Polling stations are closed in Guatemala and the counting of the votes begins

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After an election day marked by high turnout and reports of numerous irregularities, the polling stations in Guatemala closed at 6 p.m. local time this Sunday and the counting of the votes began.

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Supreme Electoral Court (TSE) Judge Ranulfo Rojas urged the various political organizations to carefully follow the counting in the vote-taking bodies so that it is properly done.

He recalled that the TSE followed up on many circumstances it advised against throughout the day to allow people to vote safely. He also expressed his support for the process of informing the public about the details of the election.

96 complaints about irregularities were lodged with the MP

Judges of the Supreme Electoral Court (TSE) of Guatemala gave opinions on the general elections taking place in that country and confirmed that as of 2:00 p.m. local time this Sunday, 96 complaints of irregularities had been lodged with the Public Ministry.

According to judge Irma Palencia, five incidents were known by 3:00 p.m., three of which had already been clarified. He explained that these are isolated events and that they do not affect the electoral process.

He estimated that by that time an influx of voters had been noted, which he considered positive, although he could not specify how many voted due to the specifics of the electoral process in that country. He urged voters to use the remaining hours to vote.

Palencia and Judge Gabriel Aguilera confirmed that it was decided to suspend the elections in the municipality of San José del Golfo for reasons of force majeure and in the interest of protecting the integrity of the participants.

They said this will affect four counties and 24 polling stations that will be reactivated for the second round of voting scheduled for August 20.

Responding to a complaint filed by the Creo party in the municipality of San Miguel Petapa, Aguilera said the aforementioned political force would need to provide an adequate challenge for the TSE to govern after Election Day.

Another incident was also confirmed in San Martín Zapotitlán, Retalhuleu, where a group of people destroyed election materials. On the matter, Judge Rafael Rojas said that the municipal electoral authority had decided to protect the safety of voters, voting materials and facilities.

He added that there were several arrests and that the authorities were investigating these incidents. He indicated that the TSE has yet to decide what steps to take.

Exercising the right to vote, Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei said that 195 people have been jailed for irregularities so far and that most communities are at peace. He explained that there had been 21 reports of power shortages, most of which were due to fallen trees on power lines. He found that most of the problems had been resolved.

You denounce the vote-buying of the governing party

More than 9 million people have been called to vote in Guatemala’s general elections this Sunday, where they will vote for the new president and vice-president, as well as 160 MPs, 20 representatives of the Central American Parliament and 340 mayors.

Complaints about alleged irregularities were made that day. Social Democrat candidate Sandra Torres denounced this Sunday that the ruling party is “buying votes” in Guatemala’s elections after voting in a school in the capital that morning.

“The official party can’t give gifts or buy votes because we complain that they’re buying votes with food distribution,” the former first lady, who directs voter intent polls, said after casting her ballot at the Valle Verde school in Guatemala City surrounded by reporters.

According to a ProDatos study published this week in local newspaper Prensa Libre, Torres is confident of entering the second round after topping the polls with 21.3 percent of voting intentions.

The candidate from the National Unity of Hope (UNE) party urged Guatemalans who have not yet turned up to vote before the shutdown, which will take place at 18:00 local time (Monday 00:00 GMT), to get to the voting centers tomorrow).

Various irregularities occur throughout the day, including solicitation, pressure against voters, police intimidation and more.

Members of the Guatemalan National Civil Police have used tear gas in the municipality of San Jose del Golfo, where unrest has been raging since Saturday, preventing elections from starting.

The clashes began with the arrival of polling personnel, who were pushed by a group of buses, sprayed with petrol and threatened to set it on fire.

An hour earlier, at 07:00 (local time), the President of the TSE, Irma Elizabeth Palencia Orellana, and the President of the Central District Electoral Committee, José Francisco Murúa, among others, met, along with other election officials and foreign observers. Others began the electoral process.

Palencia Orellana called on Guatemalans to go to the polls to later proceed with the cutting of the symbolic ribbon that opens the elections, while at the same time a young woman, wanting to vote for the first time, cast her vote at the polling station.

In a first case, residents of San José del Golfo allowed four voting centers to open over alleged voter brain drain.

The President of the TSE pointed out that the polling centers had been moved in such a way that “citizens arrive freely and feel that everything is in order”.

Around 9.3 million Guatemalans are called to vote, which will also determine the vice president and 160 congressmen for the period 2024-2028.

They must also elect representatives to the Central American Parliament and 340 new municipal bodies. According to TSE, 3,482 voting centers have been installed in the 22 departments of the Central American country.

The electoral body announced that there will be 24,427 polling stations to allow the more than 9 million Guatemalans to cast their ballots on the five printed ballot papers that will be sent out one by one.

These votes are for the election of a president, congressmen by national list, congressmen by region, members of the Central American Parliament and municipal mayors.

The capital, Guatemala City, concentrates most of the voting centers as 2.1 million people are eligible to vote in the metropolitan area.

The first results are expected to be released by the TSE after 10:00 p.m. local time and the audit hearings are scheduled for June 26-30.

If one of the candidates does not get 50 percent plus one of the votes, a second ballot will be held on August 20 between the two couples who had the majority of the votes on the first date.

The TSE judges decided to exclude from the presidential election indigenous leader Thelma Cabrera, the son of former President Álvaro Arzú Irigoyen, Roberto Arzú García Granados and businessman Carlos Pineda, who led the polls.