Guatemala sets lineup for presidential vote as critics slam disqualifications

GUATEMALA CITY, (Reuters) - Guatemala’s presidential race kicked off yesterday, a day after the electoral authority finalized its approved candidate lineup for the June election, even as critics blasted decisions to disqualify some candidates while allowing others to run.

Polls point to two conservative women as early presidential front-runners.

The Sunday registry of candidacies by the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE) launched the three-month campaign to succeed conservative President Alejandro Giammattei, who is prohibited by law from seeking a second term, as well as for seats in Congress and mayor’s races across Central America’s most populous country and biggest economy.

The TSE has come under sharp criticism for allowing aspirants implicated in corruption to run, at a time when Giammattei and his allies face mounting accusations of dismantling anticorruption efforts via arrests of judges and prosecutors.

The TSE did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The list of approved presidential contenders for the June 25 first-round vote stands at nearly two dozen, and if no one secures a simple majority a runoff between the top two finishers will take place on Aug. 20.

One of the leading presidential hopefuls is Zury Rios, a 55-year-old conservative former congresswoman who was banned from participating in the previous election due to the country’s constitutional prohibition on children of ex-dictators as candidates. But this time the TSE is allowing her to run.

The other leading contender is former first lady Sandra Torres, who finished second in the last two elections.