Managua - Nicaragua's Supreme Court has authorized the re-election bid of President Daniel Ortega, ordering the election tribunal to register his candidacy for the 2011 election. The surprising court verdict changes the 1987 constitution, which prohibited consecutive presidential terms. Ortega had tried without success to get the National Assembly to amend the charter.
The court decision also benefits 109 mayors and vice mayors of Ortega's ruling Sandinista Front, allowing them to run for re-election in 2012.
Three court judges, including former senior Sandinista official Rafael Solis, read the verdict at a press conference Monday night.
Attorney Eduardo Mejia brought the case on behalf of Ortega and the elected municipal officials. The court agreed that the claimants could stand for re-election, overturning the constitution, because they were "citizens with political, constitutional and electoral rights."
