Nayib Bukele, the 40-year-old President of El Salvador, is quickly becoming Latin America’s first millennial dictator. On May 1, 2021, Bukele and his supporters in the legislature fired the country’s top prosecutor and highest court—before packing both institutions with loyalists. Since this power grab, Bukele has used state agencies to harass journalists, investigate opposition parties, and undermine government oversight. He and his allies are also drafting a new constitution, expected to be unveiled later this year. Bukele’s mission, as he explained in a recent speech to the legislature, is to ensure that his opponents never return to power.
If public opinion is any indication, he may well succeed: Even as he has undermined Salvadoran democracy’s checks and balances, the president remains overwhelmingly popular. Elected in 2019 with 53 percent of the vote—21 points above his nearest rival—recent polls place Bukele’s approval rating well above 80 percent.