Nicaragua prepares reform to exclude opposition from elections

Nicaragua's ruling Sandinista party has accelerated efforts to reform the country's electoral laws, with President Daniel Ortega directing the creation of a new legal framework designed to bar opposition parties from future elections. The National Assembly, firmly controlled by the Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN), and the country's electoral authorities have begun discussing these changes, which are slated for a vote in the first week of August.

Vice President Rosario Murillo defended the initiative, asserting that it seeks to prevent electoral processes that, according to the government, serve foreign interests. Her remarks followed warnings from the United States, which has questioned the plans announced by Managua. "That is the type of election that will never return to Nicaragua," Murillo stated, referring to electoral processes the government associates with Washington's influence.

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That is the type of election that will never return to Nicaragua.

Murillo insisted that Nicaragua must develop its own political mechanisms and rejected any external intervention in the nation's internal affairs. "Elections, yes, but our own elections... of our blessed people, designed, organized from our national sovereignty, from our dignity," she emphasized.

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Elections, yes, but our own elections... of our blessed people, designed, organized from our national sovereignty, from our dignity.

Gustavo Porras, president of the National Assembly, confirmed that the Parliament is collaborating with the Supreme Electoral Council on legal adjustments. He stated that the reforms aim to prevent the participation of opposition sectors accused by the government of acting on foreign interests. Porras assured that mechanisms would be established to "leave no loophole" and prevent "the terrible manipulation of empires and their lackeys" in electoral processes.

The announcement comes shortly after Ortega declared during the 47th anniversary of the Sandinista Revolution that elections in which his adversaries could compete for power would not occur. "Let them forget it, there will be no more elections here for them to try to seize the government and seize power through that means," the president stated.

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In the first week of August, reforms will be submitted for a vote.

The decision has drawn criticism from governments, international organizations, and Nicaraguan opposition groups. The United States has urged the international community to maintain a coordinated response to the actions of Ortega's government. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, also expressed concern and called on the Nicaraguan executive to guarantee the political participation of all citizens, urging the "restoration of the rule of law."

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Let them forget it, there will be no more elections here for them to try to seize the government and seize power through that means.