The World Briefly
February 24, 2023Courts and Candidates
Guatemala
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Thousands of Guatemalans blocked over a dozen national highways this week to protest a court’s decision to ban an Indigenous candidate from registering for the country’s elections on June 25, the Associated Press reported.
Protesters took to the streets demanding that leftist candidate Thelma Cabrera of the Peoples Liberation Movement (MLP) be allowed to run in the upcoming polls.
The issue began earlier this month when Guatemala’s electoral tribunal ruled that former human rights official Jordán Rodas cannot run as Cabrera’s vice-presidential pick because he allegedly did not have a letter certifying he had no legal cases pending against him.
As a result of Rodas’ case, Cabrera cannot run either, despite the fact that a few other candidates with pending cases have been allowed to register.
Cabrera and Rodas can appeal to the Constitutional Court, according to TeleSUR, a Venezuelan-based news organization.
Cabrera, a 52-year-old Indigenous leader, ran in the 2019 elections for the first time, finishing fourth with 10 percent of the vote.
Local analysts and supporters told TeleSUR that the court order might be an effort to derail her participation in the June 25 vote, in which she is expected to perform well.
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