Nicaragua's National Assembly approved a constitutional reform that would bar government opponents labeled "coup plotters" or "traitors to the homeland" from running for elected office or holding public positions, further restricting political participation under President Daniel Ortega and his wife and co-president, Rosario Murillo.
The measure, approved Tuesday in the first of two required legislative sessions, would also extend presidential and other elected terms from six to seven years. It must receive final approval in a second legislative session in 2027 before taking effect.
The reform, reported by The Associated Press, stops short of eliminating elections altogether, something Ortega suggested in July when he declared during an event marking the anniversary of the Sandinista Revolution: "There will never be elections here again... Never, never, never."
Nicaragua has repeatedly rewritten its Constitution since the government's crackdown on protests in 2018. Authorities have imprisoned political opponents and religious leaders, shut down civil society organizations and stripped some government critics of their citizenship. Thousands of Nicaraguans have fled the country seeking asylum.
The latest changes drew criticism Wednesday from Organization of American States Secretary General Albert Ramdin, who said the reform "turns the Constitution into another instrument to exclude dissenting voices." He said preventing people arbitrarily classified as "traitors to the homeland" from holding public office further restricts political participation and "closes democratic spaces."
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio also condemned the measure, saying Nicaragua had once again modified its Constitution to "entrench its illegitimate dynasty and indefinitely deprive Nicaraguans of free and fair elections."
Rubio urged other countries to reconsider their economic and political relationships with Nicaragua, arguing that governments that deny their citizens fundamental rights should not receive the same benefits as governments committed to hemispheric peace and security.
The constitutional changes come ahead of an extraordinary meeting of OAS foreign ministers prompted by concerns over Nicaragua's political situation and Ortega's comments about ending elections.
