Guatemala: 2007 Elections and Issues for Congress (CRS Report for Congress)
| Release Date |
Revised Jan. 9, 2008 |
| Report Number |
RS22727 |
| Report Type |
Report |
| Authors |
Miranda Louise Jasper and Colleen W. Cook, Foreign Affairs, Defense, and Trade Division |
| Source Agency |
Congressional Research Service |
| Older Revisions |
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Summary:
Alvaro Colom, of the center-left Nation Union of Hope (UNE) party, defeated right-wing candidate Otto Pérez Molina of the Patriot Party, in November 4, 2007 run-off elections. President-elect Colom will take office on January 14, 2008. No single presidential candidate won a majority of votes in the first round held on September 9, 2007, in which congressional and mayoral races were also held. The dominant issue in the campaign was security, and the 2007 election campaigns were the most violent since the return to democracy in 1985, with 56 candidates, activists, and family members killed. Since no party won a majority in Congress, the next president will have to build coalitions to achieve his legislative agenda. U.S. interests in Guatemala include consolidating democracy, securing human rights, establishing security and promoting trade, though U.S. immigration policy has been a point of tension in bilateral relations.
