Should Bitcoiners Support Nayib Bukele’s Attempt At Re-Election?

This is an opinion editorial by Jaime García, a Salvadoran-Canadian Bitcoin and co-host of Global Bitcoin Fest.

Many Bitcoiners regard El Salvador as a beacon of hope, as it’s the only country to date that has truly made bitcoin one of its official currencies. The country has provided a hospitable atmosphere for international Bitcoiners to meet, vacation and invest their stacks. Without a doubt, one of the key driving forces behind Bitcoin adoption in El Salvador has been President Nayib Bukele.

But ensuring the success of this novel project will take several more years. And many have wondered what would happen to the project if Bukele, its biggest champion, were no longer in charge. Some have wondered whether one presidential term is enough to complete the task of orange-pilling El Salvador.

That is why the potential of Bukele’s re-election would likely be welcomed by many Bitcoiners. However, equally as important is the potential that Bukele would be circumventing the Salvadoran constitution to achieve another term and perpetuate himself in the presidency — an abuse of power that would seem to contradict Bitcoin’s emphasis on rules, not rulers.

It now appears that Bukele will attempt to continue his presidency, beyond his current term. On September 15, 2022, El Salvador’s 201st Independence Day, Bukele announced that he would seek to run as a candidate for the presidency in the 2024 elections. Many Salvadorans received his announcement with excitement, enthusiasm and thunderous applause. In contrast, many of his detractors, critics and international news organizations immediately condemned his decision to run for a second term as illegal and unconstitutional. For the most part, their denunciations were based on the perception that El Salvador’s constitution limits presidential administrations to a single five-year term.

This article describes Bukele’s legal path to a second presidential term. It is not intended to promote nor detract from Bukele’s future presidential aspirations but to simply highlight the requirements for a Bukele candidacy within the current Salvadoran constitution. Understanding the nuanced aspects of the Salvadoran constitution, the events that led to Bukele’s announcement and the mood of the Salvadoran population are critical factors to assist the reader in thoroughly evaluating the situation.

The Legal Questions Around Bukele’s Second Term

Like many in El Salvador, Bukele himself had long held that presidential terms were limited to one and that re-election was impossible. Furthermore, in many interviews, he had gone on record asserting that he would not change the constitution to seek re-election.

As you might expect, changing the constitution is a long and arduous process. First, the president alone cannot alter the constitution. Second, proposed changes require at least ten Legislative Assembly Deputies signatories. Third, the Legislative Assembly of El Salvador has to approve the proposed change with a simple majority vote of 50% plus one. Finally, after a cool-off period, the next elected legislative assembly would ratify the proposal with a vote requiring three-quarters of the assembly.

It would have been impossible for Bukele, even with his party having a supermajority in the assembly, to pass a constitutional change in time for a second term re-election. Additionally, the constitution’s Article 248, explicitly prohibits changes to the section dealing with presidential terms.

From what is known, Bukele did not intend to seek re-election. So, what made it possible for him to announce that he would seek a second term as president?

A Recent Interpretation Of El Salvador’s Constitution

On February 15, 2021, the Salvadoran digital news outlet Diario El Mundo published an interview with Nancy Marichel Díaz de Martínez, a candidate running for the GANA party in the upcoming legislative assembly elections. In the interview, she was asked by the paper if she would support the…