Bukele's Populism and Crisis of Deliberation in El Salvador

Furthermore, the unilateral dismissal of the Constitutional Court judges by the pro-Bukele parliament in May 2021 was not only a political act, but also a reflection of the breakdown of deliberative discourse in state policy-making. The absence of a defense mechanism or procedural transparency in the dismissal process indicates that the decision was taken without adequate public discussion. Moreover, the purpose of this step, namely to pave the way for a reinterpretation of the constitution to allow for the re-election of the president, shows how power is used not to respond to the needs of citizens in a deliberative manner, but to secure the continuation of individual power.

In the context of deliberative democracy, this action violates the most fundamental principle, namely rational, inclusive decision-making through public consensus. As emphasized by Habermas, legitimacy can only be obtained when policies are tested in the public space through arguments that are acceptable to all parties. However, in this case, the opposite happened: procedures were bypassed, the judiciary was silenced, and decisions were made with the claim of sole representation of "the people." This is in line with the critique of populism, where the interests of political elites are packaged as the will of the people, and used to eliminate the opposition and the rational process that should test every state policy. In other words, the dismissal of judges is not just a political maneuver, but part of a structural engineering to eliminate institutions that can hinder authority, while also stifling the voices of the opposition. The public space, which should be an arena for the formation of critical and rational opinions, is dwarfed into a stage for the dominance of a single discourse that monopolizes claims to morality and legitimacy.

References

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Holland, O., & Torres, E. (2021, May 2). Bukele allies seek judges' ouster as new Congress convenes in El Salvador. Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/bukele-allies-seek-judges-ouster-new-congress-convenes-el-salvador-2021-05-02/

Human Rights Watch. (2022, December 7). "We can arrest anyone we want": Widespread human rights violations under El Salvador's "state of emergency". https://www.hrw.org/report/2022/12/07/we-can-arrest-anyone-we-want/widespread-human-rights-violations-unde

Mudde, C. (2004). The populist zeitgeist. Government and Opposition, 39(4), 541--563. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1477-7053.2004.00135.x

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Torres, E. (2021, September 4). El Salvador top court rules presidents can serve two consecutive terms. Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/el-salvador-top-court-rules-presidents-can-serve-two-consecutive-terms-2021-09-04/