The Attorney General’s Office of Guatemala, led by Consuelo Porras, assured this Friday that the elections won by Bernardo Arévalo de León are not valid due to alleged administrative irregularities of the Supreme Electoral Tribunal. This decision was condemned by the Organization of American States (OAS).
The Prosecutor’s Office, whom Arévalo de León accused last September of carrying out a “coup d’état” against him, indicated that the electoral records used in the elections “are null and void” since they “were not authorized” initially. by the Supreme Electoral Tribunal.
The alleged invalidation of the electoral results was presented by prosecutor Leonor Morales, in a press conference, who said that the elections of president, deputies, mayor and deputies to the Central American Parliament must be annulled.
As an alleged reason for the annulment of the elections, Morales stated that there is an administrative irregularity since the electoral records used are not those originally approved by the Supreme Electoral Tribunal.
“The formats used were not those approved by the plenary session of magistrates,” stated Morales, who added that the votes “are null and void.”
The lawyer and elected representative of the Semilla Movement, Andrea Zeceña, warned on her social networks that the Public Ministry “does not have any authority” to declare the elections null and void.
Besides, The Public Ministry announced that it has made two requests to withdraw Arévalo’s immunity to investigate him for alleged money laundering and for the alleged falsification of documents in the constitution of his party, the Semilla Movement.
According to the prosecutor’s office, Arévalo was aware of the forgery of signatures when the political force that led him to win the presidency was created and is also seeking to investigate him for allegedly not registering income to the party.
The prosecution also requested two actions to withdraw the immunity of deputy Samuel Pérez, head of the party’s bench, under the same accusations.
With these two actions, there are three requests to withdraw Arévalo’s immunity. The first was due to the publication of messages on the social network X, formerly called Twitter, in which he supported the takeover of a university by students protesting the election of the rector.
The Prosecutor’s Office maintains an attack against the electoral process, Arévalo and the Semilla Movement, as well as against some 150,000 citizens who received, counted and safeguarded the votes of the general elections.
The Prosecutor’s Office’s decision comes when a delegation of US senators visits the country to address the political crisis.
Congressman Tim Kaine, who chairs the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee for the Western Hemisphere, heads the delegation that seeks to “highlight the importance of democratic governance and the rule of law,” according to an official statement.
Senators Dick Durbin, Jeff Berkeley, Peter Welch and Laphonza Butler, as well as representatives Norma Torres and Delia Ramírez, complement the delegation of the US Congress, which arrived in Guatemala in the midst of a panorama of uncertainty due to the attacks by the Public Ministry (Prosecutor’s Office). ) to the results of the elections held this year.
The bipartisan delegation highlighted in its statement that its visit takes place “at a critical moment for the country’s democracy” and in the midst of “constant protests as a result of the provocative actions of the Prosecutor’s Office.”
Since last July 12, the Prosecutor’s Office, led by Consuelo Porras, has implemented a series of judicial actions against the elections to try to reverse the victory of the president-elect.
The Prosecutor’s Office has seized boxes with election results, requested the withdrawal of immunity from electoral magistrates, as well as seeking to investigate the elected presidential duo, made up of Arévalo de León and Karín Herrera, for a case classified as “selective” by the Government of the United States.
The senators’ visit to Guatemala is the fourth arrival of US officials in a month, all with the objective of observing the conditions under which the transition process is being carried out.
On January 14, Arévalo de León must assume the presidency for the period 2024-2028 and replace the current president, Alejandro Giammattei.