaced ahead of the vote. Former president Rafael Correa, leader of the Revolucion Ciudadana (RC) movement, had warned that the electoral agency had filed a complaint with the Contested Electoral Tribunal (TCE) seeking sanctions against his party. Atamaint called Correa’s warning an attempt at “victimization or disinformation” and explained that the CNE follows a standard procedure when it finds inconsistencies in campaign finance reports.
The increased security comes due to recent criticism of the government over an increase in violence
Under that process, CNE reviews financial reports from organizations that receive private funds and gives them 15 days to correct or clarify items before any case is forwarded to the TCE, Atamaint said. She added that similar inquiries have been opened for other groups, including the National Union of Educators (UNE) and the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (Conaie). Possible penalties include fines and loss of certain political rights for responsible officials, she said, not bans on participation in campaigns.
The stepped-up security comes as President Daniel Noboa’s administration faces criticism over a surge in violence that officials attribute to organized criminal networks. The government has ordered investigations into whether previous administrations under Rafael Correa, Lenin Moreno, and Guillermo Lasso underreported homicide and organized crime figures, a move announced this month by Noboa.
Election authorities and security officials said the combined precautionary measures are aimed at ensuring the referendum proceeds peacefully and that voters can access polling stations without fear of attack or intimidation.
Related: Ecuador Plans to Host a US Military Base in the Galapagos Islands to Fight Drug Trafficking.