Electoral Council declares Noboa president-elect of Ecuador

QUITO, Oct. 15 (Xinhua) -- Daniel Noboa, a presidential candidate of Ecuador, consolidated his position as president-elect, the National Electoral Council (CNE) said, citing the preliminary official results of the presidential runoff held Sunday.

With 88.42 percent of the votes counted as of 7:40 p.m. local time (0040 GMT), Noboa, from the right-wing National Democratic Action alliance, had obtained 52.29 percent of the valid votes compared to 47.71 percent for his rival, Luisa Gonzalez from the Citizen Revolution movement led by ex-president Rafael Correa.

Later in the day, with 90.78 percent of the ballots counted, the CNE announced that Noboa won the presidential elections in Ecuador. CNE President Diana Atamaint affirmed that the results were "irreversible," declaring Noboa to be president-elect of the South American country.

Gonzalez conceded her defeat to Noboa, 35, a five-time presidential candidate who is the son of a banana magnate.

Surrounded by supporters in a hotel from the capital Quito, she commented, "We have made history, it is the first time that a woman reaches the second round of the presidential elections and has the opportunity to become the president of the republic."

Gonzalez expressed the support of her political organization for the new president-elect to move forward in Ecuador.