Incompatibilidad normativa entre jubilación y mandato popular : análisis del estado constitucional de derecho en Ecuador.

Abstract

In Ecuador, access to retirement benefits requires that even popularly elected authorities be formally separated from service, a condition that in practice compels them to resign from office and gives rise to a tension between the rights to political participation and social security. This study examines whether such a requirement is constitutionally compatible with the concurrent exercise of both rights. The research adopts a qualitative approach based on normative and jurisprudential content analysis, involving the examination of constitutional provisions, statutory regulations, and relevant case law issued by the Constitutional Court of Ecuador. The findings show that, although the cessation requirement pursues a constitutionally legitimate aim related to the sustainability of the social security system, it fails to satisfy the standards of suitability, necessity, and proportionality when applied to elected authorities. Accordingly, the study concludes that both rights may be effectively harmonized through a constitutionally consistent interpretation or through a targeted regulatory reform that allows retirement benefits to be recognized without requiring the immediate termination of public office.