Movimientos estratégicos y proceso constituyente en el Ecuador: el momento de la des-institucionalización

The article examines how Ecuador’s 2007 Constituent Assembly emerged from a long-standing public demand for political reform amid chronic institutional crisis. Julio Echeverría argues that President Rafael Correa’s government adopted a maximalist strategy consisting of two phases: first, de-institut...

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Bibliographic Details
Author: Echeverrla, Julio
Format: article
Status:Published version
Publication Date:2026
Country:Ecuador
Institution:Universidad Central del Ecuador
Repository:Revista Ciencias Sociales
Language:Spanish
OAI Identifier:oai:revistadigital.uce.edu.ec:article/9802
Online Access:https://revistadigital.uce.edu.ec/index.php/CSOCIALES/article/view/9802
Access Level:Open access
Keyword:Des-institucionalización
Asamblea Constituyente
Partidocracia
Maximalismo político
Crisis institucional
De-institutionalization
Constituent Assembly
Party system crisis
Maximalist strategy
Institutional crisis
Description
Summary:The article examines how Ecuador’s 2007 Constituent Assembly emerged from a long-standing public demand for political reform amid chronic institutional crisis. Julio Echeverría argues that President Rafael Correa’s government adopted a maximalist strategy consisting of two phases: first, de-institutionalization, marked by the disregard of constitutional procedures, confrontation with traditional political parties, and the removal of bodies such as the Constitutional Court; and second, institutional reconfiguration through a plenipotentiary Constituent Assembly. Although the referendum showed broad public support, this process introduces democratic risks by weakening the rule of law, fostering a plebiscitary logic, and expanding political discretion in ways that threaten pluralism, deliberation, and constitutional guarantees. Echeverría warns that while the desire for change is clear, the lack of defined direction may lead to power concentration and erosion of rights.