(Reuters) – Nicaragua’s long-serving president Daniel Ortega said the Central American country will no longer hold elections, eliminating the possibility of an electoral challenge when his term ends next year and further entrenching the rule he shares with his wife.
Ortega, who has continuously held power since 2007 following an earlier presidential term in the 1980s, said the move will close off any path to the opposition, although he did not provide details about carrying out the ban.
“There won’t be any more elections here for them to try to seize the government and seize power,” Ortega said in a speech on Sunday evening to commemorate the 1979 Sandinista revolution, in which Ortega helped overthrow the U.S.-backed Anastasio Somoza dictatorship.
Nicaragua’s last election in 2021 was widely disputed after Ortega detained opponents and business leaders and criminalized dissent.
Last year, Ortega further consolidated his power through a series of constitutional reforms that included naming his wife Rosario Murillo as “co-president” and extending the presidential term to six years.
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