A candidate in Ecuador’s upcoming presidential election, Fernando Villavicencio, was assassinated at a campaign event in the capital Wednesday as a deadly escalation of violence and crime grips the South American country.
Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso vowed the killing would not go unpunished, saying that “organized crime has come a long way, but the full weight of the law will fall on them.” Lasso announced a state of emergency for 60 days, immediate mobilization of the armed forces across the country and three days of national mourning.
Villavicencio was shot and killed as he was leaving a campaign rally at a school north of the capital Quito, 10 days before the first round of the presidential election was set to take place.
The suspected gunman died in police custody following an exchange of fire with security personnel, Ecuador’s Attorney General’s Office said in a statement on X, formerly known as Twitter.
It has launched an investigation into the attack, which injured nine people, including a candidate for the National Assembly and two police officers.
Video circulating on social media appears to show the moment Villavicencio was fatally shot.
CNN has asked authorities for more details.
Watch:
The moment the assassination happened in Ecuador https://t.co/FfyYU4pSqx
— Cde Never Maswerasei 🇳🇦 🇿🇼 (@CdeNMaswerasei) August 10, 2023
The slain politician’s sister Patricia Villavicencio attended the rally and said she was standing behind her brother before he was killed.
She told reporters outside the school that she held the national government and the Interior Ministry responsible for the death of her brother.
“Where is the security?” she asked.
Earlier this week, Ecuador’s Interior Minister Juan Zapata said seven of the eight candidates, including Villavicencio, were under police protection, local media reported Tuesday.
President Lasso, who said he is “outraged and shocked” by Villavicencio’s killing, dissolved the opposition-led congress in May, paving the way for early elections.
The embattled Lasso had faced an impeachment vote over accusations from opposition legislators of embezzlement before he took office, which he denies. Calls for his resignation had grown louder in recent months as the country became engulfed by a cost-of-living crisis and high rates of criminal violence.
On Thursday, the president of the Electoral Council, Diana Atamaint, said the August 20 election would go ahead as scheduled.
