With 97 percent of the ballots counted, Lasso had won 52.5% of the vote compared to his opponent the left-wing economist Andrés Arauz’s 47.5%.

“It’s a day in which all Ecuadoreans have decided their future, they have used their vote to express the need for change and the desire for better days,” Lasso said.

Conceding defeat hours after polls closed, Arauz congratulated Lasso for his victory in the election.

Lasso will be inaugurated as Ecuador's 47th president on May 24. (ILKHA)