Ecuadorian voters reject proposals to host foreign military bases and rewrite the constitution

QUITO, Ecuador (AP) — Ecuadorians voted Sunday to strike down a proposal that would have let foreign countries run military bases in the South American country where drug gangs are extorting communities and killing politicians as they fight for territory.

Another proposal rejected in the four-part referendum asked voters if they wanted to launch a process that could lead to a new constitution. Six out of 10 voters said no.

It was a significant defeat for President Daniel Noboa, a conservative who is closely aligned with the Trump administration and had pushed Ecuador’s courts to include the question about rewriting the constitution.

Noboa said in an X message after the results were released that his government will “respect the will of the people” and would continue to fight for the country that “everyone deserves.”

Andrea Endara a political science professor at Casa Grande University, said the rejection of Noboa’s proposals presented Ecuador’s 37-year-old president with a “shower of humility.”

“Those who voted against the proposals are not just opposition activists, but people who are worried with democratic stability, and who are upset with a government that has not fulfilled promises” like keeping gas prices low, or improving security, she explained.

Ecuador, a nation of 18 million people, has struggled to control violent crime as it becomes a key transit point for cocaine produced in neighboring Colombia and Peru, with drug trafficking gangs attacking presidential candidates, mayors and journalists, as they fight for control over ports and coastal cities.

Recently, Noboa met with U.S. officials to discuss regional security and migration cooperation and gave U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem a tour of a military base along Ecuador’s coast that could possibly host U.S. troops.

“International cooperation is the only way to dismantle these (drug trafficking) groups, which are transnational criminal networks,” Noboa said after casting his ballot.

Ecuador has had three constitutions since the country returned to democracy in 1979, but Noboa had argued it was time to “rebuild” the country because the current constitution does not give the government enough tools to fight crime.

Voters were also asked if Ecuador should set up a constituent assembly, a legislative body that would be in charge of rewriting the nation’s constitution, with Noboa arguing that a new constitution should seek tougher punishment for criminals and greater measures to control Ecuador’s borders.

Critics of the president said that a constitutional rewrite will not solve problems like insecurity and poor access to health and education services. And some feared that a new constitution would decrease legislative and judicial oversight of the executive branch.

Voters were also asked if Ecuador should cut public funding for political parties, and if the number of legislators in the National Assembly should be reduced from 151 representatives to 73. Both measures were rejected by a wide margin.

Noboa said these measures were necessary to cut excessive government spending, while his critics said they could limit political representation, especially in low-income communities where resources for political campaigns are scarce.