El Salvador goes to polls with gang-busting Bukele miles ahead

Despite concerns about rights violations, authoritarianism and the economy, 42-year-old Bukele enjoys widespread support for slashing the country's homicide rate and restoring a semblance of normalcy to a population sick of violence.

(FILES) Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele delivers his annual address to the nation marking his third year in office at the San Salvador Legislative Assembly on June 1, 2022. (Photo by MARVIN RECINOS / AFP)