Elections begin in El Salvador: Is Bukele's second term certain?

In the Central American country of El Salvador, voting has begun for the election to determine the president and vice president. According to a January poll by the Central American University in San Salvador, El Salvador's Palestinian-origin President Nayib Bukele, who has the support of 80 percent of voters, is expected to win the election in his bid for a second term.

In this election, the public will determine the 60 members of parliament in addition to the president and vice president. After his New Ideas Party nominated him for the presidency, Bukele, who announced in September 2023 that he would run for a second 5-year term, had faced criticism that running for a second term as president was unconstitutional in the country.

Despite constitutional debates, the parliament had approved President Bukele's request to take leave to run for office again. Criticizing the actions of the two centrist parties (FMLN and ARENA) that have governed the country for the last 20 years in harsh terms, Bukele had highlighted his promises to fight organized crime and corruption, as well as to prevent poverty and income inequality, in his election campaign.

In his election campaign, Bukele frequently argued that if he did not win the presidential race in El Salvador, which has the highest homicide rate in the world, the "war against gangs would be put at risk." 42-year-old Bukele, who was first elected president on June 1, 2019, declared a state of emergency for one month on March 27, 2022, to reduce crime rates in the country, and this decision has been renewed every month since.

News Source: AA