Ecuador: Referendum, 4 February 2018

At stake in this referendum:

• This referendum will determine whether voters support proposed changes to the constitution.

Description of government structure:

• Chief of State: President Rafael CORREA Delgado
• Head of Government: President Rafael CORREA Delgado
• Assembly: Ecuador has a unicameral National Assembly (Asamblea Nacional) with 137 seats.

Electoral requirements:

• Referenda may be introduced by 1) citizens by collecting a specified number of signatures or 2) the President. Constitutional amendment proposals require signatures representing 8% of those registered to vote while referendums introduced by citizens on other matters require signatures representing 5% of the electorate. The President may advise the National Elections Commission (CNE) to convene a referendum on any matter.
• Once the allotted signatures are reached or the President requests a referendum, the language of the proposed question must found to be constitutional by the Constitutional Court. It is then sent to the CNE after which the CNE has 15 days to call for a referendum to take place within the next 60 days.
• The referendum is passed by an absolute majority of valid votes.

About the referendum:

• This referendum includes seven proposed reforms, including:
  • Anyone convicted of corruption cannot participate in politics
  • One-year term limits for all nationally elected politicians (abolishing indefinite reelections)

Main provisions in the referendum:

• "Do you agree with the amendment of the Constitution of the Republic of Ecuador, so that all persons convicted of acts of corruption are sanctioned with a life-time ban on participation in the political life of the country, and with the loss of their property?"
• "To guarantee the principle of alternation, do you agree to amend the Constitution of the Republic of Ecuador so that all elected authorities can be re-elected once for the same office, recovering the mandate of the Constitution of Montecristi and nullifying the indefinite re-election approved by amendment by the National Assembly on December 3, 2015?"

Population and number of registered voters:

• Population: 16,552,199 (January 2017-UNDP)
• Registered Voters: 13,026,598 (2018)

Gender data:

• Female Population: 8,264,533 (January 2017-UNDP)
• Is Ecuador a signatory to CEDAW: Yes (17 July 1980)
• Has Ecuador ratified CEDAW: Yes (9 November 1981)
• Gender Quota: Yes
• Female candidates in this election: N/A
• Number of Female Parliamentarians: 53 (following the 2013 elections)
• Human Development Index Position: 88 (2014)
• Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: Low (2014)

Disability Data:

• Is Ecuador a signatory to CRPD: Yes 30 March 2007
• Has Ecuador ratified CRPD: 3 April 2008
• Population with a disability: 2,380,259 (est.)