Nicaraguan exiles urge election boycott as Ortega seeks fourth term

Nicaraguan exiles Alexa Zamora of the Blue and White National Unity (UNAB) and Dr. Rommel Melendez chat after a news conference to denounce the electoral process in Nicaragua ahead of the country's November 7 presidential and National Assembly elections, in San Jose, Costa Rica November 4, 2021. REUTERS/Mayela Lopez

SAN JOSE (Reuters) - Groups representing Nicaraguans in exile on Thursday urged their compatriots to abstain from voting in Sunday's elections to avoid legitimizing what they consider a ploy by President Daniel Ortega to remain in power.

Ortega is up for re-election https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/nicaraguas-ortega-seen-tightening-grip-election-that-critics-call-sham-2021-11-01 on Nov. 7 for a fourth consecutive term with critics saying the former Marxist revolutionary has become the kind of authoritarian leader he once opposed with his suppression of dissent.