A day after the impeachment trial against him began, Ecuador’s president, guillermo lasso used a constitutional remedy called “death cross, To avoid being dismissed by the Parliament which had accused him of corruption.
It is a legal figure, protected by Article 148 of the constitution that was drafted during the government of Rafael Correa. Allows the President to dissolve the National Assembly (Congress) providing maximum duration of Seven days for the National Electoral Council to call new elections Presidential and legislative elections in the next four months.
Hence the death cross: The president can avoid passing laws that Congress tries to enforce by dissolving them, but in doing so they must first give up their mandate For calling an election to choose his substitute, both lose their positions.
What is the “cross death”, the mechanism in which Latin America is in suspense
However, in the exceptional case of dissolution of the National Assembly, as happens on this occasion, it gives the National Electoral Council the power to order elections to be held” Period of less than 90 days, counted from the call”,
he is The election process should not go beyond the month of September In this case, while newly elected officials would remain in office until the end of the current term in 2025, that would correspond to Lasso.
What happened in Ecuador: how is the “cross death”
until the development of the electoral process and the establishment of a new National Assembly, Lasso can issue decree-laws of necessity and economic urgency which must have a favorable opinion of the Constitutional Court and can be approved or repealed by the new legislature that takes office by the end of the term.
the decision of the lasso comes a day after it was introduced in the National Assembly and dismiss the allegations of the legislative opposition a political trial has begun against him For alleged corruption in oil transportation contracts.
After dissolution of Congress, Lasso plans to contest again
Ecuador: President Lasso dissolves parliament and calls for early elections
is about The first time a president enacts the so-called “cross death” Which can be exercised only once during the first three years of the mandate.
The opposition faction warned Lasso that resorting to this route would lead to further political and social tensions, but the president not only announced that he would use it, but also suggested that He may be a presidential candidate again in the election, thanks to this position, he will be brought forward.
In the latest elections, About 39% of Ecuadorians are in favor of fulfilling the mandate That compared to 18.5% who called for his dismissal at the hands of the National Assembly and 14.5% for him to resign outright, according to a poll published in March by the Click Reports firm.
