In the 1960s, foreign companies began to develop oil resources in the Ecuadorian Amazon region; this brought economic prosperity in the 1970s, as Ecuador became a mayor exporter of oil. In 1972, a nationalist military regime seized power. In a 1978 referendum, the people of Ecuador voted for a new Constitution and in 1979, Ecuador returned to a democratic Government. Jaime Roldos from Concentración de Fuerzas Populares (Populist party) was elected in that year but died in 1981 in an airplane accident in the southern province of Loja. His constitutional successor, Oswaldo Hurtado from Democracia Popular (Christian Democrat), held the Presidency until 1984.

In August 1984 León Febres Cordero from Partido Social Cristiano (Social Christian) assumed the Presidency. During his period, Febres Cordero introduced free market policies. In 1988 Rodrigo Borja, from Izquierda Democrática (Social Democrat) was elected President. Sixto Durán Ballén, a former Social Christian and founder of Unidad Republicana, succeeds Borja for the period 1992-1996. In August 1996, Abdalá Bucaram from Partido Roldosista Ecuatoriano (Populist party) assumed the Presidency, but in February 1997 a general strike that turned into a national protest of the great majority of sectors, dismissed Mr. Bucaram with charges of misgovernment and corruption. In his place, the Congress elected the president of the Congress Mr. Fabián Alarcón Ribera as Interim President of Ecuador for a period of 18 months. The people of Ecuador confirmed these decisions in a national referendum held in May 1997.

In the elections of 1998 was elected Mr. Jamil Mahuad Witt from the Political Party “Democracia Popular”. On January 21, 2000, and after days of protest of indigenous groups and trade union opposed to President Mahuad´s economic policies, which culminated in a failed coup attempt, President Mahuad lives the government palace and Vice President, Gustavo Noboa Bejarano, assumes the presidency the next day, on January 22nd. A few hours later, Congress voted overwhelmingly to declare the presidency vacant and Mr. Noboa as the new President of Ecuador until the end of Mr. Mahuad´s term, in January 2003.

Lucio Gutiérrez Borbúa succeeded the presidential elections of November 2002. On the inauguration of the new Government in January 15, 2003, President Gutierrez expressed his desire to work towards an all-embracing society, eliminating corruption and eradicating poverty.