No joke, comedian wins presidency in Guatemala
Print Edition
JIMMY Morales, a former TV comedian who has never held office, swept to power in Guatemala’s presidential election after milking public anger over a corruption scandal that deepened distrust of the country’s political establishment.
The 46-year-old Morales overwhelmingly beat center-left rival and former first lady Sandra Torres in a run-off vote on Sunday despite his lack of government experience and some policy ideas that strike many as eccentric. The headquarters of Morales’ National Convergence Front party erupted in celebration as official returns showed he had around 68 percent support in a landslide victory.
Voters pointed to widespread discontent with Guatemala’s political class, compounded by a United Nations-backed probe into a multi-million dollar customs racket that led last month to the resignation and arrest of former president Otto Perez.
“As president I received a mandate, and the mandate of the people of Guatemala is to fight against the corruption that is consuming us,” he said.
The United States government has strongly supported the UN-backed investigators and their success has helped push against corruption in Central America, where economic hardship and gang violence spurred an exodus of migrants to the US.
However, the anti-graft fervor has also led to the election of an unknown quantity in Guatemala. Morales was already a household name following a 14-year stint on a popular TV comedy and the self-proclaimed centrist from a humble background wooed voters with promises to tackle corruption and hand out millions of smartphones to children.
Last year, Morales quit his TV show to run for the presidency. Back in April, he barely registered in opinion polls but he soon surged as both Perez’s government and a candidate who was then leading the presidential race became mired in corruption probes.
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