El Salvador’s ‘cool dictator’ unbothered that 92% of population don’t use Bitcoin

A Rumbo País 2024 survey found that El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele is still enjoying strong public support with an approval rating of 8.43. The survey comes after Bukele won the second term in March 2024.

However, Bitcoin adoption in the country remains limited despite the president’s push. Is Bukele targeting to come in power in the next general elections?

92% of survey respondents don’t use Bitcoin

The Rumbo país 2024 survey revealed that El Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele’s approval rating is 8.43 out of 10. The figure is considered high as it indicates strong public support during his second tenure as president. The translated report scored the cabinet at 7.49, while the Legislative Assembly scored 6.94. These results are positive for Bukele who often dubs himself as a “cool dictator.”

While 42.9% of the survey respondents see that the country is on a good path, not everyone is listening to Bukele about Bitcoin. El Salvador became the first country to put Bitcoin at par with sovereign money. While the population voluntarily moved to crypto amid high-stake government investments, adoption has lagged behind expectations.

This report adds to the previous estimates as 92% of respondents stated that they do not use Bitcoin with only 7.5% saying yes.

45.2% of these participants say that they do not manage any monthly savings, and 87.4% of them have had no salary increase recently.

A majority of respondents were also young, falling in the age range of 18-29 (26.1%) and 30-39 (19.2%). This is against the global trend where GenZ and Millennials are more likely to invest in crypto as an asset class or use it for its utility. 

Is Bukele focusing on a third term?

39.2% of these El Salvadorans feel that their general situation has improved compared to the previous year. With that, 58.2% of the respondents are optimistic about the country’s future. Only a minority of the respondents fall into the pessimistic spectrum with about 31.8% expressing uncertainty.

Interestingly, the majority of the respondents (35.5%) support Kamala Harris with only 15.8% supporting Donald Trump in the survey. 

Hailey Lennon, partner at Brown Rudnick, believes that while Bitcoin is a store of value for the unbanked, it might be too volatile for a developing country. Especially when they have to depend on BTC for daily purchases.

Human Rights Watch (HRW) previously highlighted that persistent poverty and limited access to essential services remain key problems in El Salvador. As per the report, vulnerable groups are disproportionately impacted when it comes to essential services like housing, healthcare, education, and food.

Between 2021 and 2022, overall poverty slightly decreased in the country but extreme poverty increased by 0.3%. The HRW report underlined how poverty and social exclusion remain basic human rights issues in El Salvador.

After the last election in El Salvador earlier this year, the next presidential election might take place in 2029. The country’s constitution originally barred immediate re-election, but a 2021 Supreme Court ruling allowed Bukele to run and win this year.

Despite criticism, his current approval rating remains strong. However, whether it’ll allow a third term for Bukele is unclear due to constitutional hurdles. In the meantime, Bukele’s ‘Third Way” party, Nuevas Ideas, is keeping a stronghold in the legislature, potentially allowing for more constitutional changes in the future.