Elections for the Supreme Electoral Tribunal, Constitutional Court, and attorney general are progressing, with positive results in some areas and concerning results in others. The international community is closely monitoring these elections. The United States, the European Union, the Organization of American States, and the United Nations High Commissioners Office for Human Rights have openly expressed concern about some of the candidates.
A recent update from Guatemala Human Rights Commission (GHRC) on justice and human rights contained information on the following:
Attorney General Elections – Porras Tries for Third Term: Guatemala’s Attorney General Consuelo Porras has submitted her application for a third consecutive term, despite international sanctions from more than forty-three countries labeling her as corrupt and anti-democratic.
CC Elections Progress, with Strong Candidates: The process of choosing magistrates for the Constitutional Court is progressing. The Court is composed of five primary judges and five alternates, and five government institutions appoint one pair–primary and alternate–each, choosing from a list of candidates they have received. Two of the five institutions involved in appointing judges to the Constitutional Court (CC) have already elected their representatives, meaning the appointment of judges is forty percent complete.
OAS Raises Concerns over Porras’ Bid for CC: On February 9, the Organization of American States (OAS) in a statement expressed “serious concern” over Attorney General María Consuelo Porras’ submission for candidacy as a judge on the Constitutional Court.
Shortlist of TSE Candidates Causes Concern: The selection of a new TSE is critical for safeguarding democratic governance. The newly elected TSE will be responsible for overseeing the 2027 general elections and ensuring the transparency, fairness, and integrity of the country’s electoral process. Half of those on the shortlist, according to Guatemalan organizations, are of questionable reputation. The organization Citizen Action has submitted a formal request to Congress to challenge the list of candidates.
José Rubén Zamora Released: On February 12, journalist José Rubén Zamora Marroquín was released from pretrial detention and permitted house arrest for the second time since 2024, following an order issued by Judge José Morales earlier in that day. Zamora, who had been in prison since being rearrested in March 2025, has spent a total of 1, 295 days in detention–approximately 3.5 years. [You can read about a recent Agencia Ocote interview with José Rubén Zamora here, Jose Rubén Zamora, a journalist in the crosscurrent].
Human Rights Watch Report Highlights Ongoing Rights Violations in Guatemala: In its annual report, covering 2025, Human Rights Watch emphasizes continuing and serious concerns about human rights in Guatemala and threats to Guatemala’s rule of law. Arbitrary criminal proceedings have undermined the rule of law and human rights, the report points out. The report highlights the Attorney General’s Office’s arbitrary criminalizations and notes the ongoing harassment and arrests of journalists, human rights defenders, university students, Indigenous leaders, and members of President Bernardo Arévalo’s administration.
More details on these and more can be found here, GHRC – Recent Developments in Justice and Human Rights.
Categories: Accompaniment, Corruption, Criminalisation, Criminalization, Guatemala, Human Rights, Impunity, Justice, Solidarity in Action, Solidarity in Action/Guatemala
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