Americas · reference
🇳🇮 Nicaragua
Authoritarian presidential republic under family rule
SystemAuthoritarian presidential republic under family rule
Head of stateCo-Presidents Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo (a married couple, under the 2025 constitutional overhaul)
LegislatureNational Assembly · about 90 seats, dominated by the Sandinista front
ElectionsElections are held but genuine opposition has been eliminated · leading challengers were jailed or exiled before the 2021 vote
Last election2021-11-07 · general election, held with major opposition candidates imprisoned
Next electionDue November 2026 but may move to 2027 after presidential terms were extended to six years
Daniel Ortega, in power since 2007, made his wife Rosario Murillo formal co-president through a 2025 constitutional reform that also extended terms and tightened party control of all state organs. The government has shuttered thousands of NGOs, stripped critics of citizenship and driven the Catholic Church and independent press into exile. Hundreds of thousands of Nicaraguans have emigrated since the crushed 2018 protests.
Live encyclopedic leader and election records · verified 2026-07-02
The Margin models elections where a competitive public record exists · all countries