Central America

Review of Guatemalan elections continues, despite complaints

Photo: Prensa Libre

July 5 |

The political group Vamos, of Guatemalan president Alejandro Giammattei, demanded this Tuesday a manual recount of votes in the review of the results of the general elections of June 25 ordered by the Constitutional Court in the face of demands from right-wing forces.

The National Executive Committee of said party expressed its concern “due to the finding of evident inconsistencies between the minutes presented and the data computed in the different polling stations.

According to a communiqué, this can be confirmed by the number of them showing “inconsistencies, alterations and other discrepancies”.

The electoral boards of the 22 departments of the Central American country met this Tuesday to comply with the resolution and review the voting records that could be challenged. This will continue throughout the week and the date on which the official results will be known is unknown.

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However, the majority of Vamos prosecutors are requesting that the boxes containing the individual votes be opened and then counted manually.

This was criticized by prosecutors of other parties, who reiterated and argued that the opening of the boxes where the votes are located is illegal and is not specified in the resolution of the Constitutional Court nor in the Guatemalan law.

In this sense, through his communication channels, congressman Román Castellanos, from the social democrat group Semilla, warned about the risks of the current process.

He assured that the official party is “trying to open the ballot boxes to sabotage the electoral process and eliminate Semilla from the second electoral round”.

According to analysts and experts, the intention of Vamos could be to hinder or delay the electoral process, seeking to eventually suspend it.

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The presidential elections of last June 25 were won by former first lady Sandra Torres Casanova, of the Unidad Nacional de la Esperanza (UNE), followed by academic Bernardo Arévalo de León, of the social democrat group Semilla, who entered the second round after sweeping the urban areas.

Central America

Panama grants Martinelli 72-hour extension to travel to Nicaragua

On Monday (March 31, 2025), Panama extended the safe-conduct pass for former President Ricardo Martinelli by three more days to allow him to travel to Nicaragua, after the Central American country refused to receive him due to concerns over an alleged Interpol arrest warrant.

“The National Government has decided to extend the validity of the safe-conduct pass for an additional seventy-two (72) hours, until the end of Thursday, April 3, 2025,” the Panamanian Foreign Ministry stated in a communiqué. The original permit was set to expire Monday at midnight (05:00 GMT on Tuesday).

The Foreign Ministry explained that regarding the ‘humanitarian asylum’ granted to Martinelli last Thursday, which was set to expire Monday at midnight, the Nicaraguan government requested clarifications about an apparent Interpol alert, which had already been dismissed as inadmissible.

Additionally, the Panamanian Supreme Court of Justice, as the highest authority of the Judicial Branch, stated on Monday that it had “no objections” to granting asylum and a safe-conduct to Martinelli, as it falls under the jurisdiction of the Executive Branch.

Central America

U.S. Homeland Security Secretary urges Mexico to strengthen Guatemala border

U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem revealed on Monday that during last week’s meeting with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, she urged Mexico to reinforce its border with Guatemala and share biometric datawith U.S. authorities.

“I gave her a list of things that President Trump would love to see. And it was exceptional. It was supposed to be a half-hour meeting, but we talked for nearly two hours. It was very productive,” Noem said in an interview with Fox News.

The Homeland Security Secretary requested that Sheinbaum, who has already deployed 10,000 National Guard troopsalong Mexico’s northern border with the U.S., also secure Mexico’s southern border with Guatemala.

Noem added that she also asked the Mexican president to share biometric data with the U.S., to which Sheinbaum responded that she was “willing to discuss it,” although she acknowledged that it could be a controversial issue in her country.

Central America

Panama police clarifies that Interpol alert for Martinelli is still pending

Panama’s National Police clarified on Sunday that an Interpol alert request for former President Ricardo Martinelli (2009-2014) is still under review and has yet to be confirmed. Martinelli was granted a safe-conduct pass last Thursday to leave the Nicaraguan embassy, where he has been seeking asylum since February 2024 after being convicted of corruption.

“The National Police clarifies that there is currently an active process for an Interpol alert, requested by Judge Baloisa Marquínez, against former President Ricardo Martinelli. This request must be analyzed by Interpol’s General Secretariat (headquartered in France) for approval or rejection. If approved, it will be notified to member countries,” the police stated in a press release sent to EFE.

According to the statement, “at the moment, it remains an ongoing procedure, and former President Martinelli does not have a confirmed alert.”

The announcement came hours after National Police Director Jaime Fernández had told the press that an “Interpol alert” for Martinelli had been received on Friday.