????83% Nayib Bukele
????7% Hugo Martinez
????10% Others
Nayib Bukele has secured a second term in office as the president of El Salvador. Bukele won with a landslide victory of 83% in the general election held on Sunday, February 4, 2024.
According to the preliminary results from the Supreme Electoral Tribunal, Bukele was far ahead of his closest rival, Hugo Martinez, who managed to snag 7% of the total votes. The remaining 10% was distributed among four other candidates.
Bukele to Use his Second Term to Expand his Vision for El Salvador
Bukele thanked his supporters for helping him win and further urged the opposition to retract their statements and apologize.
“We are not substituting democracy, because El Salvador never had democracy. This is the first time in history that El Salvador has democracy. And I’m not saying it, the people say it.”
Nayib Bukele, President of El Salvador
The 42-year-old Bukele became widely popular among Salvadorans for his charismatic personality. However, despite his popularity, he faced harsh criticism from international human rights groups for his unorthodox economic policies.
One of his most demonized moves was the controversial decision to make Bitcoin legal tender in El Salvador which happened in June 2021.
Bukele pushed the bill through Congress and managed to make El Salvador the first country in the world to adopt Bitcoin as a legal tender.
While the move was intended to promote financial inclusion, investment, and economic development, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank, and the U.S. government were 100% not in support of it.
They expressed their concerns about the potential risks of using BTC as legal tender, including money laundering, and tax evasion.
Since the implementation of the Bitcoin law took effect in September 2021, the policy has been plagued by technical glitches, public resistance, and legal challenges.
While the majority of Salvadorans are optimistic about Bitcoin, some have complained about its volatility. Moreover, Chivo, the government-backed Bitcoin wallet has crashed several times since its inception.
Despite these setbacks, Bukele has remained optimistic about the future of Bitcoin in El Salvador.
He announced plans to build a “Bitcoin City” near a volcano, to use geothermal energy to mine Bitcoin and fund public services. Bukele has also vowed to continue buying Bitcoin with public funds, claiming that his investments have already profited.