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        {"code":"27235","sect":"El Salvador","sect_slug":"el-salvador","hits":"961","link":"https:\/\/elfaro.net\/en\/202402\/el_salvador\/27235","link_edit":"","name":"In Election by His Own Rules, Four-Fifths of Salvadorans Give Bukele a Second Term","slug":"in-election-by-his-own-rules-four-fifths-of-salvadorans-give-bukele-a-second-term","info":"Over 97 percent of Salvadorans in the U.S. voted for Nayib Bukele, who claimed a commanding electoral victory Sunday with over 80 percent of total votes. Opposition parties have been reduced to a minimum, capping an unconstitutional process totally controlled by the ruling party.","mtag":"Politics","noun":{"html":"Roman Gressier and Jos\u00e9 Luis Sanz","data":{"roman-gressier-and-jose-luis-sanz":{"sort":"","slug":"roman-gressier-and-jose-luis-sanz","path":"roman_gressier_and_jose_luis_sanz","name":"Roman Gressier and Jos\u00e9 Luis Sanz"}}},"view":"961","pict":{"cms-image-000040037-jpg":{"feat":"1","sort":"40037","name":"cms-image-000040037.jpg","link":"https:\/\/elfaro.net\/images\/cms-image-000040037.jpg","path":"https:\/\/elfaro.net\/images\/cms-image-000040037.jpg","back":"","slug":"cms-image-000040037-jpg","text":"&lt;p&gt;Nayib Bukele announced his electoral victory on Feb. 4, 2024, on the platform X, before electoral authorities had published any preliminary results. Photo Carlos Barrera&lt;\/p&gt;","capt":"\u003Cp\u003ENayib Bukele announced his electoral victory on Feb. 4, 2024, on the platform X, before electoral authorities had published any preliminary results. Photo Carlos Barrera\u003C\/p\u003E"},"cms-image-000040038-jpg":{"feat":"0","sort":"40038","name":"cms-image-000040038.jpg","link":"https:\/\/elfaro.net\/images\/cms-image-000040038.jpg","path":"https:\/\/elfaro.net\/images\/cms-image-000040038.jpg","back":"","slug":"cms-image-000040038-jpg","text":"&lt;p&gt;Nayib Bukele broke 'electoral silence' rules in interrupting election day with a Sunday afternoon press conference calling on Salvadorans to vote. Photo Carlos Barrera&lt;\/p&gt;","capt":"\u003Cp\u003ENayib Bukele broke 'electoral silence' rules in interrupting election day with a Sunday afternoon press conference calling on Salvadorans to vote. Photo Carlos Barrera\u003C\/p\u003E"},"cms-image-000040039-jpg":{"feat":"0","sort":"40039","name":"cms-image-000040039.JPG","link":"https:\/\/elfaro.net\/images\/cms-image-000040039.JPG","path":"https:\/\/elfaro.net\/images\/cms-image-000040039.JPG","back":"","slug":"cms-image-000040039-jpg","text":"&lt;p&gt;The governing party Nuevas Ideas was the only party to maintain mass presence and publicity in various voting centers around El Salvador. Photo V\u00edctor Pe\u00f1a&lt;\/p&gt;","capt":"\u003Cp\u003EThe governing party Nuevas Ideas was the only party to maintain mass presence and publicity in various voting centers around El Salvador. Photo V\u00edctor Pe\u00f1a\u003C\/p\u003E"},"cms-image-000040040-jpg":{"feat":"0","sort":"40040","name":"cms-image-000040040.JPG","link":"https:\/\/elfaro.net\/images\/cms-image-000040040.JPG","path":"https:\/\/elfaro.net\/images\/cms-image-000040040.JPG","back":"","slug":"cms-image-000040040-jpg","text":"&lt;p&gt;Shortly after the polls closed, Nayib Bukele convened a mass demonstration\u00a0in front of the National Palace to celebrate his victory. Photo V\u00edctor Pe\u00f1a&lt;\/p&gt;","capt":"\u003Cp\u003EShortly after the polls closed, Nayib Bukele convened a mass demonstration\u00a0in front of the National Palace to celebrate his victory. Photo V\u00edctor Pe\u00f1a\u003C\/p\u003E"}},"pict_main__sort":40037,"date":{"live":"2024\/02\/05"},"data_post_dateLive_YY":"2024","data_post_dateLive_MM":"02","data_post_dateLive_DD":"05","text":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"color: #888888;\"\u003EEl Faro English translates Central America.\u00a0\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Ca href=\"\/suscribe\/en\/\"\u003ESubscribe to our newsletter\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"color: #888888;\"\u003E.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/em\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u201cAccording to our numbers, we have won the presidential election with more than \u003Cstrong\u003E85 percent of votes, and a minimum of 58 out of 60 deputies in the Assembly.\u201d\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EIt was Nayib Bukele who broke the news \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/nayibbukele\/status\/1754307883586494722?s=20\"\u003Eover X\u003C\/a\u003E at 6:56 on Sunday night: He won. By a stratospheric margin only seen in recent elections in Cuba, or Saddam Hussein\u2019s \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/docAvelar\/status\/1754359479573917721?s=20\"\u003EIraq.\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EIt is fair to say, too, that in Guatemala in 1944, Juan Jos\u00e9 Ar\u00e9valo, Bernardo Arevalo\u2019s father, won with 86.3 percent.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EThe numbers reduce any partisan opposition to irrelevance in decision-making. And just as transcendentally, Bukele self-proclaimed victory without awaiting any official result.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EYesterday, the TSE that signed off on Bukele\u2019s \u003Ca href=\"\/en\/202209\/el_salvador\/26381\/Bukele-Announces-He-Will-Seek-Reelection-in-2024-despite-Constitutional-Ban.htm\"\u003Eunconstitutional reelection bid\u003C\/a\u003E had its worst performance since El Salvador recovered its democracy. Dozens of polling center volunteers \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/flor_vasquez3\/status\/1754382656005955818?s=20\"\u003Ereported\u003C\/a\u003E that official computers were double- or triple-logging ballots, that paper was missing to make copies of the vote count, and that the \u003Cstrong\u003Eheads of voting centers \u2014most of them from ruling party Nuevas Ideas\u2014 kept the only copy.\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EThen, by 10pm Sunday, the official \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/preliminar.tse.gob.sv\/resultados\/dashboard-index-1\"\u003Esite\u003C\/a\u003E reporting preliminary results collapsed. For 11 hours, the page claimed to have counted 31 percent of acts, or 1.88 million ballots; but the votes supposedly counted, plus those reportedly not cast, exceeded 3.4 million.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EThat data would have also implied a turnout of 84.9 percent, despite the fact that on-the-ground observers saw around 50 percent cast ballots at most centers.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003ENevertheless, one hour after Bukele declared the evening an open-and-shut affair, \u003Cstrong\u003EAr\u00e9valo of \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/BArevalodeLeon\/status\/1754323176157270130?s=20\"\u003EGuatemala\u003C\/a\u003E was the first head of state to congratulate him:\u003C\/strong\u003E \u201cThe Salvadoran people have chosen, and have made their will heard.\u201d Honduras, Panama, and Mexico quickly followed. The U.S. Secretary of State joined Monday midday.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E    \u003Cfigure class=\"pict pict_land pict_move_posc 0 cs_img cs_img--curr rule--ss_c\" data-shot=\"pict\" data-hint=\"pict\"\u003E \u003Cdiv class=\"pict__pobj text-overflow\"\u003E\u003Cimg src=https:\/\/elfaro.net\/get_img?ImageWidth=4000&ImageHeight=2667&ImageId=40040 class=\"pobj\" style=\"max-width: 100%\" rel=\"resizable\" alt=\"Shortly after the polls closed, Nayib Bukele convened a mass demonstration\u00a0in front of the National Palace to celebrate his victory. Photo V\u00edctor Pe\u00f1a\" \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E \u003Cfigcaption class=\"pict__text cs_img_caption folk_content typo_buttons line--ss_s0c line--ss_s0c--auto block full-width text-overflow rule--ss_l relative\"\u003E \u003Cdiv class=\"__content block-inline full-width align-top tint-text--idle relative\"\u003E Shortly after the polls closed, Nayib Bukele convened a mass demonstration\u00a0in front of the National Palace to celebrate his victory. Photo V\u00edctor Pe\u00f1a \u003Cdiv class=\"photographer text_italic rule--ss_l tint-text--idle\"\u003E \u003C\/div\u003E \u003C\/div\u003E \u003C\/figcaption\u003E \u003C\/figure\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EThe Bukele tweet effect showed how influential the president is now, not only in El Salvador but in the hemisphere. And how far behind Salvadoran institutions have fallen.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EOn Monday morning, opposition legislator Claudia Ortiz called the TSE debacle \u201corchestrated chaos. The system has been made to fail in an orchestrated fashion.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EElectoral expert Malcolm Cartagena called for calm:\u003Cstrong\u003E \u201cThe votes are in the ballot boxes, and it will be the final count that dictates the winner,\u201d\u003C\/strong\u003E he told El Faro English of the failure of the preliminary count. \u201cBut what is obvious is that the TSE simulations focused on logistical and personnel problems, and did not conduct stress tests on the IT system.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EWhen the data finally was updated at 10:30am ET, 70 percent of presidential votes were reported. Nuevas Ideas had raked in 83.1 percent, followed by the FMLN, with 6.95, Arena with 6.2, and Nuestro Tiempo with 2.3.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EIt is a muddled scenario for international observation missions. The E.U. has yet to weigh in, but former Panamanian VP Isabel de Saint Malo, head of the OAS mission, \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/isabelstmalo\/status\/1754540761163391024?s=46\"\u003Ewrote\u003C\/a\u003E Monday afternoon that \u201cthe wide difference between Nayib Bukele and the other candidates leaves no doubt about the election results.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EThe Tribunal\u2019s failure adds to dozens of \u003Ca href=\"\/en\/202401\/el_salvador\/27226\/With-Reelection-Almost-Certain-Sunday-Vote-Will-Test-Extent-of-Salvadoran-Opposition.htm\"\u003Egovernment abuses of authority\u003C\/a\u003E in recent weeks. On Sunday, the \u003Cstrong\u003Epurportedly nonpartisan voting stations (JRV) were all composed of members of Nuevas Ideas,\u003C\/strong\u003E and the ruling party repeatedly violated rules against campaigning on election day and at voting sites.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u201cThere has been strong interference from the state and the governing party in different phases of the process,\u201d UNAM researcher Flavia Freidenberg, coordinator of the Observatory of Political Reforms in Latin America, told El Faro English. The TSE \u201chas had serious difficulties as an arbiter, and the process has had many situations of a tilted field, where they have been unable to take out yellow cards, let alone red cards.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E    \u003Cfigure class=\"pict pict_land pict_move_posc 0 cs_img cs_img--curr rule--ss_c\" data-shot=\"pict\" data-hint=\"pict\"\u003E \u003Cdiv class=\"pict__pobj text-overflow\"\u003E\u003Cimg src=https:\/\/elfaro.net\/get_img?ImageWidth=4000&ImageHeight=2667&ImageId=40038 class=\"pobj\" style=\"max-width: 100%\" rel=\"resizable\" alt=\"Nayib Bukele broke 'electoral silence' rules in interrupting election day with a Sunday afternoon press conference calling on Salvadorans to vote. Photo Carlos Barrera\" \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E \u003Cfigcaption class=\"pict__text cs_img_caption folk_content typo_buttons line--ss_s0c line--ss_s0c--auto block full-width text-overflow rule--ss_l relative\"\u003E \u003Cdiv class=\"__content block-inline full-width align-top tint-text--idle relative\"\u003E Nayib Bukele broke 'electoral silence' rules in interrupting election day with a Sunday afternoon press conference calling on Salvadorans to vote. Photo Carlos Barrera \u003Cdiv class=\"photographer text_italic rule--ss_l tint-text--idle\"\u003E \u003C\/div\u003E \u003C\/div\u003E \u003C\/figcaption\u003E \u003C\/figure\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u201cHanging over the TSE is a sword of Damocles,\u201d adds Cartagena. \u201cAn announced \u003Cstrong\u003Econstitutional reform will make it disappear, just as the rest of the institutions disappeared\u003C\/strong\u003E or are under the president\u2019s control. What happened Sunday, including the lack of sanctions, especially against Nuevas Ideas, serves the Executive Branch as a final justification for the reform.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u201cThe only thing stopping Bukele from dissolving it [the TSE] already,\u201d he added, \u201cis that it is still of use to legitimize his victory.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EA welcome strongman\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EAs \u003Ca href=\"\/en\/202401\/el_salvador\/27226\/With-Reelection-Almost-Certain-Sunday-Vote-Will-Test-Extent-of-Salvadoran-Opposition.htm\"\u003Epresaged by polling\u003C\/a\u003E, Bukele\u2019s overwhelming victory is a renewed license from Salvadorans to wield the unlimited power he and his party have accumulated.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EHis opponents, traditional parties Arena and the FMLN, will not face legal cancellation, after obtaining more than 50,000 presidential votes. Newcomer Nuestro Tiempo, with over 45,000, sits on the cusp. But if in the March 3 municipal elections all or almost all the mayors\u2019 offices also are allotted to Nuevas Ideas, it will mean that across El Salvador \u003Cstrong\u003Ethere could be as few as three or four elected officials not belonging to the ruling party.\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EThe Legislative Assembly results are advancing at a snail\u2019s pace, but after aggressive reforms that \u003Ca href=\"\/en\/202402\/el_salvador\/27231\/the-entire-state-apparatus-is-being-used-to-guarantee-bukele-rsquo-s-reelection\"\u003Edrew comparisons to U.S. gerrymandering\u003C\/a\u003E, the ruling party Nuevas Ideas is expected to obtain between 57 and 58 seats out of 60.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EIt is a response to Bukele's results in public security, and his sculpting of a new national pride. No matter the increase in poverty or the jailing of thousands of innocents \u2014VP F\u00e9lix Ulloa \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/nayib-bukele-gangs-el-salvador-vice-president-ulloa-interview-2aef0dbcc4bbed3c3a52cdc85a593241\"\u003Eadmitted so publicly\u003C\/a\u003E\u2014 many feel the country is leaving behind past traumas and entering the 21st century.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EThe devotion to Bukele is striking in the diaspora, where official data reported at noon ET that 326,766 Salvadoran foreign residents voted \u2014 74 times the 4,400 who did so in 2019. \u003Cstrong\u003EAn astounding 97.9 percent of them voted for President Bukele or his party.\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E    \u003Cfigure class=\"pict pict_land pict_move_posc 0 cs_img cs_img--curr rule--ss_c\" data-shot=\"pict\" data-hint=\"pict\"\u003E \u003Cdiv class=\"pict__pobj text-overflow\"\u003E\u003Cimg src=https:\/\/elfaro.net\/get_img?ImageWidth=4000&ImageHeight=2667&ImageId=40039 class=\"pobj\" style=\"max-width: 100%\" rel=\"resizable\" alt=\"The governing party Nuevas Ideas was the only party to maintain mass presence and publicity in various voting centers around El Salvador. Photo V\u00edctor Pe\u00f1a\" \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E \u003Cfigcaption class=\"pict__text cs_img_caption folk_content typo_buttons line--ss_s0c line--ss_s0c--auto block full-width text-overflow rule--ss_l relative\"\u003E \u003Cdiv class=\"__content block-inline full-width align-top tint-text--idle relative\"\u003E The governing party Nuevas Ideas was the only party to maintain mass presence and publicity in various voting centers around El Salvador. Photo V\u00edctor Pe\u00f1a \u003Cdiv class=\"photographer text_italic rule--ss_l tint-text--idle\"\u003E \u003C\/div\u003E \u003C\/div\u003E \u003C\/figcaption\u003E \u003C\/figure\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EIn College Park, Maryland, thousands waited up to five hours to vote, many arriving before polls opened, from hours away, to then go to work at restaurants. The crowds were full of shirts with Bukele\u2019s face. It was an overwhelming expression of a community that is vast in the U.S. but usually dispersed and uncoordinated.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EHundreds were left in line when voting centers closed. In an unprecedented decision, TSE President Dora Mart\u00ednez said in a Sunday evening press conference that \u003Cstrong\u003E\u201canother date will be allotted for those who were left out of voting centers\u201d\u003C\/strong\u003E in the diaspora.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EThey will be allowed to vote for Bukele in an election he already won, days after he celebrated.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EIt was also in the U.S. where the complete fusion of state and party was most evident. Bukele officials assisted with voting from cell phones and tablets, while\u003Cstrong\u003E individuals with hats supporting the president\u2019s reelection controlled the doors\u003C\/strong\u003E in Bethesda, Maryland.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EEl Faro English obtained a copy of a video in which the Salvadoran Ambassador to Washington, Milena Mayorga, consults with the Tribunal over the phone and gives orders to voting tables for people with unregistered passports to be able to vote.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EThe next enemy?\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EWith still no official results, around 10:30pm, before an extravagant show of lights in the Central Plaza in San Salvador, Bukele addressed thousands of supporters:\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u201cI ask these foreign governments, and these journalists: Why do you want them [the gangs] to kill us?\u201d he shouted. \u201cWhy are you not happy that blood does not flow in our country as it did before? \u003Cstrong\u003EWhy should we and our children die so that you can be content that we respect your false democracy?\u201d\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E    \u003Cfigure class=\"pict pict_land pict_move_posc 0 cs_img cs_img--curr rule--ss_c\" data-shot=\"pict\" data-hint=\"pict\"\u003E \u003Cdiv class=\"pict__pobj text-overflow\"\u003E\u003Cimg src=https:\/\/elfaro.net\/get_img?ImageWidth=4000&ImageHeight=2667&ImageId=40037 class=\"pobj\" style=\"max-width: 100%\" rel=\"resizable\" alt=\"Nayib Bukele announced his electoral victory on Feb. 4, 2024, on the platform X, before electoral authorities had published any preliminary results. Photo Carlos Barrera\" \/\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E \u003Cfigcaption class=\"pict__text cs_img_caption folk_content typo_buttons line--ss_s0c line--ss_s0c--auto block full-width text-overflow rule--ss_l relative\"\u003E \u003Cdiv class=\"__content block-inline full-width align-top tint-text--idle relative\"\u003E Nayib Bukele announced his electoral victory on Feb. 4, 2024, on the platform X, before electoral authorities had published any preliminary results. Photo Carlos Barrera \u003Cdiv class=\"photographer text_italic rule--ss_l tint-text--idle\"\u003E \u003C\/div\u003E \u003C\/div\u003E \u003C\/figcaption\u003E \u003C\/figure\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EIt appeared the reelected president had chosen his next main target. In a press conference after voting, he made no mention of the political opposition, fielded no questions from national media, and upbraided the foreign reporters whom he gave the mic.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EWhen a journalist from Univision asked whether Bukele thinks \u201cEl Salvador needs a constitutional reform [that] should include indefinite reelection\u201d, he replied, \u201cNo, I don\u2019t think that it should include that.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EHe then turned to Univision\u2019s coverage: \u201cAll [your] articles are negative. If one article were positive and the other negative, I\u2019d call that balance. But I ask: Who do you work for? \u003Cstrong\u003EYou\u2019re going to lose that last five percent of your audience, and the check from Soros is going to run out.\u201d\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003ESpanish newspaper El Pa\u00eds requested comment on Ulloa\u2019s Friday statement to the \u003Ca href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/02\/02\/world\/americas\/el-salvador-bukele-election.html\"\u003ENew York Times\u003C\/a\u003E: \u201cTo these people who say democracy is being dismantled, my answer is yes. We are not dismantling it, we are eliminating it. We are replacing it with something new.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u201cI don\u2019t trust anything the New York Times says,\u201d Bukele retorted, before adding: \u201cEl Salvador has never had democracy. (...) We are bringing democracy to this country.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003EThe candidate\u2019s conference was broadcast on government TV. It was an ironic snapshot, one that summed up election day. Bukele \u2014who has \u003Ca href=\"\/en\/202311\/el_salvador\/27168\/inner-circle-financial-officer-will-be-interim-president-while-bukele-campaigns-for-reelection\"\u003Eclaimed to be on presidential leave\u003C\/a\u003E\u2014 has gone five years without giving an interview to a Salvadoran outlet, and\u003Cstrong\u003E no other contender had a minute of air space, during the whole campaign, on state media.\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Chr \/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cbr\/\u003E\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003E\u003Cem\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"color: #888888;\"\u003EThis article first appeared in the January 10 edition of the El Faro English newsletter.\u00a0\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Ca href=\"\/suscribe\/en\/\"\u003ESubscribe here\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"color: #888888;\"\u003E\u00a0to tune into Central America.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E"}

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