González’s Citizen Revolutionary Movement denounced his arrest as politically motivated and called for his release.
Published October 22, 2026
Ecuador’s opposition leader Luisa Gonzalez has been arrested as part of an investigation into alleged fraud in financing the 2023 presidential campaign.
Local media reported Thursday that Gonzalez, a prominent left-wing politician and ally of former President Rafael Correa, was detained in the rural town of Canute in western Ecuador.
Recommended stories
list of 3 itemsend of list
She lost the 2023 and 2025 presidential elections to right-wing President Daniel Novoa.
Ecuador’s Attorney General’s Office announced in a statement on social media that it had executed arrest warrants against three people on suspicion of money laundering.
Seven people are under investigation over “discrepancies between donations and legitimate sources” during the 2023 presidential campaign.
Investigators are investigating the use of the group’s network to funnel about $500,000 to campaign ads from May to August 2023.
The attorney general’s office did not disclose the source of the funds or the identity of the donors, arguing that the funds may have been transferred fraudulently.
The investigation, known as the Ravelint affair, follows an earlier investigation into allegations of campaign financing fraud. Authorities had previously investigated claims that money brought in from Venezuela was used to finance Gonzalez’s 2023 presidential campaign. Mr. Gonzalez has denied any wrongdoing.
In a post on social media platform X, Gonzalez compared his situation to that of a political prisoner and called the charges “absurd.”
She also called on her supporters to unite in the pursuit of democracy in the face of the “Noboa dictatorship.”
“I owe nothing and will respond with the dignity of an Ecuadorian citizen committed to Ecuador’s freedom and a better future for this country,” she wrote about the arrest.
Gabriela Rivadeneira, president of the Citizens Revolutionary Movement, of which González is a member, also denounced the arrest as political persecution. She called for Gonzalez’s immediate release.
Correa, who was president from 2007 to 2017, also denied the allegations, calling the incident persecution.
“Luisa Gonzalez has been arrested. Enough is enough!!!!,” Correa wrote to X.
Mr. Gonzalez, a lawyer and former Ecuadorian congressman, ran a particularly tough presidential campaign against Mr. Noboa. The two candidates faced each other in a runoff election in April 2025, with Novoa winning with over 55% of the vote.
But Gonzalez rejected the results as fraudulent and called for a recount. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Noboa’s government accused his political movement of colluding with criminal organizations to plan attacks against right-wing leaders.
Novoa, a close ally of US President Donald Trump, has been harshly suppressing opposition figures since his re-election last year.
In March, the Citizen Revolutionary Movement was suspended from participating in the upcoming local elections. Local elections are scheduled for November 29th.
