News Mash-up: Overseas Politics

Former banker wins presidential vote in Ecuador Ecuador will be led for the next four years by a conservative businessman after voters rebuffed a left-leaning movement that yielded an economic boom and then a recession since taking hold of the presidency last decade. Former banker Guillermo Lasso won 52.37% of the April 11 runoff vote against socialist Andres Arauz, who took 47.63% of the vote after emerging as the frontrunner in the first round of voting. “The first action will be to put the economy in order, promote investment and generate employment,” Lasso said April 12. (AP) Germany’s Greens make first bid for chancellery The co-leader of Germany’s Greens, Annalena Baerbock, 40, said April 19 she would run to become chancellor in September’s elections, the first time the left-leaning party has sought the top job in its 40-year history. Baerbock, a former champion trampolinist who has seen support for her party rise over the past year, said she would offer a “new start” and a focus on education and digital and green technologies. The Greens have become a formidable force, gaining from voter fatigue with Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives. (Reuters) These articles were provided by The Japan Times Alpha.