Nicaragua Leader Set for Landslide in Election Slammed by Biden

(Bloomberg) -- Nicaraguan leader Daniel Ortega is on course for a landslide in Sunday’s presidential election after he jailed his main opponents. 

With nearly half of ballots tallied, the 75-year-old former guerrilla had 75% of the votes, according to a partial count by the electoral authority published in state-run-newspaper El 19. The U.S., the European Parliament and Human Rights Watch have all denounced the election as a farce. 

In a speech Sunday, Ortega called his opponents “demons” and “terrorists” as voting went ahead. With seven of Ortega’s rivals either in jail or under house arrest, and with international monitors barred, he is expected easily to win a fourth consecutive 5-year term.  

In a statement on Sunday, Biden attacked the “pantomime election that was neither free nor fair” and said the U.S. will use diplomatic and economic tools to hold Ortega accountable for abuses.  

Other candidates were on the ballot, but from small political parties without major support. 

In the run-up to the vote, Nicaraguan security forces detained politicians, journalists and civil society leaders under a draconian “anti-treason” law passed in December. Marches against Ortega’s election were held on Sunday throughout Costa Rica, where many of his critics have sought refuge. The number of Nicaraguans fleeing to the U.S. has also surged. 

During a speech on Sunday, Ortega defended the detentions, and accused the U.S. and its allies of conspiring to topple his government. 

“As Nicaraguans we have the right to put terrorists on trial and defend peace,” Ortega said. “Even though they dress the way they dress, they are demons who don’t want peace.”

Sweden to Costa Rica 

Democrat Senator Bob Menendez, Chairman of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued a statement last week rejecting the “sham elections” in Nicaragua, which was signed by representatives of 14 other governments from Sweden to Costa Rica, as well as by the European Parliament. 

The White House will discuss imposing sanctions following the vote and Biden is expected to sign the Renacer Act, which requires increased intelligence monitoring of Nicaragua and a review of the nation’s participation in the Central America Free Trade Agreement.  

Ortega first took power in the 1980s, and has been in office continuosly since 2007, making him one of the world’s longest-serving presidents. After decades of rule, Ortega faced mass protests in 2018, triggered by proposed changes to the social security system. The violent crackdown that followed turned the country from a country with an authoritarian government to something closer to a full-blown dictatorship. 

Read More: Nicaragua’s Ortega Defends Arrests, Blasts U.S. in Speech

Until recently, Nicaragua wasn’t a significant source of migration to the U.S. compared to neighbors such as El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras. But U.S. customs and border patrol detained a record 50,700 Nicaraguans in fiscal year 2021, a 280% increase on 2019 and well above historical tallies below 2,000.

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