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Nayib Bukele: the story on HearLore | HearLore
— Ch. 1 · From Businessman To Politician —
Nayib Bukele.
~6 min read · Ch. 1 of 6
Nayib Armando Bukele Ortez was born on the 24th of July 1981 in San Salvador, El Salvador. His father was Armando Bukele Kattán, a businessman and industrial chemist who converted from Christianity to Islam in the 1980s. Bukele completed his secondary education at the Escuela Panamericana in 1999 at age 18. He enrolled at Central American University to study judicial science but dropped out to work for the Nölck advertising agency. This company belonged to his father and campaigned for the Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front political party. In 1999, Bukele founded the marketing company Obermet, also known as 4am Saatchi & Saatchi El Salvador. He served as its president from 1999 to 2006 and again from 2010 to 2012. The company ran political advertising for the FMLN presidential campaigns of Schafik Hándal in 2004 and Mauricio Funes in 2009. During this period, he called himself a businessman with a great future. He also served as president of Yamaha Motors El Salvador from 2009 to 2012. These business ventures established his financial independence before he entered politics.
Rise Through Local Government
Bukele announced that he would enter politics as a member of the FMLN in 2011 to break out of his comfort zone. Officially joining the party in 2012, he campaigned for the mayoralty of Nuevo Cuscatlán. He was elected mayor of Nuevo Cuscatlán in March 2012 with 51.67 percent of the vote. He took office on the 1st of May 2012 as the country's youngest mayor. Bukele created a scholarship program for youths in the municipality, donating his $2,000 salary to fund the program. In August 2014, he launched Sphere PM, a project that sent a high-altitude balloon to take pictures of El Salvador. He stated that the goal was to promote education in science and technology to dissuade youth from crime. On the 1st of January 2015, he inaugurated a $1.7 million boulevard connecting Nuevo Cuscatlán with Huizúcar and Antiguo Cuscatlán. Much of this work utilized funding from ALBA Petróleos, owned by the Venezuelan oil company PDVSA. In August 2014, Bukele announced that he would seek election as mayor of San Salvador. His candidacy was confirmed by FMLN secretary-general Medardo González on the 19th of August 2014. He defeated Edwin Zamora with 50.38 percent of the vote on the 1st of March 2015. He took office on the 1st of May 2015.
When was Nayib Bukele born and where did he grow up?
Nayib Armando Bukele Ortez was born on the 24th of July 1981 in San Salvador, El Salvador. He completed his secondary education at the Escuela Panamericana in 1999.
What political party did Nayib Bukele join before becoming president?
Bukele announced that he would enter politics as a member of the Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front in 2011. He officially joined the party in 2012 to campaign for the mayoralty of Nuevo Cuscatlán.
How many people were arrested under Nayib Bukele's state of exception by December 2024?
By December 2024, over 85,000 people with alleged gang affiliations were arrested during the state of exception declared on the 27th of March 2022. This resulted in El Salvador having the highest incarceration rate in the world with 1.7 percent of its population in prison.
Did Nayib Bukele make Bitcoin legal tender in El Salvador and when did it happen?
Bitcoin became legal tender on the 7th of September 2021 after the Legislative Assembly approved the bill three days after Bukele announced it on the 5th of June 2021. The government amended the law on the 29th of January 2025 to remove bitcoin's status as legal tender while still allowing its use as payment.
When did Nayib Bukele announce the construction of the Terrorism Confinement Center?
Bukele announced the construction of the 40,000-inmate Terrorism Confinement Center in Tecoluca in July 2022. By the 11th of June 2024, CECOT had at least 14,532 inmates.
On the 19th of June 2019, Bukele announced that his government would implement a seven-phase security Territorial Control Plan. The plan began that night at midnight. Phase one called for members of the country's security forces to be stationed in 12 of the country's 262 municipalities. The government also implemented a temporary state of emergency in El Salvador's 28 prisons. El Salvador's homicide rate had decreased to 38 homicides per 100,000 people by 2019. Homicides fell by 50 percent during Bukele's first year in office. From 25 to the 27th of March 2022, gangs in El Salvador committed 87 homicides. This included 62 killings on the 26th of March alone. On the 27th of March 2022, the Legislative Assembly declared a 30-day state of exception. The military was mobilized in neighborhoods controlled by gangs. By December 2024, over 85,000 people with alleged gang affiliations were arrested. El Salvador's homicide rate decreased to 1.9 homicides per 100,000 in 2024. In July 2022, Bukele announced the construction of the 40,000-inmate Terrorism Confinement Center in Tecoluca. By the 11th of June 2024, CECOT had at least 14,532 inmates. At least 427 people have died in Salvadoran prisons since the declaration of a state of emergency. With 1.7 percent of its population in prison, El Salvador has the highest incarceration rate in the world.
Democratic Backsliding And Power Consolidation
In November 2019, Bukele began trying to secure a $109 million loan from the Central American Bank for Economic Integration. He called for his supporters to rally around the Legislative Assembly during an emergency meeting scheduled for the 9th of February. On that day, he ordered 40 soldiers into the Legislative Assembly's meeting room to coerce legislators into approving the loan. A quorum was not reached and the loan was not approved. Opposition politicians described the crisis as a self-coup known in El Salvador as 9F or ElBukelazo. In the 2021 legislative elections, Nuevas Ideas received a supermajority in the Legislative Assembly. On the 1st of May 2021, the coalition voted to remove the five justices of the Supreme Court of Justice's constitutional court and Attorney General Raúl Melara. The justices were replaced by five of Bukele's allies. This purge was described by journalists and opposition politicians as a power grab. From 2019 to 2025, El Salvador fell 61 places in the World Press Freedom Index. It also fell 24 places in the Economist Intelligence Unit's Democracy Index. On the 3rd of September 2021, the Supreme Court of Justice ruled that the president can serve two consecutive terms in office. This ruling overturned a 2014 ruling that presidents had to wait ten years to be eligible to run for re-election. On the 31st of July 2025, the Legislative Assembly enabled indefinite reelection and extended presidential terms from five to six years.
Bitcoin Adoption And Economic Policies
On the 5th of June 2021, Bukele announced at the Bitcoin 2021 conference that he would introduce a bill to make bitcoin legal tender. The Legislative Assembly approved the bill three days later. Bitcoin became legal tender on the 7th of September 2021 in El Salvador. About 1,000 people marched in the streets of San Salvador to protest the country's adoption of bitcoin. The day before bitcoin became legal tender, Bukele announced that the Salvadoran government had bought its first 200 bitcoins. By the 19th of January 2025, the Salvadoran government held 6,043 bitcoins worth $611.2 million. In November 2021, Bukele announced plans to build Bitcoin City in the southeastern region of La Unión. He published images of models of Bitcoin City and its planned airport on Twitter in May 2022. In December 2023, the Legislative Assembly passed a law allowing individuals to purchase Salvadoran citizenship by donating bitcoins. On the 18th of December 2024, the International Monetary Fund agreed to give El Salvador a $1.4 billion loan. Concessions included not requiring businesses to accept bitcoin as payment. On the 29th of January 2025, the Salvadoran government amended the Bitcoin Law to remove bitcoin's status as legal tender but still allows its use as payment. In July 2024, Bukele threatened to mass-arrest vendors who engaged in price gouging. Phase three of his Economic Plan involved the investment of US$1.6 billion into modernizing ports.
Foreign Relations And Geopolitical Stance
In June 2019, Bukele stated that his government would no longer recognize Nicolás Maduro as the president of Venezuela. On the 3rd of November of that year, he expelled Maduro-appointed Venezuelan diplomats from El Salvador. In 2018, El Salvador cut diplomatic ties with Taiwan and recognized the People's Republic of China. This led to Bukele and the United States accusing China of interfering in Salvadoran politics. In December 2019, Bukele met Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing and signed a gigantic infrastructure agreement. El Salvador and China have cooperated on projects such as the National Library of El Salvador completed in November 2023. In March 2024, Bukele offered to send a mission to Haiti to fix the country's gang war. In October 2024, El Salvador agreed to provide soldiers for the Multinational Security Support Mission in Haiti. The first Salvadoran soldiers arrived in Port-au-Prince on the 3rd of January 2025. During a September 2019 meeting with Trump, Bukele called on him to promote legal migration. In February 2025, Bukele offered Secretary of State Rubio to accept non-Salvadoran deportees from the United States. In March 2025, the United States deported 238 alleged members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua to El Salvador.