El Salvador’s president, Nayib Bukele, remains overwhelmingly popular at home — even as his high-profile Bitcoin experiment fails to resonate with most citizens.
A new survey published by La Prensa Gráfica shows Bukele’s approval rating at a striking 91.9%, one of the highest levels recorded during his time in office. Nearly two-thirds of respondents said they strongly approve of his leadership, while fewer than 2% expressed strong disapproval. Bukele himself responded to the numbers with a sarcastic post on X, joking, “So now they’re 1.8%?”
The poll makes one thing clear: Bukele’s popularity has far more to do with public safety than cryptocurrency.
Since taking office in 2019, Bukele has made security the centerpiece of his presidency, launching an aggressive crackdown on gangs and opening the Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT), a massive prison built to house suspected gang members. Homicide rates have dropped sharply compared with previous years, and improved safety ranked as the top reason respondents gave for supporting the president.
Bitcoin, by contrast, barely registered.
Only 2.2% of those surveyed described Bitcoin as the biggest failure of Bukele’s six-year presidency, and the policy was otherwise largely absent from public concerns. That muted response mirrors reality on the ground: although El Salvador made global headlines in 2021 by adopting Bitcoin as legal tender, everyday use of the cryptocurrency has remained limited.
Bukele himself has acknowledged the gap. In a 2024 interview with TIME, he admitted that adoption fell short of what the government originally hoped for.
International lenders have been more vocal in their criticism. The International Monetary Fund has repeatedly warned that Bitcoin poses fiscal and financial risks for the country, even as El Salvador continued to promote the policy. Despite those warnings, the government has not abandoned its strategy of building Bitcoin reserves.
Officials say El Salvador has been buying one Bitcoin per day since 2022, a plan Bukele has publicly committed to maintaining. Online trackers associated with the government’s Bitcoin office suggest those reserves are still growing.
At the same time, the administration has made concessions elsewhere. San Salvador recently finalized a financing agreement with the IMF that includes scaling back certain crypto-related initiatives. One key point under discussion is the future of the state-run Chivo wallet, which has faced persistent complaints about fraud, identity theft, and technical glitches.
IMF officials have said their talks with El Salvador are focused on transparency, safeguarding public funds, and reducing financial risks. Authorities have previously indicated that Chivo could be sold or shut down, even as private crypto wallets continue operating in the country.
Despite years of tension over Bitcoin, El Salvador secured a $1.4 billion IMF loan in 2024. In its latest review, the fund pointed to stronger-than-expected economic performance and projected real GDP growth of around 4% this year, with a positive outlook ahead.
In short, Bukele’s political strength appears rooted firmly in security gains — not in Bitcoin — even as the president continues to bet on crypto behind the scenes.
