How Nayib Bukele Got That Dictator Swag
Nayib Bukele's re-election isn't just about him, it's about a society desperate for a savior. Democracy takes a backseat when gangs run the streets and politicians line their pockets.
Every so often, it's not just the outfit that makes the dictator, it's the circumstances too. So says Eva Orduña Trujillo, a specialist from UNAM's Research Center on Latin America and the Caribbean. She argues that Nayib Bukele's landslide re-election victory in El Salvador isn't just about that oh-so-trendy backwards baseball cap; it's a result of a perfect storm of dodgy politicians, social angst, and a democracy about as solid as a wet tortilla.
Let's unpack that, shall we? El Salvador is a country riddled with “cancerous” youth gangs, explains Orduña Trujillo. This made life unbearable for citizens, a situation Bukele vowed to solve. Like moths to the populist flame, people flocked to the self-styled savior for protection, even as El Salvador's flimsy democracy and Constitution got thrown under the bus in the process.
