More 2009 political news

El Salvador's foreign minister, Francisco Laínez, resigned his post this week so that he could contend for the ARENA party nomination in El Salvador's 2009 presidential elections. As reported in El Faro, Lainez is only the latest of several ARENA party members interested in running for the presidency. Unlike the FMLN which moved quickly and with great unity to promote Mauricio Funes as its presidential candidate, ARENA's process has only been moving forward in fits and starts.

2009 also sees the election of mayors throughout the country. In San Salvador, the current mayor Violeta Menjivar is planning to seek reelection. ARENA candidates are lining up to run against her, perhaps motivated by the closeness of her initial election in 2006. The FMLN has held the mayor's office in the capital city continuously since the end of the civil war in 1992.

Comments

El-Visitador said…
«Unlike the FMLN which moved quickly and with great unity to promote Mauricio Funes as its presidential candidate, ARENA's process has only been moving forward in fits and starts.»

Unlike the USSR which moved quickly and with great unity to promote Joseph Stalin as its presidential designate, the U.S. process has only been moving forward in fits and starts: the U.S. has this inefficient, messy process called "primaries".
Anonymous said…
A correction, the FMLN only won the mayorla election for the first time in 1997, when Hector Silva was elected mayor. Mario Valiente of ARENA was mayor from 1994-1997
Anonymous said…
el-visitador's comment does not really fit here. who knows what he's trying to say...
i really didn't want violeta menjivar to run again for SS mayor, but since she will, i will give my vote to a different candidate. in my own personal opinion she has not done as good a job as she could have done, SS is simply the most important city in ES and needs competent people to run it accordingly to its demands. On another note, i would not call arena's reluctancy to nominate a presidential candidate a sign of misunity within the party, i say they have realized they are up against a very appealing opposition in mauricio funes, so they're simply scrambling to put up the best possible candidate under the "best" possible campaing strategy...i say look for the 2009 presidential elections to be very close and hardfought between funes and whomever comes out of arena. but regardless, my vote goes to mauricio funes all the way!!!
Tim said…
E-V:

I'd hardly compare ARENA's process with the US primary system where everyone knows the rules. Consider today's article in El Faro with the prominent ARENA figures complaining that they don't know what the selection rules are: link.
Hodad said…
question, saw a yahoo news spot on ES troops in Iraq
are they getting the very same pay as USA and/or others such as Danish troops
if not then this IS a real travesty
El-Visitador said…
«I'd hardly compare ARENA's process with the US»

Oh, I agree, ARENA's process is far from democratic. And yet, you cannot possibly say what a straight face that the FMLN's process is any better.

If the FMLN's looked "quick and with great unity" to you it is because it was a completely closed appointment process by Party leadership, in the best tradition of the USSR, Cuba, and North Korea!

Don't get me wrong, I don't think ARENA's process is much better. I just thought your turn of phrase was evocative of Pulitzer-awarded Walter Duranty and other apologists for Communists.