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Ortega Back to His Old Ways in Nicaragua’s ‘Dictatorship Lite’

  • Recent high court rulings are curbing democracy, U.S. says
  • Ortega leads polls, eliminates foes ahead of Nov. 6 election
Ortega speaks in Nov. 1983.

Ortega speaks in Nov. 1983.

Source: Bettmann via Getty Images

Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega is slipping back into a 1980’s mindset -- cracking down on opposition, amassing power and locking horns with the U.S. It’s “dictatorship lite”, said Adam Isacson, Senior Associate for Regional Security Policy at the Washington Office on Latin America.

Just in the last few days, Ortega loyalists in the Supreme Court ordered the removal of 28 opposition lawmakers and the President named his wife as his running mate in November’s presidential election. Foreign observers are banned from the vote.