Analysis of the Second Presidential Debate in Ecuador 2021: Lasso vs Arauz

Abstract

The presidential debate held during the second ballot between Guillermo Lasso and Andrés Arauz was a defining moment for the 2021 elections. Featured on national television, the debate resulted only in discussions between the candidates. It was structured in 5 main topics present in a synthesized way, the main proposals of both candidates. The Organic Law on Elections and Political Organizations of the Republic of Ecuador, Code of Democracy, on its article 202, number 2, determines that: "Electoral debates are the different forms of public discussion in which the candidates contrast their government programs and programmatic proposals, submitting to the questioning of their rivals, moderators and citizens, through the media and the public (…)"; likewise, it is stated that the National Electoral Board "(…) will hold a mandatory debate in the first and second ballots (…)" in the Presidential elections [1]. In this sense, the presidential candidates participated in at least two mandatory public debates, during the first and second ballots, in order to publicize their proposals and work plans. This work analyzes, from the communicational point of view, that the candidates could favor or harm their image at the time of making the decision both in the narrative development and in the handling of their audiovisual planning during the televised broadcast.