Bitcoin Course at Risk in El Salvador? 2027 Election Rivals Challenge Nayib Bukele
El Salvador’s two major opposition events named their candidates for the February 2027 presidential election. The transfer units up a problem to President Nayib Bukele’s third-term bid and the Bitcoin (BTC) technique constructed round him.
The Nationalist Republican Alliance, ARENA, picked former lawmaker Maytee Iraheta. The Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front, or FMLN, tapped doctor and union chief Rafael Aguirre. Neither rival has embraced Bukele’s Bitcoin technique; in truth, each campaigns have overtly criticized it as a fiscal failure.
Both now face a president who stays broadly well-liked after six years in workplace.
Bukele’s Third Term Tests a Rewritten Constitution
Bukele’s Nuevas Ideas occasion nominated him this month. His operating mate stays Vice President Felix Ulloa.
For ARENA, the ticket marks a historic first, with Iraheta and her operating mate forming the occasion’s first all-female pairing. Neither occasion has proposed a rival Bitcoin coverage, and each would want a broader coalition to problem Bukele’s technique in Congress. ARENA holds simply two seats in the Legislative Assembly, and the FMLN has had none there since 2024. Whoever wins in February will govern till 2033.
That imbalance displays Bukele’s dominant approval rating, which lately topped 94 % in one nationwide ballot. Crime, not Bitcoin, seems to drive that help. Only 2.2% of Salvadorans name Bitcoin his greatest failure, in line with one latest ballot.
Bitcoin’s Legal Status Already Shifted
Notably, Bitcoin is now not a compulsory authorized tender in El Salvador. Following a $1.4 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) mortgage settlement in February 2025, the federal government eliminated the requirement for companies to simply accept the token. This pivot successfully returned the US greenback to its standing because the nation’s sole official foreign money for on a regular basis commerce
Still, the National Bitcoin Office stored shopping for roughly one BTC per day. The authorities boosted its gold reserves in January. The IMF has repeatedly warned that the Bitcoin push carries fiscal and governance dangers. It has additionally been mentioned that the technique has not measurably improved monetary inclusion for unbanked Salvadorans.
El Salvador’s personal Bitcoin Office tracker reveals holdings climbing to roughly 7,730 BTC as of July 27. That is up from about 7,700 BTC a month earlier, a gentle each day staircase that confirms Bukele’s one-BTC-a-day pledge continues to be lively.
A Reserve Exposed to Bitcoin’s Swings
Therefore, the following president inherits a wager nonetheless tied to the market. Bitcoin trades close to $65,300, and its price outlook for August flags additional swings forward. The token stays roughly half its October 2025 document above $126,000.
That decline already erased nearly $300 million from the state’s holdings earlier this 12 months. Some analysts, in the meantime, tie Bitcoin’s next move to pending US regulation somewhat than El Salvador’s politics.
Ultimately, February’s vote will settle the matter. The subsequent administration, whoever leads it, will determine whether or not that accumulation continues or involves a halt.
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