June 1, 2024: Bukele's Unconstitutional Inauguration
Marked by displays of military might and religious zeal, Nayib Bukele was sworn in to a second consecutive term as El Salvador’s president on June 1, 2024, an unconstitutional act that the country has not seen since the 1930s military dictatorship of Maximiliano Hernandez Martinez. To social movement groups in El Salvador, June 1 marks the beginning of “a new stage of struggle.”
To read more about the over-the-top ceremony and the significance of this turning point in Salvadoran history, read our analysis here.
On the same day, Salvadorans in six countries, and five U.S. cities, demonstrated outside embassies and consulates to make clear they “do not recognize [his presidency] since it is the result of unconstitutional and illegitimate elections.”
To read our press release, click here and for video footage, click here.
The protests, which challenged Bukele's carefully honed and heavily funded narrative of his universal popularity, made headlines in El Salvador and in the U.S. Check out news coverage in:
- Salvadoran press including El Diario de Hoy, La Prensa Grafica, YSUCA radio, Revista La Brujula
- U.S. media including Democracy Now (see headlines or watch the show at 10:48), WTTV-Chicago, and KPFA
- Spanish-language U.S. press including MetroLatino
- Latin American press like Colombia Informa
"I am a CISPES supporter because continuing to fight for social justice and a more people-centered country means continuing the dream and sacrifice of thousands of my fellow Salvadorans who died for that vision.” - Padre Carlos, New York City
