Salvadorans Express Hope for Change After Outsider Wins Presidency, Reports Reuters

By Nelson Renteria and Noe Torres

SAN SALVADOR – Salvadorans expressed optimism for a transformed nation on Monday following the election of political outsider Nayib Bukele, who secured a decisive victory with a commitment to combat the corruption and violence that have plagued the Central American country.

Bukele, 37, a former mayor of San Salvador, garnered 53 percent of the vote with nearly full results reported, allowing him to achieve the presidency in the first round of voting.

His significant win in the recent election was a striking rejection of the two dominant political parties in El Salvador, the ruling leftist Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front (FMLN) and the conservative Nationalist Republican Alliance (ARENA), both of which have held power since the country’s civil war.

Bukele’s promises to modernize government, coupled with his effective use of social media, have energized many young Salvadorans who are eager to see an end to the economic stagnation, poverty, and violence that have persisted in the aftermath of the brutal civil war from 1980-1992.

On the busy streets of San Salvador, Juana de Calderon, a 38-year-old cook, shared her reasons for voting for Bukele, hoping to see an end to corruption. "We hope that he fulfills what he promised in the campaign," she remarked while preparing popular local dishes. "If we voted for him, it’s because we want something new – to have a different country."

Candidates from both the FMLN and ARENA acknowledged their defeat soon after the election results were announced.

Bukele will now face challenges, including U.S. President Donald Trump’s repeated threats to reduce aid to El Salvador and its neighbors, Guatemala and Honduras, if they do not increase efforts to control migration to the U.S. Gang violence has led to El Salvador becoming one of the most dangerous countries in recent years, prompting many to flee north.

Among his campaign pledges, Bukele, an active user of social media who captured a selfie with supporters upon his victory announcement, promised to initiate infrastructure projects aimed at addressing migration.

However, he will need to navigate a divided Congress and a substantial government deficit, with his coalition holding only 11 seats in the 84-member legislature.

Fitch Ratings highlighted that governance may be a challenge for Bukele, indicating a risk of increased polarization between the presidency and Congress, and projected only modest economic improvement in the near future.

A SHIFT FROM TRADITIONAL LEFTIST POLITICS

Despite his family’s historical ties to the FMLN, Bukele has distanced himself from traditional leftist politics in Latin America, openly criticizing leaders like Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro, Nicaragua’s Daniel Ortega, and Honduras’s Juan Orlando Hernandez, labeling them as dictators.

"A dictator is a dictator, on the ‘right’ or the ‘left,’" Bukele expressed on social media last week.

Though he was expelled from the FMLN in 2017, Bukele continues to identify with leftist ideals, but during his presidential campaign, he aligned himself with a conservative party known as GANA, which translates to "win" in Spanish.

In addition to his advocacy for government modernization, Bukele, who is set to take office in June, has proposed establishing an international anti-corruption commission with the backing of the United Nations, modeled after similar initiatives in Guatemala and Honduras.

"We’ll create a commission… so that the corrupt can’t hide where they always hide. Instead, they’ll have to give back what they stole," Bukele stated in January.