Manuel Flores (Salvadoran politician)

Juan Manuel de Jesús Flores Cornejo (born 15 October 1965), nicknamed "El Chino" (Spanish for "The Chinese One"), is a Salvadoran politician. As a member of the Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMLN), Flores served as the mayor of Quezaltepeque from 2003 to 2012 and then later as a deputy of the Legislative Assembly from La Libertad from 2012 to 2021. He is currently a presidential pre-candidate for the FMLN for the upcoming 2024 general election; his running mate is Werner Marroquín. Flores supports El Salvador further strengthening relations with the People's Republic of China.

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Flores and the second or maternal family name is Cornejo.
Manuel Flores
Flores in 2023
Deputy of the Legislative Assembly
In office
1 May 2012 – 1 May 2021
ConstituencyLa Libertad
Mayor of Quezaltepeque
In office
1 May 2003 – 1 May 2012
Preceded byRoberto Argüello
Succeeded byCarlos Antonio Figueroa
Personal details
Born
Juan Manuel de Jesús Flores Cornejo

(1965-10-15) 15 October 1965
Quezaltepeque, El Salvador
Political partyFarabundo Martí National Liberation Front
OccupationPolitician
NicknameEl Chino

Early life

Juan Manuel de Jesús Flores Cornejo was born on 15 October 1965[1] in Quezaltepeque, El Salvador.[2] He has a degree in biology.[1]

Political career

Mayor of Quezaltepeque

In the 2000 legislative election, Flores was elected as a member of the Quezaltepeque municipal council.[3] In the 2003 municipal election, Flores was elected as the municipality's mayor,[4] succeeding FMLN mayor Roberto Argüello.[5] Flores was re-elected as mayor in 2006[6] and 2009.[7]

Deputy of the Legislative Assembly
Flores (third from the left) as a deputy of the Legislative Assembly in 2016.

In the 2012 legislative election, Flores was elected as a deputy to the Legislative Assembly from the department of La Libertad, being the party's third deputy from the department. He was succeeded by Carlos Antonio Figueroa of the Nationalist Republican Alliance (ARENA) as mayor of Quezaltepeque.[8] He was re-elected in the 2015 legislative election as the FMLN's 4th deputy from the department[9] and again in the 2018 legislative election as the party's second deputy from the department.[10]

Flores did not seek re-election in 2021 as FMLN party statutes prohibited deputies to seek three consecutive terms. Instead, Flores ran to be elected as a member of the Central American Parliament (PARLACEN) for the FMLN.[11] In an interview with La Prensa Gráfica, Flores stated that the member states of PARLACEN should give "real power" ("autonomía real") to the organization's deputies.[3] Of the twenty seats El Salvador has in PARLACEN, the FMLN only won a single seat; Flores lost his bid to serve as the FMLN's deputy to PARLACEN to Karina Sosa.[12]

2024 presidential campaign

In September 2020, Flores stated that he will one day be the president of El Salvador and that he would be a better president than Nayib Bukele, who won the 2019 presidential election after being expelled from the FMLN in 2017. He described Bukele as "liar" ("mentiroso") and claimed that the Salvadoran population did not trust him.[13]

Prior to the 2024 general election, Flores showed interest in running for president with the FMLN. Flores asked the party to not select politicians with a "corrupt past" ("pasado corrupto") ahead of the party's primary elections for the presidential, legislative, municipal, and PARLACEN elections.[14] On 29 May 2023, Flores officially registered as a presidential pre-candidate with the FMLN, being the party's only candidate for president. Werner Marroquín was selected as his running mate.[15][16] Flores stated that the FMLN would not form a coalition with any right-wing political parties, including ARENA.[17] On 16 July 2023, Flores was officially confirmed as the FMLN's presidential candidate.[18] On 7 September 2023, the FMLN began the process of registering Flores' and Marroquín's candidacies.[19]

Regarding Bukele's 2024 re-election campaign, Flores stated "the law is the law [and] the law says that there is no re-election" ("la ley es la ley [y] la ley dice que no hay reelección"). He added that the constitution is "clear" ("clara") that re-election is prohibited.[20] In August 2023, Flores stated that both he and the FMLN would be committed to fighting corruption.[21]

Relations with China

Flores prefers have diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China over the Republic of China (Taiwan). In 2004, Flores established the Salvadoran Association of Friendship with the People of China (ASACHI). Flores has funded organizations in Costa Rica, El Salvador, and Nicaragua which support relations with China, including the Central American Federation of Friendship with China.[22] Flores has previously served as El Salvador's ambassador to Taiwan.[1] In 2018, Flores helped the Salvadoran government officially recognize the People's Republic of China as the legitimate government of China, severing its relations with Taiwan. Regarding China, Flores stated that "China is not an invader, it is not a colonizer".[23] In 2021, Flores celebrated China's donation of 150,000 COVID-19 vaccines to El Salvador.[24] In addition to China, Flores also supports strengthened relations with the State of Palestine and the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic.[3]

Flores' nickname is "El Chino", Spanish for "The Chinese One".[3][15][24][25]

Electoral history
Year Office Type Party Main opponent Party Votes for Flores Result Swing
Total  % P. ±%
2000 Municipal Council of Quezaltepeque General FMLN N/A Won N/A
2003 Mayor of Quezaltepeque General FMLN  ? ARENA  ?  ? 1st N/A Won Hold
2006 Mayor of Quezaltepeque General FMLN  ? ARENA 10,250 57.42 1st  ? Won Hold
2009 Mayor of Quezaltepeque General FMLN  ? ARENA 9,778 48.88 1st –8.54 Won Hold
2012 Deputy of the Legislative Assembly General FMLN N/A 3rd N/A Won N/A
2015 Deputy of the Legislative Assembly General FMLN N/A 4th N/A Won N/A
2018 Deputy of the Legislative Assembly General FMLN–CD N/A 2nd N/A Won N/A
2021 Deputy of PARLACEN General FMLN N/A 2nd N/A Lost N/A
2024 President of El Salvador General FMLN To be determined N/A TBD

References
  1. "Juan Manuel de Jesús Flores Cornejo". El Faro (in Spanish). Retrieved 10 July 2023.
  2. "Quezaltepeque, El Lugar Donde Nací" [Quezaltepeque, The Place I Was Born]. Manuel El Chino Flores.com (in Spanish). 1 April 2018. Archived from the original on 16 August 2018. Retrieved 10 July 2023.
  3. Flores, Ricardo (12 February 2021). "Entrevista | "Países Deben dar Autonomía Real a Diputados del PARLACEN": Manuel Flores, Candidato a Diputado por el PARLACEN" [Interview | "Countries Should Give Real Autonomy to PARLACEN Deputies": Manuel Flores, Candidate for Deputy to PARLACEN]. La Prensa Gráfica (in Spanish). Retrieved 10 July 2023.
  4. "Memoria Especial – Elecciones 2003" [Special Memory – 2003 Elections] (PDF). Supreme Electoral Court (in Spanish). p. 128. Retrieved 10 July 2023.
  5. "Memoria Especial – Elecciones 2000" [Special Memory – 2000 Elections] (PDF). Supreme Electoral Court (in Spanish). San Salvador, El Salvador. p. 149. Retrieved 10 July 2023.
  6. "Memoria Especial – Elecciones 2006" [Special Memory – 2006 Elections] (PDF). Supreme Electoral Court (in Spanish). pp. 209 & 235. Retrieved 10 July 2023.
  7. "Memoria Especial – Elecciones 2009" [Special Memory – 2009 Elections] (PDF). Supreme Electoral Court (in Spanish). San Salvador, El Salvador. June 2009. p. 64. Retrieved 10 July 2023.
  8. "Memoria Especial – Elecciones 2012" [Special Memory – 2012 Elections] (PDF). Supreme Electoral Court (in Spanish). pp. 139 & 142. Retrieved 10 July 2023.
  9. "Memoria Especial – Elecciones 2015" [Special Memory – 2015 Elections] (PDF). Supreme Electoral Court (in Spanish). p. 136. Retrieved 10 July 2023.
  10. "Memoria Especial – Elecciones 2018" [Special Memory – 2018 Elections] (PDF). Supreme Electoral Court (in Spanish). p. 106. Retrieved 10 July 2023.
  11. Velásquez, Eugenia (22 June 2020). "Cinco Diputados del FMLN y Dos de ARENA no Van por Reelección" [Five Deputies from the FMLN and Two From ARENA Will Not Seek Re-Election]. El Diario de Hoy (in Spanish). Retrieved 10 July 2023.
  12. Ramos, Helen (3 March 2021). "Salvadoreños Dejan Fuera al Chino Flores del PARLACEN" [Salvadorans Leave Chino Flores of PARLACEN On the Outside]. El Salvador Noticias (in Spanish). Retrieved 10 July 2023.
  13. "Diputado Manuel Flores Asegura que Será Presidente de El Salvador y Mejor que Nayib Bukele" [Deputy Manuel Flores Assures that He Will Be President of El Salvador and Better than Nayib Bukele]. SV Trending (in Spanish). 4 September 2020. Retrieved 10 July 2023.
  14. Peñate, Susana (10 April 2023). "Manuel Flores Pide a FMLN No Elegir Candidatos con 'Pasado Corrupto'" [Manuel Flores Asks the FMLN to Not Elect Candidates with a "Corrupt Past"]. El Mundo (in Spanish). Retrieved 10 April 2023.
  15. Peñate, Susana (27 May 2023). "Exdiputado Manuel Flores se Inscribe como Precandidato Presidencial por el FMLN" [Ex-Deputy Manuel Flores Registers as Presidential Pre-Candidate for the FMLN]. El Mundo (in Spanish). Retrieved 10 July 2023.
  16. Martínez, Verónica (29 May 2023). "Flores, Único Precandidato a Presidencia por el FMLN" [Flores, Only Pre-Candidate for the Presidency for the FMLN]. La Prensa Gráfica (in Spanish). Retrieved 29 May 2023.
  17. González, Mario (29 May 2023). "Precandidato Dice que FMLN no Hará Alianza con ARENA" [Pre-Candidates Says that FMLN Will Not Have Alliance with ARENA]. El Diario de Hoy (in Spanish). Retrieved 29 May 2023.
  18. Crespín, Verónica; Cerón, Leonardo (17 July 2023). "Seis Partidos Eligieron Ayer a sus Candidatos para Elecciones 2024" [Six Parties Elected Their Candidates for the 2024 Elections Yesterday]. El Mundo (in Spanish). Retrieved 17 July 2023.
  19. Villarroel, Gabriela (7 September 2023). "FMLN Pide al TSE Inscribir a su Fórmula Presidencial para 2024" [The FMLN Asks the TSE to Register Its Presidential Formula for 2024]. El Diario de Hoy (in Spanish). Retrieved 21 September 2023.
  20. Lemus, Lissette (26 June 2023). "Manuel Flores, Precandidato del FMLN, le Recuerda a Bukele que la Reelección es "Inconstitucional"" [Manuel Flores, Pre-Candidate of the FMLN, Reminds Bukele that Re-Election is "Unconstitutional"]. El Diario de Hoy (in Spanish). Retrieved 26 June 2023.
  21. "El "Chino" Flores Dice que el FMLN Combatirá "la corrupción"" ["Chino" Flores Says that the FMLN Will Combat "Corruption"]. Diario la Huella (in Spanish). 14 August 2023. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
  22. Flores, Ricardo (23 November 2020). "Entrevista | Manuel Flores: "El Salvador Debe Mostrar Verdadera Lealtad y Confianza a China"" [Interview | "El Salvador Should Demonstrate Truthful Loyalty and Confidence to China"]. La Prensa Gráfica (in Spanish). Retrieved 10 July 2023.
  23. Linthicum, Kate (17 February 2022). "In Latin America's New Cold War, Will China Lift Up Autocrats?". Los Angeles Times. San Salvador, El Salvador. Retrieved 10 July 2023.
  24. Leiva, Santiago (7 April 2021). "Diputado del FMLN Celebra Relaciones con China y Llegada de 150 Mil Vacunas Anti COVID-19" [FMLN Deputy Celebrates Relations with China and the Arrival of 150 Thousand Anti COVID-19 Vaccines]. Diario El Salvador (in Spanish). Retrieved 10 July 2023.
  25. Crespín, Verónica (11 July 2023). "Los Precandidatos a Presidente, Diputados y Alcaldes del FMLN hacia 2024" [The Pre-Candidates for President, Deputies, and Mayors for the FMLN for 2024]. El Mundo (in Spanish). Retrieved 11 July 2023.
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