FMLNs march 4 press conference.
Thus far, 2024 has not been a good year for the Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front FMLN political party. On March 3, the left-wing political party suffered its second electoral debacle in less than 30 days, the worst in its 30 years of political existence.
The FMLN’s defeat is evident! On the March 3 municipal elections, the FMLN didn’t win a single local government. In 2015, the FMLN secured victories in 84 local governments. Followed by 64 in 2018, 30 in 2021, and experienced no wins in 2024.
The leftist political party participated for the first time in a popular election in 1994, after the end of the Salvadoran armed conflict. In this election, the FMLN lost the presidential election in the second round to the ARENA political party; however, it won 21 seats in the legislative assembly and gained control of 15 local governments.
Three decades later, the left-wing political party failed to secure victory in the Executive, secure any seats in the legislative assembly, or win any local government positions.
On March 4, the FMLN recognized the defeat in the 2024 elections and promised total reorganization. Oscar Ortiz, the FMLN’s general secretary, accepted that the results of the municipal elections were not the most favorable and assured that there would be a total renewal of the party.
“They will say many things, but not about kneeling, selling out, or senselessly submitting… we will begin a total reorganization of the party,” remarked Oscar Ortiz, the FMLN’s general secretary, at a press conference.
Ortiz guaranteed a transformation in their working methods, organizational approach, and connections with diverse sectors and territorial leadership.
Lourdez Argueta, Member of the FMLN Political Commission, noted that the FMLN is more than a political party.
The FMLN is more than a political party; it is a left-wing project for social transformation, and although the spaces of institutional power are very important, they are not decisive for the existence of a political project. Lourdez Argueta.
Karina Sosa, deputy secretary of the left-wing party, expressed that the FMLN must go through a process of evaluation.
