Editing Daniel Ortega (section)

==In opposition (1990–2007)==
In the 1990 presidential election, Ortega lost his reelection bid to [[Violeta Barrios de Chamorro]], his former colleague in the junta. Chamorro was supported by the US and a 14-party anti-Sandinista alliance known as the [[National Opposition Union (Nicaragua, 1990)|National Opposition Union]] (Unión Nacional Oppositora, UNO), an alliance that ranged from conservatives and liberals to communists. She ran an effective campaign, presenting herself as the peace candidate and promising to end the US-funded Contra War if she won.<ref>Anderson, Leslie E. and Lawrence C. Dodd, ''Learning Democracy:  Citizen Engagement and Electoral Choice in Nicaragua, 1990–2001'', Chicago, University of Chicago Press, 2005, esp Chapter 3.</ref> Ortega campaigned on the slogan, "Everything Will Be Better", and promised that, with the Contra war over, he could focus on the nation's recovery.{{sfn|Kinzer|1991|p=389}} Contrary to what most observers expected,<ref>Alma Guillermoprieto, ''The Heart That Bleeds: Latin America Now'', pp. 23–25</ref> Chamorro shocked Ortega and won the election. Chamorro's UNO coalition garnered 54% of the vote, and won 51 of the 92 seats in the [[National Assembly (Nicaragua)|National Assembly]].<ref>Marti&nbsp;i&nbsp;Puig,&nbsp;Salvador. "The FSLN and Sandinismo", in {{harvnb|Close|Marti i Puig|McConnell|2012}}, p.&nbsp;30.</ref> Immediately after the loss, the Sandinistas tried to maintain unity around their revolutionary posture. In Ortega's concession speech the following day he vowed to keep "ruling from below" a reference to the power that the FSLN still wielded in various sectors. He also stressed his belief that the Sandinistas had the goal of bringing "dignity" to Latin America, and not necessarily to hold on to government posts. In 1991, Ortega said elections were "an instrument to reaffirm" the FSLN's "political and ideological positions", and also "confront capitalism".{{sfn|Baltodano|2012|p=70}} However, the electoral loss led to pronounced divisions in the FSLN. Some members adopted more pragmatic positions, and sought to transform the FSLN into a modern social democratic party engaged in national reconciliation and class cooperation. Ortega and other party insiders found common ground with the radicals, who still promoted anti-imperialism and class conflict to achieve social change.<ref name="FSLNPostCollapse" />

Possible explanations for his loss include that the Nicaraguan people were disenchanted with the Ortega government as well as the fact that already in November 1989, the White House had announced that the economic embargo against Nicaragua would continue unless [[Violeta Chamorro]] won.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20130117074255/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-1222025.html "Bush Vows to End Embargo if Chamorro Wins"], ''The Washington Post,'' 9 November 1989</ref> Also, there had been reports of intimidation from the side of the contras,<ref>{{cite report|publisher=Human Rights Watch|title=Human Rights Watch World Report 1989|chapter=Nicaragua|url=https://www.hrw.org/legacy/reports/1989/WR89/index.htm|date=1990|access-date=9 March 2016|chapter-url=https://www.hrw.org/legacy/reports/1989/WR89/Nicaragu.htm|quote=The policy of keeping the contras alive ... also has placed in jeopardy the holding of elections by encouraging contra attacks on the electoral process. Thus, while the Bush administration proclaims its support for human rights and free and fair elections in Nicaragua, it persists in sabotaging both.|archive-date=27 September 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210927161022/https://www.hrw.org/legacy/reports/1989/WR89/index.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> with a Canadian observer mission stating that 42 people were killed by the contras in "election violence" in October 1989.<ref>{{Cite web |title=U.S. trying to disrupt election in Nicaragua, Canadians report |url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/thestar/access/471113751.html?FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Oct+27,+1989&author=(CP)&pub=Toronto+Star&desc=U.S.+trying+to+disrupt+election+in+Nicaragua,+Canadians+report&pqatl=google |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20130206094906/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/thestar/access/471113751.html?FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Oct+27%2C+1989&author=%28CP%29&pub=Toronto+Star&desc=U.S.+trying+to+disrupt+election+in+Nicaragua%2C+Canadians+report&pqatl=google |archive-date=2013-02-06 |access-date=2025-05-17 |website=pqasb.pqarchiver.com}}</ref> This led many commentators to assume that Nicaraguans voted against the Sandinistas out of fear of a continuation of the contra war and economic deprivation.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Bischoping |first1=Katherine |last2=Schuman |first2=Howard |date=1992 |title=Pens and Polls in Nicaragua: An Analysis of the 1990 Preelection Surveys |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/2111480 |journal=American Journal of Political Science |volume=36 |issue=2 |pages=331–350 |doi=10.2307/2111480 |jstor=2111480 |issn=0092-5853 |access-date=19 August 2022 |archive-date=19 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220819160522/https://www.jstor.org/stable/2111480 |url-status=live }}</ref>

From 19 to 21 July 1991, the FSLN held a National Congress to mend the rifts between members and form a new overarching political program. The effort failed to unite the party, and intense debates over the internal governance of the FSLN continued. The pragmatists, led by the former vice president [[Sergio Ramírez|Sergio Ramirez]], formed the basis of a "renovating" faction, and supported collaboration with other political forces to preserve the rule of law in Nicaragua. Under the leadership of Ortega and [[Tomás Borge]], the radicals regrouped into the "principled" faction, and branded themselves the Izquierda Democratica (ID), or Democratic Left (DL).<ref name="FSLNAdaptation">{{Cite journal|last1=Marti i Puig|first1=Salvador|last2=Wright|first2=Claire|date=2010|title=The Adaptation of the FSLN: Daniel Ortega's Leadership and Democracy in Nicaragua|jstor=40925837|journal=Latin American Politics and Society|volume=52|issue=4|pages=79–106|doi=10.1111/j.1548-2456.2010.00099.x|s2cid=232392273}}</ref> The DL fought the [[Violeta Chamorro|Chamorro]] government with disruptive labor strikes and demonstrations, and renewed calls for the revolutionary reconstruction of Nicaraguan society.{{sfn|DeFronzo|2011|p=276}} During the 20–23 May 1994, extraordinary congress, Ortega ran against a fellow National Directorate member, [[Henry Ruiz]], for the position of party secretary-general. Ortega was elected with 287 to Ruiz's 147 votes, and the DL secured the most dominant role in the FSLN.<ref name="MiP35">Marti&nbsp;i&nbsp;Puig,&nbsp;Salvador.  "The FSLN and Sandinismo", in {{harvnb|Close|Marti i Puig|McConnell|2012}}, p.&nbsp;35.</ref>

On 9 September 1994, Ortega gained more power after taking over Sergio Ramirez's seat in the Asamblea Sandinista (Sandinista Assembly).<ref name="FSLNAdaptation"/> Ramirez had been chief of the FSLN's parliamentary caucus since 1990, but Ortega came to oppose his actions in the [[National Assembly (Nicaragua)|National Assembly]], setting the stage for Ramirez's removal. Historic leaders, such as [[Ernesto Cardenal]], a former minister of culture in the Sandinista government, rejected Ortega's consolidation of power: "My resignation from the FSLN has been caused by the kidnapping of the party carried out by Daniel Ortega and the group he heads."<ref name="MiP35"/> The party formally split on 8 January 1995, when Ramirez and a number of prominent Sandinista officials quit.<ref name="FSLNAdaptation"/>

Ortega ran for election again, in October 1996 and November 2001, but lost on both occasions to [[Arnoldo Alemán]] and [[Enrique Bolaños]], respectively. In these elections, a key issue was the allegation of corruption. In Ortega's last days as president, through a series of legislative acts known as "The [[Piñata]]", estates that had been seized by the Sandinista government (some valued at millions and even billions of US dollars) became the private property of various FSLN officials, including Ortega himself.<ref>{{Cite news |first=Shirley |last=Christian |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/06/08/world/managua-journal-victor-s-lament-to-the-losers-belong-the-spoils.html |title=Managua Journal; Victor's Lament: To the Losers Belong the Spoils – New York Times |location=Nicaragua |date=8 June 1991 |access-date=18 August 2014 |newspaper=The New York Times |archive-date=24 March 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140324205631/http://www.nytimes.com/1991/06/08/world/managua-journal-victor-s-lament-to-the-losers-belong-the-spoils.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

In the 1996 campaign, Ortega faced the Liberal Alliance (Alianza Liberal), headed by [[Arnoldo Alemán|Arnoldo Aleman Lacayo]], a former mayor of Managua. The Sandinistas softened their anti-imperialist rhetoric, with Ortega calling the US "our great neighbor", and vowing to cooperate "within a framework of respect, equality, and justice". The image change failed, as Aleman's Liberal Alliance came first with 51.03% of the vote, while Ortega's FSLN secured 37.75%.{{sfn|Baltodano|2012|pp=72-3}}

Ortega's policies became more moderate during his time in opposition, and he gradually changed much of his former [[Marxist–Leninist]] stance in favor of an agenda of [[democratic socialism]]. His [[Roman Catholic]] faith has become more public in recent years as well, leading Ortega to embrace a variety of [[socially conservative]] policies; in 2006 the FSLN endorsed a strict law banning all [[abortion]]s in Nicaragua.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/20/world/americas/20nicaragua.html|title=Nicaragua Eliminates Last Exception to Strict Anti-Abortion Law|date=20 November 2006|newspaper=The New York Times|access-date=5 August 2016|first1=James C. Jr.|last1=Mckinley|archive-date=10 August 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160810091901/http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/20/world/americas/20nicaragua.html|url-status=live}}</ref> In the run-up to the 2006 elections, Ortega displayed his ties to the Catholic Church by renewing his marriage vows before Cardinal [[Miguel Obando y Bravo]].{{sfn|Baltodano|2012|p=81}}

Ortega was instrumental in creating the controversial strategic pact between the FSLN and the [[Constitutional Liberal Party]] (Partido Liberal Constitucionalista, PLC). The controversial alliance of Nicaragua's two major parties is aimed at distributing power between the PLC and FSLN, and preventing other parties from rising. After sealing the agreement in January 2000, the two parties controlled the three key institutions of the state: the Comptroller General of the Republic, the [[Supreme Court of Justice (Nicaragua)|Supreme Court]], and the Supreme Electoral Council.<ref name="FSLNAdaptation"/> ''"El Pacto",'' as it is known in Nicaragua, is said to have personally benefited former presidents Ortega and Alemán greatly, while constraining then-president Bolaños. One of the key accords of the pact was to lower the ratio necessary to win a presidential election in the first round from 45% to 35%, a change in electoral law that would become decisive in Ortega's favor in the 2006 elections.<ref>{{Cite web |title=CIDOB |url=http://www.cidob.org/biografias_de_lideres_politicos/america_central_y_caribe/nicaragua/daniel_ortega_saavedra |access-date=2022-10-20 |website=CIDOB |archive-date=22 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221022231208/https://www.cidob.org/biografias_de_lideres_politicos/america_central_y_caribe/nicaragua/daniel_ortega_saavedra |url-status=live }}</ref>

At the Fourth Ordinary Congress of the FSLN, held 17–18 March 2002, Ortega eliminated the National Directorate (DN). Once the main collective leadership body of the party, with nine members, the DN no longer met routinely, and only three historic members remained. Instead, the body just supported decisions already made by the secretary-general. Ortega sidelined party officials and other members while empowering his own informal circle, known as the ring of iron.<ref name="FSLNAdaptation"/>

=== 2001 presidential election ===
{{Main|2001 Nicaraguan general election}}
In the November 2001 general elections, Ortega lost his third successive presidential election, this time to [[Enrique Bolaños]] of the [[Constitutionalist Liberal Party]].

Under Ortega's direction, the FSLN formed the broad [[National Convergence (Nicaragua)|National Convergence]] (Convergencia Nacional) coalition in opposition to the PLC. Ortega abandoned the revolutionary tone of the past, and infused his campaign with religious imagery, giving thanks in speeches to "God and the Revolution" for the post-1990 democracy, and said a Sandinista victory would enable the Nicaraguan people to "pass through the sea and reach the Promised Land".{{sfn|Baltodano|2012|pp=76-7}} The US opposed Ortega's candidacy from the beginning. The US ambassador even appeared with the PLC's Enrique Bolaños while distributing food aid.<ref>McConnell,&nbsp;Shelley&nbsp;A. "The uncertain evolution of the electoral system", in {{harvnb|Close|Marti i Puig|McConnell|2012}}, p.&nbsp;142.</ref> The 11 September 2001, terrorist attacks doomed Ortega's chances, as the threat of a US invasion became an issue. Bolanos convinced many Nicaraguans that the renewed US hostility towards terrorism would endanger their country if the openly anti-US Ortega prevailed.{{sfn|DeFronzo|2011|p=280}} Bolanos ended up with 56.3% of the vote, and Ortega won 42.3%.<ref>McConnell,&nbsp;Shelley&nbsp;A.  "The uncertain evolution of the electoral system", in {{harvnb|Close|Marti i Puig|McConnell|2012}}, p.&nbsp;143.</ref>

===2006 presidential election===
{{Main|2006 Nicaraguan general election}}
In 2006, Daniel Ortega was elected president with 38% of the vote. This occurred despite the fact that the breakaway [[Sandinista Renovation Movement]] (MRS) continued to oppose the FSLN, running former Mayor of Managua, [[Herty Lewites]] as its candidate for president. Ortega personally attacked [[Herty Lewites|Lewites]]' Jewish background, compared him to Judas, and warned he "could end up hanged."{{sfn|Baltodano|2012|p=83}} However, Lewites died several months before the elections.

Ortega emphasized peace and reconciliation in his campaign, and selected a former Contra leader, [[Jaime Morales Carazo]], as his running mate.{{sfn|DeFronzo|2011|p=281}} The FSLN also won 38 seats in the congressional elections, becoming the party with the largest representation in parliament. The split in the Constitutionalist Liberal Party helped allow the FSLN to become the largest party in Congress; however, the Sandinista vote had a minuscule split between the FSLN and MRS, and that the liberal party combined is larger than the Frente Faction. In 2010, several liberal congressmen accused the FSLN of attempting to buy votes to pass constitutional reforms that would allow Ortega to run for office for the 6th time since 1984.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.laprensa.com.ni/2010/06/15/politica/27852|title=Ofertas de "cañonazos" en US$500 mil|last=Uriarte|first=María José|date=15 June 2010|work=La Prensa|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131019083239/http://www.laprensa.com.ni/2010/06/15/politica/27852|archive-date=19 October 2013|language=es|trans-title=Offers of canonization for US$500 million}}</ref>