The regime of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo opened a new phase of political uncertainty in Nicaragua after the dictator stated that in the country ''there will be no more elections'' to allow his opponents to come to power.
The statements, made during an event for the anniversary of the Sandinista Revolution, provoked a strong international reaction and forced the government to clarify the scope of the president's words, while Parliament announced that it will promote constitutional and legal reforms to establish new conditions for future electoral processes.
Ortega, who has kept Nicaragua under his yoke since 2007 and currently shares power with his wife, co-dictator Rosario Murillo, delivered a harsh speech against the opposition and against the United States on Sunday. In his address, he asserted that the possibility of political parties backed by Washington returning to government is over and emphasized that this will not happen again under his administration.
''The story is over that the parties put in place by the 'Yankees', by the 'Somocistas', will return to government. Never, never, never,'' Ortega stated, in a declaration that was interpreted as a direct threat against the possibility of political alternation through competitive elections.
The president also maintained that the opposition will not be able to use electoral processes to try to ''capture the government'' or ''capture power'', referring to his political adversaries, whom the regime accuses of acting under foreign influence. His words generated concern among opposition sectors and democracy advocacy organizations, which believe that the Nicaraguan government has progressively eliminated the necessary conditions to hold free elections.
Ortega's statement came in a context where the Nicaraguan political system is strongly controlled by the government. In the 2021 elections, several of the main opposition candidates were detained before the elections, while Ortega obtained a new mandate in a process widely questioned by the United States and other Western governments.
Now, the next presidential elections were scheduled for November 2027. However, the president's statements seemed to cast doubt on the continuity of the electoral calendar and the possibility for citizens to choose among different political alternatives.
In response to the repercussions of Ortega's words, the president of the National Assembly, the Sandinista Gustavo Porras, came out this Wednesday to clarify the message and assured that there will be elections in Nicaragua. According to the head of Parliament, the president did not mean that the country will completely abandon electoral processes, but that he will not allow them to be under the influence of the United States or other foreign powers.
Porras explained that the government intends to modify the Constitution and other laws to establish a new electoral framework that, according to his words, prevents foreign interference and excludes from political contests those whom the regime considers ''coup plotters'' or ''traitors to the homeland''.
''The important thing is that we establish in constitutional terms that in this country we cannot accept elections where coup plotters, traitors to the homeland, where parties and organizations financed with foreign money, with foreign powers, by foreign organizations participate,'' he declared.
The Parliament's proposal to suspend elections
Parliament announced a work plan to reform the Constitution and other regulations after Ortega's speech. Porras stated that future elections will be organized and determined by the Nicaraguans themselves and rejected any participation of ambassadors or foreign representatives in the organization of the elections.
