El Salvador court drops ban on presidential reelection

President Nayib Bukele has not so far announced plans to seek reelection, but critics assume he will

El Salvador's top court and its election authority have tossed aside what seemed to be a constitutional ban on consecutive presidential reelection, setting the stage for President Nayib Bukele to potentially seek a second term in 2024. The Supreme Court's Constitutional Chamber on September 3 told the Supreme Electoral Tribunal to permit a second term, and the electoral authority announced September 4 it would accept what it called a ruling that cannot be appealed. The rulings — by a court recently overhauled by Bukele's party — alarmed opposition parties and citizen activist groups who have long accused the popular leader of authoritarian tendencies and who said the ruling was clearly unconstitutional.