Violent Election
Campaign Ends in
Guatemala
The most violent
election campaign over
the past two decades
will end in Guatemala on
Friday, when calls to go
to the polls on Sunday
to elect local and
national authorities
were made.
During the campaign, 51
people, including 45
candidates, affiliates
or activists from
different political
parties and six
relatives or companions,
were killed.
Unidad Nacional de la
Esperanza, the political
party that topped all
surveys, was the most
hit organization during
the election campaign,
as violence took a toll
of 18 deaths, including
two deputies.
Encuentro por Guatemala,
whose presidential
candidate is Peace Nobel
Prize winner Rigoberta
Menchu, lost seven
members to election
violence.
In addition to being the
most violent campaign,
it was the longest one,
because, although the
call for elections was
made on May 2, the
campaign began more than
a year ago, due to the
failure of the Supreme
Election Court to
prevent early
campaigning.
More than 5.9 million
Guatemalans, the highest
number in the country's
history, have registered
to elect the president,
the vice president, 158
deputies to Congress and
332 mayors and municipal
governments.
On this occasion, no
elections will be held
to choose the 20
deputies who will
represent Guatemala in
the Central American
Parliaments, as that
regional forum will
change its composition
by 2011. |
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