International

59.5 % of Ecuadorians undecided before elections, according to survey

Photo: EFE

July 21 |

One month before the August 20 presidential elections in Ecuador, 59.5 percent of Ecuadorians do not know who to vote for, revealed Thursday a survey by pollster Cedatos applied in 34 cities and parishes in the country.

1,300 random interviews were conducted nationwide, between 14 and 18 of this month, which showed that 65 percent do not know who make up the eight presidential candidates registered in the National Electoral Council (CNE).

In turn, 63.2 percent do not know the names of the eight candidates for President and 98.6 percent do not know the names of the candidates for the Vice-Presidency of the Republic.

According to Cedatos’ socio-political survey, only 37.6 percent know that the elections will be held on August 20.

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“This reality prevents making a forecast of the presidential elections” and there is an “atmosphere of pessimism, indecision and ignorance of the electoral process”, assured the polling company.

The poll has a confidence level of 95 percent and a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.

The Latin American country will elect a new president after the current president, Guillermo Lasso, decreed on May 17 the constitutional figure of “cross death”, with which he dissolved the National Assembly and called for early elections in the midst of an impeachment trial against him in the Legislative.

International

Bolsonaro diagnosed with skin cancer amid coup conviction

Former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro has been diagnosed with skin cancer while serving a historic sentence for attempting a coup d’état. His medical team confirmed that the lesions have been removed and that, for now, he does not require further procedures, though he will need regular monitoring.

On Wednesday, September 17, Bolsonaro’s doctors confirmed the diagnosis. The announcement comes shortly after the former leader was convicted of orchestrating an attempted coup.

According to his physician, Claudio Birolini, Bolsonaro has “squamous cell carcinoma, which is neither the most benign nor the most aggressive form — it is intermediate.” Birolini warned, however, that this type of skin cancer “can carry more serious consequences.”

International

Milei praises Paraguay’s growth, calls Argentina’s last 20 years a ‘decline’

Argentine President Javier Milei praised Paraguay’s economic growth over the past two decades during a speech before the Paraguayan Congress on Wednesday (Sept. 17, 2025), crediting it to incentives that favored capitalism. At the same time, he contrasted that progress with what he described as Argentina’s deepening “decline” during the same period.

“If we compare the last 20 years of Paraguay with those of the Argentine Republic, we will find almost diametrically opposite results,” Milei told lawmakers during a special session of Parliament on the second and final day of his official visit to Asunción.

“While you have not stopped growing, we have deepened our decline. If we understand incentives as the engine of capitalism, Paraguay focused on preserving and strengthening them, while Argentina dedicated itself to chaining, directing, and suffocating them,” the right-wing leader stated.

International

Trump administration launches large-scale immigration operation in Chicago

The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump intensified a large-scale immigration operation in the Chicago area with the arrival of additional Border Patrol agents on Tuesday and the presence of Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem during a raid.

Noem posted a video on her X account showing the immigration operation, in which DHS reportedly removed “violent criminals” from the streets. The footage shows Noem observing the arrest of a man taken into custody at his home early Tuesday morning at an undisclosed location.

“I was in Chicago today to make it clear that we will not back down,” the secretary wrote. “Our work is just beginning,” she added.

The warning from Noem was echoed by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Chief Gregory Bovino, who posted a video on X Tuesday showing multiple Border Patrol vehicles arriving in the city with the caption: “Chicago, we are here!”

Bovino, who led the immigration crackdown in Los Angeles implemented since last June, said the team will remain in Chicago to continue the mission they started in California.

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Operation “Midway Blitz” is currently focused on the Chicago metropolitan area and its suburbs. Activists and residents have reported sightings of masked agents and unmarked vehicles in predominantly Latino neighborhoods.