El Salvador Votes 2019

[Shrillland]

With all the changes in Latin America and this country considered a major source of people in the now infamous "caravan", it's a good idea to take a look at their presidential elections, which will be coming up on February 3. They have a two-round system with a runoff if there's no outright majority in round one. Their legislature was chosen last year with the right-wing ARENA party getting 35 of the 84 seats, but ARENA's candidate is currently a distant second in the polls. Who is this candidate? Let's find out, shall we?

Juan Carlos Calleja(ARENA-Nationalist Republican Alliance)

ARENA is, of course, the right-wing party that won the devastating civil war of the 1980s that still resonates today. Calleja himself is US-educated and the current VP of the Calleja Group, which owns the Super Selectos supermarket chain. According to his campaign website, he supports creating three tech districts in the country to improve that sector and requiring 20,000 students to be trained for tech sector jobs. He also wants 75% of teachers to have experience with international companies. He's also proposing the creation of the Lempa Shop for entreprenuers to sell directly to people and distributors online worldwide. In healthcare, he supports what he calls rational use of the National Health System's budget and making purchases of supplies and medications in bulk depending on consumption to save money. He also wants to build the Pronto Salud plan, which would require doctors to stay on call for at least 6-8 hours a day, but there's nothing about increasing the actual numbers of doctors in El Salvador.

In Agriculture, he wants to raise small farm production by as much as 30% by increasing the amount of spending on the Ag Ministry from SV$127 million(US$19 million) to SV$262 million(US$30 million) to purchase better seeds for farmers to buy. He also wants to encourage coffee production to revitalise the sector. Calleja hopes to do this by making it easier for potential coffee farmers to receive bank loans. He also wants to strengthen police powers to include permanent police patrols in certain areas and speed up the judicial process for minor crimes.

For education, he want to mandate 6,000 scholarships for technical education and 20,000 for vocational education. He also wishes to make it easier for Salvdorans to learn English and encurage tourism by strengthening security on public beaches. For more information, here's his campaign website(in Spanish, as are all of them): https://www.carloscallejapresidente.com/

He's currently in second place averaging 27%.

Hugo Martinez(FMLN-Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front)

The FMLN is a left-wing party that fought on the other side of the war. They currently hold the presidency with Salvador Sanchez Ceren. Martinez has served six years in the Assembly and in two administrations as Foreign Minister including that of Sanchez Ceren. Sadly, the FMLN website only has his platform in an Issuu booklet, so I can't exactly Google Translate it. But for those who can or are fluent, here's the linky: http://www.fmln.org.sv/index.php/noticias/noticias-fmln/2765-plataforma-hugo Thanks to Diopolis, here are some of the major points of Martinez's platform:

Anyway, on the FMLN platform:
-It starts with the phrasing, no joke, "You have in your hands a platform of government for the next five years."(paraphrased) I doubt they're real communists, but it's interesting to note.
-Their economic platform promises 385,000 new jobs over five years through government investment. Beyond that, it's kind of vague- they want a higher minimum wage, favor equal pay for men and women, and have a vague plan to provide educational opportunities. They're also in favor of robust consumer protections. They specifically call out wanting a strong tourism sector. A lot of their economics is highly similar to what Juan Carlos is promising- a system of financing from the state for favored industries, strong emphasis on agriculture, etc.
- They're strongly pro-youth and pro-youth involvement in politics. Aside from a strong opposition to bullying and sponsoring youth involvement in politics, they're, again, highly similar to Juan Carlos. They definitely favor universal early childhood education. The biggest difference from ARENA that I can see is that they think university should be open and free. Whether they mean universal admission or this is just an anti-discrimination ordinance I couldn't tell.
- They, almost shockingly for what seems up to this point to be a fairly moderate left platform, favor gender quotas in government positions. "The new government should constitute itself half women, half men". They're generally highly pro-feminist. Favoring women in divorce seems to be a major part of their platform. They're also very pro-indigenous rights.
- They favor reparations to victims of the civil war.
- They're pro-sports and pro-government support for sports, and pro-freedom of religion. I don't really know what's controversial in El Salvador so I'm throwing these out there even though it seems like they're probably feel good planks they included to try to get their opponents on record opposing them.
- They talk tough on crime and anti-drug, but don't offer a lot of specific details. They're big on two specific progams- Yo Cambio(I change) and Servir a mi Gente(to serve my people) for reintegration. They're anti corruption and it looks pretty boilerplate.
- They have a focus on increasing the quality of healthcare. This contrasts with ARENA which focuses on increasing the availability. They're in favor of community integrated health teams- pretty common with poor latin american countries.
- They want to increase the welfare budget- not surprising for a left wing party. They talk about welfare being family oriented, but it looks to me like they're just trying to make the opposition oppose it. If you name a group, they want benefits for it- in addition to the aforementioned women's and indigenous people's benefits, they explicitly want disability, old age, and veterans benefits as separate planks in their platform.
- They're green, but if push comes to shove, they'll probably choose jobs every time. They specifically call out being pro-ocean.
- They're pretty globalist-internationalist. They want closer trade links, more open to the world, you name it. Very pro-transportation/infrastructure spending.

Martinez is currently a distant 3rd averaging 10%.

Josue Alvarado-VAMOS

I cant find a whole lot about Alvarado save that he's from San Miguel Department and is the VAMOS Party's general secretary and presidential candidate. VAMOS is a centrist party founded in November of 2017 to provide a new option for Salvadorans. I also can't find a lot about him, directly, but he talks quite often about giving the Salvadoran disapora, mostly in the US, a voice that could actually be heard rather than ignored. As before, I'll appreciate any help.

He is currently dead last in the polls at just around 1%.

Nayib Bukele-GANA(Grand Alliance for National Unity

GANA is a centre-right party that often goes into coalitions with the FMLN in the Assembly, having split from ARENA in 2010. Nayib Bukele is the former Mayor of San Salvador and nearby Nuevo Cuscatlan, and a former FMLN member who was expelled in 2017 for being too far right for that party. After two failed attempts at forming a party of his own, he decided to go with GANA as their presidential candidate. At 37, he's the youngest candidate of the lot. His policies include reducing the National Assembly's size from 84 to 64, but there isn't a whole lot on his website that goes into detail about what he wants to do exactly. Here it is: http://www.bukelepresidente.com/

So, who do your support?

Given the trouble I'm having finding a lot of hard details, I think I'd support Martinez right now.

[Freezic Vast]

Because of the severe lack of detail, I'm inclined to say Juan Carlos.

[Purpelia]

Genuine question. Is there actually enough people here from ES that this topic warrants discussion? I mean, the rest of us don't really get a say in how they vote (nor should we) and have no reason to care about it either.

[Shrillland]

Genuine question. Is there actually enough people here from ES that this topic warrants discussion? I mean, the rest of us don't really get a say in how they vote (nor should we) and have no reason to care about it either.

Admittedly, probably not, I decided against a Nigerian thread for that reason. But it does warrant discussion when you consider that Salvadorans made up a large part of the "migrant caravan" that we in the US seemed so interested in. Anyone that can bring improvement to the country would mean less of them trying to come here, for instance, so it only makes sense that we see and decide who's a good shot.

[Shrillland]

Because of the severe lack of detail, I'm inclined to say Juan Carlos.

It wasn't for lack of trying, trust me.

[Page]

I generally hope for leftists to win elections, but I don't really know anything about politics in El Salvador so I don't have strong feelings about this either way. More important than the leftist winning is that the far-right loses, far too many countries have fallen to the authoritarian right in recent years.

[Freezic Vast]

Because of the severe lack of detail, I'm inclined to say Juan Carlos.

It wasn't for lack of trying, trust me.

I know but from the policies that I have seen from Juan Carlos kind of seems like the better candidate in my eyes.

[Shrillland]

I generally hope for leftists to win elections, but I don't really know anything about politics in El Salvador so I don't have strong feelings about this either way. More important than the leftist winning is that the far-right loses, far too many countries have fallen to the authoritarian right in recent years.

Well, the biggest problem in EL Salvador today is, of course, its severe gang violence. San Salvador is one of the murder capitals of the world, and all of the candidates are trying to figure out how to eliminate this problem.

[The New California Republic]

Genuine question. Is there actually enough people here from ES that this topic warrants discussion? I mean, the rest of us don't really get a say in how they vote (nor should we) and have no reason to care about it either.

I mean, there have been discussion threads about elections in various Latin American countries, and it is debatable whether there are enough people on NationStates from said countries to warrant many of the threads, but perhaps elections in El Salvador might merit more interest because of its relatively turbulent history?

[Shrillland]

Genuine question. Is there actually enough people here from ES that this topic warrants discussion? I mean, the rest of us don't really get a say in how they vote (nor should we) and have no reason to care about it either.

I mean, there have been discussion threads about elections in various Latin American countries, and it is debatable whether there are enough people on NationStates from said countries to warrant many of the threads, but perhaps elections in El Salvador might merit more interest because of its relatively turbulent history?

That's my view. We've had lots of these threads where only one or two NSGers can claim to live there, and other where none live but are still significant for other reasons.

[Shrillland]

In election news, the Supreme Electoral Tribunal has announced that all political adverts will end on Friday in accordance with Salvadorean law: http://www.noticierostcs.com/dentro-de-2-dias-se-cancelaran-las-propagandas-politicas/

And here's an article from El Diario de Hoy(in Spanish): https://www.elsalvador.com/noticias/nacional/554309/estas-son-las-prohibiciones-que-tendran-los-funcionarios-publicos-a-partir-del-viernes/

I didn't realise the blackout period was so long down there.

[Diopolis]

Juan Carlos could be a lot better, but he seems like he has a decent head on his shoulders. I don't trust left wingers and the others simply don't have enough information to make up my mind.

[Shrillland]

Juan Carlos could be a lot better, but he seems like he has a decent head on his shoulders. I don't trust left wingers and the others simply don't have enough information to make up my mind.

Alas, I had trouble finding info for the others, there wasn't a whole lot to go by.

[Diopolis]

I've managed to skim the FMLN platform. There's some notes below. I did not read the whole thing, and I think there's a lot of El Salvador/Latin America specific context I missed, but it should at least help for those who don't know any Spanish. My main take away was that they're probably more similar to ARENA than they are different, but with left wing flavoring.

Anyway, on the FMLN platform:
-It starts with the phrasing, no joke, "You have in your hands a platform of government for the next five years."(paraphrased) I doubt they're real communists, but it's interesting to note.
-Their economic platform promises 385,000 new jobs over five years through government investment. Beyond that, it's kind of vague- they want a higher minimum wage, favor equal pay for men and women, and have a vague plan to provide educational opportunities. They're also in favor of robust consumer protections. They specifically call out wanting a strong tourism sector. A lot of their economics is highly similar to what Juan Carlos is promising- a system of financing from the state for favored industries, strong emphasis on agriculture, etc.
- They're strongly pro-youth and pro-youth involvement in politics. Aside from a strong opposition to bullying and sponsoring youth involvement in politics, they're, again, highly similar to Juan Carlos. They definitely favor universal early childhood education. The biggest difference from ARENA that I can see is that they think university should be open and free. Whether they mean universal admission or this is just an anti-discrimination ordinance I couldn't tell.
- They, almost shockingly for what seems up to this point to be a fairly moderate left platform, favor gender quotas in government positions. "The new government should constitute itself half women, half men". They're generally highly pro-feminist. Favoring women in divorce seems to be a major part of their platform. They're also very pro-indigenous rights.
- They favor reparations to victims of the civil war.
- They're pro-sports and pro-government support for sports, and pro-freedom of religion. I don't really know what's controversial in El Salvador so I'm throwing these out there even though it seems like they're probably feel good planks they included to try to get their opponents on record opposing them.
- They talk tough on crime and anti-drug, but don't offer a lot of specific details. They're big on two specific progams- Yo Cambio(I change) and Servir a mi Gente(to serve my people) for reintegration. They're anti corruption and it looks pretty boilerplate.
- They have a focus on increasing the quality of healthcare. This contrasts with ARENA which focuses on increasing the availability. They're in favor of community integrated health teams- pretty common with poor latin american countries.
- They want to increase the welfare budget- not surprising for a left wing party. They talk about welfare being family oriented, but it looks to me like they're just trying to make the opposition oppose it. If you name a group, they want benefits for it- in addition to the aforementioned women's and indigenous people's benefits, they explicitly want disability, old age, and veterans benefits as separate planks in their platform.
- They're green, but if push comes to shove, they'll probably choose jobs every time. They specifically call out being pro-ocean.
- They're pretty globalist-internationalist. They want closer trade links, more open to the world, you name it. Very pro-transportation/infrastructure spending.

[Shrillland]

I've managed to skim the FMLN platform. There's some notes below. I did not read the whole thing, and I think there's a lot of El Salvador/Latin America specific context I missed, but it should at least help for those who don't know any Spanish. My main take away was that they're probably more similar to ARENA than they are different, but with left wing flavoring.

Anyway, on the FMLN platform:
-It starts with the phrasing, no joke, "You have in your hands a platform of government for the next five years."(paraphrased) I doubt they're real communists, but it's interesting to note.
-Their economic platform promises 385,000 new jobs over five years through government investment. Beyond that, it's kind of vague- they want a higher minimum wage, favor equal pay for men and women, and have a vague plan to provide educational opportunities. They're also in favor of robust consumer protections. They specifically call out wanting a strong tourism sector. A lot of their economics is highly similar to what Juan Carlos is promising- a system of financing from the state for favored industries, strong emphasis on agriculture, etc.
- They're strongly pro-youth and pro-youth involvement in politics. Aside from a strong opposition to bullying and sponsoring youth involvement in politics, they're, again, highly similar to Juan Carlos. They definitely favor universal early childhood education. The biggest difference from ARENA that I can see is that they think university should be open and free. Whether they mean universal admission or this is just an anti-discrimination ordinance I couldn't tell.
- They, almost shockingly for what seems up to this point to be a fairly moderate left platform, favor gender quotas in government positions. "The new government should constitute itself half women, half men". They're generally highly pro-feminist. Favoring women in divorce seems to be a major part of their platform. They're also very pro-indigenous rights.
- They favor reparations to victims of the civil war.
- They're pro-sports and pro-government support for sports, and pro-freedom of religion. I don't really know what's controversial in El Salvador so I'm throwing these out there even though it seems like they're probably feel good planks they included to try to get their opponents on record opposing them.
- They talk tough on crime and anti-drug, but don't offer a lot of specific details. They're big on two specific progams- Yo Cambio(I change) and Servir a mi Gente(to serve my people) for reintegration. They're anti corruption and it looks pretty boilerplate.
- They have a focus on increasing the quality of healthcare. This contrasts with ARENA which focuses on increasing the availability. They're in favor of community integrated health teams- pretty common with poor latin american countries.
- They want to increase the welfare budget- not surprising for a left wing party. They talk about welfare being family oriented, but it looks to me like they're just trying to make the opposition oppose it. If you name a group, they want benefits for it- in addition to the aforementioned women's and indigenous people's benefits, they explicitly want disability, old age, and veterans benefits as separate planks in their platform.
- They're green, but if push comes to shove, they'll probably choose jobs every time. They specifically call out being pro-ocean.
- They're pretty globalist-internationalist. They want closer trade links, more open to the world, you name it. Very pro-transportation/infrastructure spending.

Thank you so much, I'll add it to the OP.

[Shrillland]

Well folks, tomorrow is the main debate, and it's significant for two reasons. First, the main runner-up, Bukele, will not be attending, and second, Calleja's going to expand on his platform: https://www.elsalvador.com/noticias/nacional/557165/calleja-anunciara-mas-acciones-de-gobierno-en-debate-asder/

[Greater vakolicci haven]

Calleja seems good and reasonable, I like his educational platform.

[Liriena]

Well, ya gotta go with Hugo Martinez.