El Salvador - April 2024

After the Salvadorean general elections of 4 February, on 29 April the outgoing (lame duck) Legislative Assembly dominated by the ruling party, Nuevas Ideas (NI) approved a modification to Article 248 of the Constitution. It must be ratified by the incoming legislature, which was sworn in on 2 May, to enter into force, and will establish a new way to amend a constitutional provision.  

Previously, amendments required a simple majority approval by a sitting legislature and a subsequent ratification from two-thirds of the incoming legislature. The Article's revised text will add that constitutional amendments may be ratified by a three fourths majority within one legislature.  

This decision has been criticized as an attempt to diminish what few checks on the executive power are left, enabling the incoming legislature to expedite amendments proposed by the President (54 out of 60 incoming Assembly members belong to NI). The amendment overly empowers short-term legislative majorities, undermining the longer-term effectiveness of the institution. Opposition members have rejected this process because of how it was rushed without prior discussion or analysis.  

Sources: El Faro, Infobae, Amnesty International, El Pais, DW