Houstonian Eyes El Salvadoran Presidential Candidacy

Courtesy of Orlando Delcid

HOUSTON, Texas (TXAN 24) — The interview was conducted by TXAN with Orlando Delcid, a presidential FPS Presidential candidate for El Salvador who grew up in Houston, Texas.

Orlando discussed his family's immigration to Texas due to the civil war in El Salvador and how the kindness of Texans, particularly his second-grade teacher, shaped his views. He explained the impact of the civil war and the subsequent rise of gangs in El Salvador, linking it to deportations from the U.S.

Orlando highlighted the strong economic and cultural ties between El Salvador and Texas, noting the significant Salvadoran population in the state.

He praised recent improvements in El Salvador's safety and encouraged Salvadorans to be proud of their country.

Courtesy of Orlando Delcid

Orlando shared his experience immigrating from El Salvador to Houston at age 7 due to the civil war, and discussed how his early years in Texas were challenging due to language barriers.

He recalled a specific memory of his second grade teacher asking about Christmas traditions, highlighting the support he received from his teachers despite limited English assistance at the time. Orlando shared his childhood experience of receiving Christmas presents from Ms. Dugat, which he described as showing him the love and care of Texans.

He then discussed his memories of the Civil War, including helicopters flying over houses and military presence, and mentioned that peace accords were signed in 1992 in Mexico to end the war.

Orlando explained how gang violence spread from the United States to El Salvador in the 1990s through deportations under Bill Clinton, leading to the current terrorist gang problem in El Salvador.

He noted “The strong economic relationship between the two countries, with approximately $10-11 billion in annual trade”.

The discussion focused on understanding the historical context rather than specific policy proposals.

Orlando discussed the significant El Salvadorian diaspora in the United States, particularly in Texas, with approximately 500,000 Salvadorians in the Houston metro area alone. He noted that El Salvador has a population of 6.3 million people and mentioned that Los Angeles has the largest Salvadorian community, followed by Maryland, New York, and Houston/Texas.

Orlando also confirmed that Salvadorians can vote from the diaspora, praising the government for establishing the necessary infrastructure to enable this voting rights.

Orlando discussed the upcoming election in El Salvador where Salvadorian people in the diaspora will have the opportunity to elect representatives similar to congressmen or senators.

He emphasized that El Salvador has become much safer under recent leadership, transforming from the "murder capital of the world" to one of the safest countries where people can walk safely at night.