Ecuador’s incumbent president Rafael Correa is headed for a victory in the country’s presidential elections on Sunday.

Ecuador’s President Rafael Correa gestures to supporters in Quito, capital of Ecuador, April 27, 2009. Correa on Sunday thanked the nation’s voters for their “overwhelming” support after the published exit polls showed him well beyond the 50 percent needed for reelection in one round.(Xinhua/Santiago Armas)

His Socialist Party is close to securing an absolute majority in the 124-member assembly, exit polls showed.

Earlier, Correa thanked the nation’s voters for their “overwhelming” support after exit polls showed him well beyond the 50 percent needed for reelection in one round. He has become the first president elected in the Andean country in 30 years without a runoff.

“We have made history,” Correa said, speaking from Guayaquil. “Today we won in one round… but the big winner is the Ecuadorian people.”

Ecuador’s more than 10 million registered voters are legally obliged to vote. Sunday’s general election will also choose more than 1,600 officials including deputies and municipal officers alongside Correa.

VietNamNet/Xinhuanet