A year and a half after Ortega and Murillo decreed the ruling party’s red and black flag a national symbol, the traditional blue and white flag spells defiance for Nicaraguans in exile and at home.

The president’s brother Ibrajim Bukele claims an “independent” team is reviewing cases for release under the state of exception, despite lacking legal authority. He says the group draws from institutions controlled by the president, including the First Lady’s Office.

On Monday, Trump nominated a Florida international arbitrage attorney, hailed by Arévalo’s opponents, as ambassador to Guatemala. That same day, Arévalo deepened ties with the U.S. military, announcing a budget of $50 million for equipment purchases.

In Washington, Bukele has focused lobbying efforts on courting MAGA politicians and “positioning key narratives” in U.S. media. He’s now paying for it through a public electricity company that shields financial information through a private subsidiary.

Costa Rican voters gave a second term to the political project of President Rodrigo Chaves on Sunday. His anointed candidate, Laura Fernández, won the election outright with a bruising margin of votes, promising “continuity” and proposing a state of exception modeled after Nayib Bukele’s El Salvador.

The Guatemalan government reports dozens of arrests in two days under state of siege. Arévalo avoids naming the “political structures” he accused of colluding with 18th Street, but now singles out and accuses the gang of conspiring to assassinate him in 2023.

It’s easy to read this year-in-review issue of Central America Monthly as doom, gloom, and crimes of state. But each of these stories contains greater acts of courage, resilience, and ethical judgment.

Honduras approaches the Sunday elections with last-minute institutional infighting, criminal investigations, accusations of fraud, and under a three-year state of exception. With Trump’s Venezuela gunboat diplomacy in full swing, the United States called for an emergency session at the OAS on Tuesday to focus regional eyes on the Honduran election.