Politics Portfolio
Country's NameRepublic of Ecuador
Type of GovernmentRepublic
National Holiday(s)Independence Day (independence of Quito), 10 August (1809)
Chief of StatePresident Rafael CORREA Delgado
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Capital City(ies)Quito
Independence Date24 May 1822
Suffrage18-65 years of age, universal and compulsory; 16 and other eligible voters, optional
Head of StatePresident Rafael CORREA Delgado
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Description of Executive Branch
The president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for a four-year term and can be re-elected for another consecutive term; election last held on 26 April 2009 (next to be held in 2013)
Description of Legislative Branch
Unicameral National Assembly or Asamblea Nacional (124 seats; members are elected through a party-list proportional representation system to serve four-year terms)
Description of Judicial Branch
National Court of Justice or Corte Nacional de Justicia (according to the Constitution, justices are elected through a procedure overseen by the Judiciary Council); Constitutional Court or Corte Constitucional (Constitutional Court justices are appointed by a commission composed of two delegates each from the Executive, Legislative, and Transparency branches of government)
Ambassador to U.S.Ambassador Saskia Nathalie CELY Suarez
Location of Embassy (City) in U.S.Washington, DC
Location of Consulates (cities) in U.S.Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, New Haven, New Orleans, New York, Newark (New Jersey), Phoenix, San Francisco, San Juan (Puerto Rico)
Representative to the United NationsJulio Xavier Lasso Mendoza
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U.S. Ambassador to themAmbassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Timothy ZUNIGA-BROWN
Location of U.S. Embassy (city) thereQuito
Location of U.S. Consulates (cities) thereGuayaquil
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Description of Symbolism within Flag
Three horizontal bands of yellow (top, double width), blue, and red with the coat of arms superimposed at the center of the flag; the flag retains the three main olors of the banner of Gran Columbia, the South American republic that broke up in 1830; the yellow color represents sunshine, grain, and mineral wealth, blue the sky, sea, and rivers, and red the blood of patriots spilled in the struggle for freedom and justice
note: similar to the flag of Colombia, which is shorter and does not bear a coat of arms
note: similar to the flag of Colombia, which is shorter and does not bear a coat of arms