Pineda was the leading candidate according to some recent surveys. On May 19, a court suspended the presidential candidacy of Carlos Pineda, citing alleged irregularities in the way his political party appointed him as candidate in November. The TSE also excluded Roberto Arzú from the race for violating a rule that typically carries a fine as punishment. The decision was based on an unspecified criminal complaint by the current ombudsperson who was appointed in a process that lacked transparency. Although different appeals were presented before the Supreme Court and the Constitutional Court, the TSE and courts rejected the candidacy for indigenous left-wing leader Telma Cabrera (who won 10% of the vote in the 2019 election) and her running mate, Jordán Rodas, the country’s former human rights ombudsman. In February, two presidential candidates on different ends of the political spectrum were arbitrarily barred from running for office. While some candidates who are under investigation for corruption and drug trafficking have been able to run, other candidates that challenge the status quo have been blocked. Guatemala’s Mission of Electoral Observation ( Misión de Observación Electoral – Guatemala, MOE-Gt), a consortium of civil society organizations, have condemned the insistence of the Supreme Electoral Tribunal ( Tribunal Supremo Electoral, TSE) in applying differentiated, discretional and inconsistent criteria in the registration and blocking of candidates. Presidential Candidates Excluded and Supreme Electoral Tribunal Lacks Credibility The following document explains our main findings. The delegation met with civil society, public officials, independent press, diplomatic corps, and the United Nations to gather information and discuss the main issues and challenges with regards to the upcoming elections. ![]() Kennedy Human Rights ( RFKHR ) and Human Rights Watch ( HRW ) visited Guatemala City from April 17 through April 21, 2023. As part of our efforts to assess the pre-electoral conditions in the months leading up to election day, the Washington Office on Latin America ( WOLA ), Robert F. ![]() On June 25, 2023, Guatemala will hold general elections for president, legislators, and mayors in a context of deteriorating human, civil, and electoral rights. (A note on methodology: Here we'll focus on scandals that directly implicated a president or members of his executive branch.Summary of Recent Visit to Guatemala City ![]() In the end, the buck stops at the president. On the other hand, a divided government can lead to infighting and the kind of close scrutiny that reveals a scandal, which almost doomed President Andrew Johnson. This practice can open the door to opportunists, who may not always have the president's or the nation's best interests at heart, as President Ulysses Grant discovered. In appointing and overseeing their executive branch, presidents often reward loyalty and support over other qualifications. It's usually corruption or other personal misdeeds that ultimately lead to a president's downfall. The public can often stomach failed policies or earnest mistakes on behalf of its government. As with any boss, employee misbehavior often reflects poorly on the commander in chief, even if he isn't personally involved. ![]() presidents aren't just the heads of state, they're also the supervisors of the entire federal bureaucracy.
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