Central America
Analysts predict opposition defeat in 2024 elections in El Salvador
October 5 |
The low voting intention and preference, according to several polls, that the population maintains towards the traditional political parties for next year’s elections “is irreversible”, therefore, the electoral triumph of Nayib Bukele at the polls is imminent, according to analysts and sociologists René Martínez and Mauricio Rodríguez.
Both agree that it will be difficult for the traditional parties (ARENA and FMLN) to attract more voters, due to the discontent of Salvadorans for the bad management of their municipal and presidential administrations.
Data from the last opinion poll of the Universidad Francisco Gavidia (UFG) indicated that the tricolor presidential ticket [Joel Sánchez and Hilcia Bonilla] has a voting intention of 4.3 %; and the farabundista candidates [Manuel Flores and Wérner Marroquín] of 2.8 %.
In view of this scenario, in the middle of the beginning of the legal term for the presidential electoral campaign, Martínez and Rodríguez warned that the opposition parties could resort to the “dirty campaign”, as a mechanism to attack Nayib Bukele, candidate of Nuevas Ideas who will compete for immediate reelection, enabled based on the sentence 1-2021 of the Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court of Justice which reinterpreted article 152 of the Constitution of the Republic.
“On the part of the opposition candidates, who together would not even reach 10% of the popular support, what is expected is “dirty war”, false news, defamation, continuous calls to return to the past of corruption and impunity and, above all, promises to remove the regime of exception and release terrorist criminals”, considered Martinez.
The presidential elections are scheduled for February 4, 2024, according to the calendar of the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE). In these elections, in addition to citizens residing in El Salvador, the diaspora will also be able to vote by means of electronic voting via Internet and electronic voting in person, according to the provisions of the Special Law for the Exercise of Suffrage Abroad, approved by the Legislative Assembly last year.
Unlike the opposition, analysts valued, Nayib Bukele maintains the leadership in voting intentions and citizen preference, results that will be ratified at the polls, by virtue of his work in favor of Salvadorans, highlighting security with the fight against gangs.
The same UFG survey that projected the unfavorable scenario for the opposition established that the presidential formula of Nuevas Ideas [Nayib Bukele and Félix Ulloa] have a voting intention of 68. 4%, which increases to 87% only with valid votes.
“Re-election is imminent. I believe that if the first presidential term [of Nayib Bukele] was to settle public security, the second term is to empower the country’s economic sectors,” said Rodríguez.
Central America
Arévalo accuses Porras and judge of undermining democracy in Guatemala
Guatemalan President Bernardo Arévalo denounced a new attempt at a “coup” orchestrated by the Attorney General’s Office. He also requested an extraordinary session at the Organization of American States (OAS) to address the country’s ongoing political crisis.
The president has been at odds with Attorney General Consuelo Porras, who has been sanctioned by the United States and the European Union for being “corrupt” and “anti-democratic.” Since 2023, Arévalo has accused Porras of launching investigations against his party, Semilla, and the 2023 elections as part of a scheme to prevent his inauguration in January 2024.
From the presidential office, Arévalo has said he continues to “resist” the “coup plotters,” but tensions escalated last Friday when Judge Fredy Orellana, at the request of the Attorney General’s Office, ordered the electoral court to annul the Semilla party’s promoter group. Arévalo interpreted this as an attempt to revoke the positions won by the party.
“Orellana, a hitman who distorts the law in service of Consuelo Porras, is attempting to force […] the unconstitutional removal of a mayor, 23 elected deputies […], the vice president, and the president of the country,” Arévalo said in a televised address on Sunday.
“We call on the international community not to turn a blind eye to the coup being attempted in Guatemala,” he added, speaking alongside his cabinet and congressional members at the National Palace in Guatemala City.
Arévalo requested that the Organization of American States hold an extraordinary session to present “the serious threats” to the Guatemalan Constitution and democracy perpetrated by Porras and Orellana.
Yesterday, Guatemalan Foreign Minister Carlos Ramiro Martínez reaffirmed the president’s statements, emphasizing the need “to go and expose the situation” Guatemala has been facing since last week due to the actions of the Attorney General’s Office.
Central America
New dismembered bodies found in San Juan river days after mass killing in Palencia
On the morning of Monday, October 27, Guatemala’s Volunteer Firefighters confirmed the discovery of two bodies and two human heads inside plastic bags in the San Juan River, located in the Zacualpía village at kilometer 21 of the Atlantic Highway, in the jurisdiction of Palencia.
The remains were found by personnel from Companies 85, 50, and Central, who responded after receiving a report about suspicious bags floating in the water. The gruesome discovery was made just a few meters from the site where eight tortured bodies were found under the San Juan Bridge on Friday, October 24.
Local authorities do not rule out a connection between both incidents and suspect they may be tied to the same criminal organization. Investigators from the Public Ministry and the National Civil Police arrived at the scene to gather evidence and transfer the remains to the National Institute of Forensic Sciences (Inacif).
According to data from the National Economic Research Center (CIEN), Guatemala recorded 2,154 homicides between January and August 2025, an increase compared to the 1,816 reported during the same period in 2024.
Central America
Four guatemalan soldiers arrested for stealing weapons from Northern Air Command
Four soldiers were arrested in connection with the theft of weapons from the Northern Air Command of the Ministry of Defense in Petén, Guatemala, following operations conducted by the Public Ministry (Prosecutor’s Office).
“During the operations, criminal scenes were processed, analyzed, and documented photographically, possible escape routes were identified, surveillance cameras were located, and potential witnesses were interviewed,” the Prosecutor’s Office explained in a social media post.
The detained soldiers were identified as Ludwin Jónathan Cardona Baltazar, charged with illicit association, dereliction of duty, and aggravated theft; and Josué Israel Pérez Jerónimo, Alain Omar Marroquín Soch, and Carlos Ernesto Ibarra Corrales, charged with dereliction of duty, according to Guatemala’s Prensa Libre.
The military personnel reportedly stole 55 rifles, 14,420 rounds of 5.56 mm ammunition, 92 magazines of 35 rounds each, 19 magazines of 20 rounds each, and three grenade launchers, “which were allegedly moved from the arms warehouse to the outside for illicit sale.”
The Ministry of Defense stated that it will keep its internal control mechanisms active to prevent similar incidents.
U.S. warns China over Taiwan during high-level defense talks in Kuala Lumpur
U.S. considering airstrikes on military sites in Venezuela, reports say
Pope Leo XIV revives Global Compact on Education to confront cultural crisis
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
Defense Minister commends salvadoran soldier for Central American Cross Country victory
Extension of the state of emergency approved in southern Chile
-
International3 days agoJamaica faces widespread destruction as hurricane Melissa hits the island
-
International4 days agoColombian president Gustavo Petro denies alleged ties to criminal networks
-
International4 days agoMexican journalist reporting on drug cartels killed in Durango
-
International5 days agoArgentina’s Milei secures strong victory and calls for dialogue after election surge
-
International2 days agoMelissa leaves path of destruction in Caribbean, 735,000 evacuated in Cuba
-
Central America3 days agoNew dismembered bodies found in San Juan river days after mass killing in Palencia
-
Central America3 days agoFour guatemalan soldiers arrested for stealing weapons from Northern Air Command
-
Central America4 days agoEl Salvador cracks down on narcotics: 24 tons confiscated in major anti-drug operation
-
International9 hours agoHurricane Melissa kills over 30, leaves thousands displaced in the Caribbean
-
Central America3 days agoArévalo accuses Porras and judge of undermining democracy in Guatemala
-
International1 day agoHurricane Melissa leaves Jamaican residents homeless as recovery efforts begin
-
International5 days agoMaduro accuses U.S. of aggression over Caribbean military drills
-
International2 days ago
Argentina’s Milei opens dialogue with parties to push “Second-Generation Reforms”
-
Central America4 days agoEl Salvador’s FGR prosecutes 89,875 gang members under state of exception
-
International1 day agoUS Deputy Secretary criticizes Mexico’s call to end Cuba trade embargo at UN
-
International1 day agoTrump orders immediate U.S. nuclear testing, ending 30-year moratorium
-
International1 day agoBrazilian president defends coordinated anti-drug operations after deadly Rio raid
-
International1 day agoVenezuela warns citizens who call for invasion risk losing nationality
-
International9 hours agoTrump sets historic low refugee cap at 7,500, prioritizes white South Africans
-
International1 day agoMexico advances continental shelf claims at UN Commission in New York
-
International1 day agoSimeón Pérez Marroquín, ‘El Viejo,’ detained for role in Miguel Uribe Turbay assassination plot
-
International5 hours agoU.S. considering airstrikes on military sites in Venezuela, reports say
-
International9 hours ago
UNICEF: Over 700,000 children affected by Hurricane Melissa in the Caribbean
-
International5 hours agoU.S. warns China over Taiwan during high-level defense talks in Kuala Lumpur
-
International5 hours agoPope Leo XIV revives Global Compact on Education to confront cultural crisis