A turbulent election campaign for the presidency in Guatemala comes to an end. Surprise candidate Bernardo Arévalo prevailed in Sunday’s runoff.
After a turbulent election campaign, the surprise Social Democrat candidate Bernardo Arévalo emerged victorious from the runoff election for the presidency in Guatemala.
The outsider from the party Movimiento Semilla (Movement Seed) was after counting almost all the votes by the Supreme Electoral Authority on Sunday evening (local time) with 58.85 percent ahead of the ex-First Lady and three-time presidential candidate Sandra Torres (36.40 percent) from the Centre-left National Unity of Hope (UNE) party.
The 64-year-old Arévalo will succeed the conservative incumbent Alejandro Giammattei, who was not legally allowed to run again after four years in office.
hope for change
The electoral process in Guatemala was marred by attempts by the political elite and the Attorney General’s Office to use legal means to halt the surprise rise of Arévalos on hopes of change. The European Union had expressed its concern about this. Several candidates had been excluded from the first ballot for controversial reasons.
In June, Arévalo, who wants to take action against corruption and the erosion of democracy in Guatemala, unexpectedly became the second strongest candidate in the first ballot. Torres landed in first place. In the previous two elections, Torres failed in the runoff.
Thousands of people leave the most populous country in Central America with 17 million people every month and try to reach the USA via Mexico in search of a better life. Other important issues for Guatemalans are crime, inflation and unemployment.
Source: Stern
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