Mayor of Quezaltepeque In the
2000 legislative election, Flores was elected as a member of the Quezaltepeque municipal council. In the
2003 municipal election, Flores was elected as the municipality's mayor, succeeding FMLN mayor Roberto Argüello. Flores was re-elected as mayor in
2006 and
2009.
Deputy of the Legislative Assembly In the
2012 legislative election, Flores was elected as a deputy the
Legislative Assembly from the department of
La Libertad, being the party's third deputy from the department. He was succeeded by Carlos Antonio Figueroa of the
Nationalist Republican Alliance (ARENA) as mayor of Quezaltepeque. He was re-elected in the
2015 legislative election as the FMLN's fourth deputy from the department and again in the
2018 legislative election as the party's second deputy from the department. Flores did not seek re-election in
2021 as FMLN party statutes prohibited deputies to seek three consecutive terms. Instead, Flores ran to be elected as a deputy of the
Central American Parliament (PARLACEN) for the FMLN. In an interview with
La Prensa Gráfica, Flores stated that the member states of PARLACEN should give "real power" ("") to the organization's deputies.
2024 presidential campaign In September 2020, Flores stated that he would one day be the
president of El Salvador and that he would be a better president than
Nayib Bukele, who won the
2019 presidential election after being expelled from the FMLN in 2017. He described Bukele as a "liar" ("") and claimed that the Salvadoran population did not trust him. Prior to the
2024 presidential election, Flores showed interest in running for president with the FMLN. Flores asked the party to not select politicians with a "corrupt past" ("") ahead of the party's primary elections for the presidential, legislative, municipal, and PARLACEN elections. On 29 May 2023, Flores officially registered as a presidential pre-candidate with the FMLN, being the party's only candidate for president. Werner Marroquín was selected as his running mate. Flores stated that the FMLN would not form a coalition with any right-wing political parties, including ARENA. On 16 July 2023, Flores was officially confirmed as the FMLN's presidential candidate. On 7 September 2023, the FMLN began the process of registering Flores' and Marroquín's candidacies. Regarding Bukele's 2024 re-election campaign, Flores stated "the law is the law [and] the law says that there is no re-election" (""). He added that the
constitution is "clear" ("") that re-election is prohibited. In August 2023, Flores stated that both he and the FMLN would be committed to fighting corruption. In the election, Flores finished in second place with 204,167 votes—6.40 percent; Bukele won re-election with 84.65 percent of the vote. Flores refused to concede the election, claiming that "they stole votes from me" ("").
Secretary-General of the FMLN In March 2024, Flores announced his intention to become the secretary-general of the FMLN. His primary opponent was Simón Paz, the former mayor of
Mejicanos from 2015 to 2021. On 14 July, the FMLN named Flores as the winner with 60 percent of ballots counted. He called for former deputies who left the FMLN to return to the party. He will assume office when the FMLN confirms the results with the TSE. On 24 July 2024, Flores stated that the FMLN would win seats in the Legislative Assembly and municipal mayorships in the 2027 legislative election after the party lost all its legislative seats and municipalities in the 2024 election. Flores became the party's secretary-general on 4 August 2024 at its 44th National Convention. == Political views ==