El Salvador’s Congress votes to eliminate public campaign financing

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This article was published 12/02/2025 (261 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador (AP) — Lawmakers in El Salvador took advantage of a newly streamlined constitutional reform process to eliminate public financing of political campaigns Wednesday, making good on a promise of President Nayib Bukele.

The reform passed with 58 of the Congress’ 60 lawmakers voting in favor – carried largely by Bukele’s allies’ supermajority. The legislation now goes to Bukele for his signature.

“Political parties can finance themselves like we financed ourselves in 2019,” Bukele wrote on X. “Difficult? Yes, it was difficult. But wasn’t it better that way?”

Political parties had received money from the government based on the number of votes they obtain in elections, or had to return money that was advanced if their vote totals fall short of expectations.

Last month, the Congress ratified the change to the process for reforming the constitution. Previously, constitutional reforms had to be proposed and approved in one legislature, then ratified in the subsequent Congress following elections.

Now, reforms can be swept through with just the vote of three quarters of legislators. Bukele’s New Ideas party holds 54 seats and its allies three more in the 60-seat unicameral Congress.

His party’s success has already nearly erased the public participation of the opposition parties that had ruled El Salvador for decades before he began his first term in 2019.

“The elimination of public financing is another measure to consolidate and maintain the system of a hegemonic or dominant party,” said Eduardo Escobar, of the civic group Citizen Action. “The reform will affect political pluralism, now that the majority of parties won’t be able to pay for their ordinary functions, nor their electoral campaigns, reducing the possibility of an electoral victory.”