Latin America’s battling left boosted by Lenin Moreno’s win in Ecuador poll
Quito — On Monday, socialist candidate Lenin Moreno celebrated victory in Ecuador’s presidential election, bucking a shift to the right in South America, but his conservative challenger demanded a recount as supporters took to the streets in protest. Moreno’s triumph was a relief for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, after former banker Guillermo Lasso had vowed to remove him from Ecuador’s embassy in London if he won the run-off. It was also a boost for the struggling leftist movement in South America after right-leaning governments recently came to power in Argentina, Brazil and Peru as a commodities boom ended, economies flagged and corruption scandals grew. The region’s high-profile socialist leader, President Nicolas Maduro of crisis-hit Venezuela, congratulated Moreno profusely on Twitter, as did Bolivian President Evo Morales. "Congratulations Ecuador, the citizen’s revolution has triumphed," said Maduro, as did much of his cabinet. "21st century socialism always triumphs," t...
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