Ecuador’s VP suspended for 150 days deepening rift with president as February election looms

QUITO — Ecuador’s Vice President Veronica Abad was suspended Saturday for 150 days accused of “unjustified abandonment” of her duties. It comes during a public rift between Abad and President Daniel Noboa that could have implications for Ecuador ’s February elections.

Abad’s suspension without pay came at midnight, her lawyer Dominique Dávila told The Associated Press. Dávila called the move “extremely serious” and claimed it may not have any legal backing.

Abad was accused by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of not following an order in September to temporarily transfer her from Israel - where she also serves as ambassador - to Turkey due to the conflict, arriving eight days after the order.

Abad had argued that she was not “properly prepared” for the trip to Turkey and that Ecuador’s government suggested “that I leave my children in Israel to go to Turkey alone.”

The move comes at a time of deep tensions between Abad and Noboa who, despite running the government together, have clashed for years establishing a sort of feud, the origins of which are unknown.

In August, Abad filed a legal complaint accusing Noboa and other officials of gender-based violence.

The suspension was the second sanction against Abad in less than a week. Abad was also fined $8,500 on Tuesday by Ecuador’s Electoral Disputes Tribunal for early election campaigning in 2023 when she was a candidate for mayor of the city of Cuenca.

The vice president has previously cited the Israel case and other incidents as government measures to pressure her to resign, while the president has called her “disloyal.”

Dávila, Abad’s lawyer, said the suspension was the latest attempt to push Abad out, calling it a “trick to prevent the presidential succession” and something they planned to appeal.

Abad’s fate has special importance for Noboa, who hopes to run for reelection in February 2025, and will have to request a leave of absence to carry out the campaign, according to experts.

In that case, Abad would take over the presidency, but with the recent sanctions, the pathway to her taking the reigns would be blocked, according to constitutional lawyer André Benavides. The expert said that while the suspension lacks strong legal backing, any appeals process to reverse the 150 day suspension would take longer than the suspension period.