Title: Nuevas Ideas Party Faces Contradictions as Single Candidacies Raise Eyebrows
With internal elections around the corner, pro-government deputy Elisa Rosales of the Nuevas Ideas party has criticized the practice of carrying single forms, calling it a tradition of “traditional parties.” However, her party seems to have fallen into the same practice with the sole candidacy of President Nayib Bukele and various municipal councils.
Rosales defended her party’s stance in a recent interview, stating, “We are not like traditional political parties who presented only one list of candidates with no other options for affiliates.” However, despite her claims, Nuevas Ideas presented only a single candidate for the presidency, Nayib Bukele, during the 2024 internal presidential elections.
This move has raised concerns as the Constitution prohibits presidential re-election, and the Political Parties Law also discourages promoting presidential re-election. Despite these legal restrictions, Nuevas Ideas failed to provide alternative choices for presidential candidates.
In addition to the presidential candidacy issue, the municipal council forms also featured unique profiles, according to the party’s results page. Municipalities such as Santa Ana Norte, Sonsonate Centro, San Salvador Sur, and others had single candidates. Notable party officials, like deputy Marcela Balbina Pineda and Minister of Housing Michelle Sol, also ran as sole candidates for their respective municipalities.
However, the participation of Nuevas Ideas affiliates seems to have been low. The party boasts 500,000 affiliates, but during the internal elections held last Sunday, the Bukele formula received only 44,398 votes, indicating a mere 8.88% endorsement for the current leaders.
Furthermore, the party’s commitment to gender equality and inclusion is also under scrutiny. Out of the 60 candidates running for a deputation, only 17 are female proprietary candidates, representing a mere 28.33%. Women fare slightly better in the substitute deputies category, accounting for 45% of the positions. Nonetheless, when combining both categories, men still dominate the competition with 63.33% representation.
Adding to the controversy, Deputy Elisa Rosales went beyond legally established boundaries to promote her own candidacy for re-election as a deputy to the Legislative Assembly. The deputy’s campaign paid for advertising on social media platforms, specifically targeting Facebook, to increase her visibility among the electorate.
The Nuevas Ideas party now finds itself facing contradictions in its own internal practices. As the internal elections draw near, it remains to be seen how these issues will impact the party’s reputation and overall campaign.
[Photo: Courtesy]