Overview
- Nuevas Ideas proclaimed Nayib Bukele as its presidential candidate with Vice President Félix Ulloa after internal votes Monday, placing him on the ballot for the February 2027 election.
- A 2021 Sala de lo Constitucional ruling that allowed immediate re-election and 2025 laws that removed the two-term limit, extended terms to six years, and eliminated the runoff created the legal path for this candidacy.
- Supporters credit Bukele’s security campaign and the state of exception since 2022 with a sharp drop in homicides, which helps explain his sustained high approval ratings.
- Human-rights groups and foreign governments have raised concerns about reports of arbitrary detentions and weakened institutional checks as the government consolidated control of the legislature, judiciary and prosecution.
- Bukele’s proclamation starts the 2027 campaign with a fragmented opposition and raises questions about international scrutiny, electoral fairness, and the lived effects on Salvadoran families caught up in security operations.