- Nuevas Ideas declared Bukele its nominee after internal elections, setting him up to run for a third presidential term.
- Legal reforms removed presidential term limits, extended terms to six years and eliminated runoff elections, enabling his candidacy.
- National elections are scheduled for February 2027.
- Since 2022 his gang crackdown has jailed about 92,000 people without arrest warrants, drawing rights abuse allegations.
- Bukele remains broadly popular domestically, accused of autocratic control of institutions and styling himself as the 'world's coolest dictator'.
El Salvador’s Nayib Bukele has won his party’s nomination to run for a third presidential term after contentious legal reforms enabled him to contest in elections slated for next year.
The Nuevas Ideas party declared Bukele its nominee late Sunday after winning internal elections, ahead of national polls scheduled for February 2027.
El Salvador has amended its constitution multiple times since Bukele came to power in 2019, including abolishing presidential term limits last year.
That reform also extended the presidential term from five to six years and eliminated runoff elections.
In 2022, Bukele declared a crackdown on gangs that has imprisoned approximately 92,000 people without arrest warrants.
NGOs have repeatedly denounced widespread rights abuses in his so-called “mega-prisons” — including systematic torture and sexual violence.
The 44-year-old leader, whose harsh policies have secured him broad domestic popularity, will stand for election alongside his vice president Feliz Ulloa and in the absence of an opposition.
His attempts to control El Salvador’s congress, judiciary and institutions have earned him a reputation as an autocrat in some circles, but Bukele prefers to style himself as the “world’s coolest dictator.”
