The Salvadoran president, Nayib Bukele, will repeat his term after achieving an overwhelming majority in Sunday's elections, according to the first counts. The mandate, who through a legal trick ran for re-election despite the fact that the Constitution of El Salvador prevents it, did not wait for the official results and self-proclaimed his victory hours before on X (formerly Twitter).
Bukele, who sarcastically despises criticism of his authoritarianism and has come to refer to himself as a "cool dictator," broke the electoral silence after casting his vote this Sunday and called on the population to vote to "continue fighting the gangs." ", according to EFE. That has been the axis of his argument in his interventions. He has not made reference to other problems, such as state debt, the cost of living, the use of pension funds for government spending and allegations of his government's negotiations with gangs, nor has he presented a government plan. .
In March 2022, he decreed the emergency regime with which he has cemented his controversial fight against gangs and citizen insecurity, during which 76,000 people have been detained, many of them without guarantee of their fundamental rights, according to activists and organizations. international.
Although Congress granted him license to campaign since December, Bukele has stayed away from the streets and has not had public appearances.
All the polls showed him as a clear favorite both in the presidential elections and in the legislative elections that were voted on this Sunday. Bukele, a 42-year-old former publicist, faced, among others, the two parties that governed the country until the arrival of his party, Nuevas Ideas.
Bukele has a notable influence in Latin America in countries such as Ecuador, Argentina and Paraguay, fostered by the tough policies implemented, innovation in economic matters with the adoption of bitcoin as legal tender, the critical stance towards organizations such as the Organization of American States (OAS) and their leadership style.
Since his election in 2019, the Salvadoran head of state has stood out for his intensive use of social networks, his focus on public security, particularly in the fight against gangs, and his interest in technology and innovation, as demonstrates its commitment to bitcoin as legal currency in the country.
Some 6.2 million Salvadorans (740,000 abroad) were called to vote in these elections, which are held under the emergency regime decreed on March 27, 2022 by President Bukele, something that has not happened since the end of the civil war. in 1992. That conflict, which began in 1980, left 75,000 dead and 8,000 missing.
Election day passed without serious incidents, although nine people were arrested for tearing electoral ballots, making political proclamations at polling places or appearing drunk (from yesterday, Saturday until Monday, dry law is in force in the country. ).
