El Salvador election on 28 February 2027 as Bukele seeks third term

Who is running

President Nayib Bukele, in office since 2019, seeks a third consecutive term for Nuevas Ideas, the ruling party. Vice President Félix Ulloa is his running mate. A state of exception against gangs has been in force since 2022. Crime has fallen to historic lows; rights groups say the crackdown involved widespread abuses, which Bukele rejects.

Maytee Iraheta, a lawyer and former deputy for Sonsonate, is the candidate of the right-wing Nationalist Republican Alliance (ARENA), its first woman presidential pick. Rafael Aguirre, a doctor, runs for the left-wing Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMLN). These two parties alternated in power for three decades before Bukele.

Local media also report bids by Alirio García Flamenco, a retired general, for the centre-right National Coalition Party (PCN), and Orlando Delcid for Salvadoran Patriotic Fraternity (FPS). By 27 October 2026 no ticket had registered with the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE), the electoral authority.

How the vote works

One round decides the presidency: the ticket with the most valid votes wins, with no runoff. The president serves six years. On the same day, voters elect the 60 deputies of the Legislative Assembly, the single-chamber parliament, and the mayors and councils of all 44 municipalities.

More than 6.5 million people are registered to vote, 982,682 of them abroad. Salvadorans abroad elect 6 deputies of their own. They can vote online from 30 January 2027, or in person on 28 February at 92 centres in 29 countries, open by local time.

How the race got here

On 31 July 2025 the Legislative Assembly approved a constitutional reform. It allows indefinite presidential re-election, extends the term from five to six years, abolishes the runoff and moves the presidential vote from 2029 to 2027. The opposition holds 3 of the 60 seats in the outgoing assembly.

Parties chose their candidates in July 2026. The TSE formally called the election on 30 September 2026. The presidential campaign opened on 27 October 2026 and runs until 24 February 2027.

What happens next

1. Jul 312025Constitutional reform ends presidential term limits
2. Sep 30TSE formally calls the election
3. Oct 27Presidential campaign opens
4. today
5. Nov 19Candidate registration closes
6. Feb 282027General election
7. Jun 12027Winner takes office

Presidential and legislative candidates can register with the TSE until 19 November 2026; municipal lists are filed from 9 to 19 November. Campaigning for the assembly starts on 27 December and for municipal councils on 27 January 2027. Bukele's current term ends on 1 June 2027, when the winner takes office.