Blinken accuses Nicaragua's Ortega of preparing 'sham election'

FILE PHOTO: A man checks his phone while walking by a banner promoting Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega and Vice President Rosario Murillo as presidential election campaigning begins, in Managua, Nicaragua, September 25, 2021. REUTERS/Maynor Valenzuela

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken accused Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega on Friday of preparing a sham election next month and trying to establish an “authoritarian dynasty” amid a wave of arrests ahead of Nicaragua’s Nov. 7 vote.

Blinken, who visited Latin America this week with stops in Ecuador and Colombia, welcomed a vote on Wednesday by the Organization of American States expressing “alarm” over Nicaraguan government actions it says will undermine the election, in which Ortega seeks a fourth consecutive term.