Exclusive-U.S. preparing new sanctions in response to Nicaragua's Nov. 7 election -officials

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 NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES/File Photo

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The Biden administration is working with international partners to prepare new sanctions that could be levied in response to Nicaragua’s Nov. 7 election, which Washington has denounced as a sham organized by President Daniel Ortega, U.S. officials say.

The U.S. government has also begun a review of Nicaragua’s participation in a Central America free trade agreement and has already halted support for any “trade capacity building” activities seen as benefiting Ortega’s government, a senior State Department official told Reuters on condition of anonymity.