Correa accuses opposition groups of vote manipulation

Equador: Ecuador's President Rafael Correa accused opposition groups Monday of manipulating the vote count in a referendum as his margin of victory narrowed on planned media, banking and judicial reforms.

Certain provinces "are refusing to include their vote data in the national count in a protest to claim that there is a dead heat" on at least two media-related reforms, Correa said at a news conference.

But "no, there is no dead heat to be seen anywhere" he insisted, claiming his government swept the 10-question referendum with a wide margin of victory in most provinces of the South American country of more than 13 million.

Opposition groups meanwhile called for a recount, pointing to inconsistencies in the results. The proposals included measures bolstering Correa's power to regulate the country's judiciary and news media, among them aims to amend the constitution to restrict investment in local media.

But with 40.2 percent of the votes counted, nine of the 10 proposals got support ranging between 43.7 and 49 percent, while the "No" camp ranged from 40.45 to 44.2 percent, according to official National Electoral Council figures. Quito, Tuesday, AFP