A long-shot win for democracy in Guatemala: Analysis
Despite repressive efforts by those in power, Bernardo Arévalo takes office.
As the U.S. kicks off its election year, there's a fresh reminder south of the border of the incredible power of democracy in the face of very long odds.
Bernardo Arévalo was sworn in overnight as the president of Guatemala after a shocking win in the presidential election several months ago.
From the moment he won the first round of voting in June, to winning the runoff and the presidency on August 20, elites ---many of them corrupt--long in power in Guatemala did just about everything possible to stop Arévalo from taking office. It has included threatening the prosecution and arrest of political allies to suspending his political party. His opponent in the presidential election even refused to acknowledge his victory, making unsubstantiated claims of fraud.
A constitutional court ordered last July that the election results be reviewed, temporarily siding with some of the entrenched political powers that were shocked by Bernardo Arévalo's surprise showing. Then, following a runoff vote in August that Arévalo won, a federal prosecutor nullified his victory in early December – a move that the General Secretariat of the Organization of American States (OAS) condemned as an "attempted coup d'etat."
A last-ditch effort came Sunday, with old-guard members of the Guatemalan Congress attempting to maintain effective control of the chamber, using a related Supreme Court ruling to successfully delay the proceedings.
But Guatemalans didn't just stand idly by and allow it to happen.
Hundreds of protesters descended on key government buildings in Guatemala City Sunday, breaking through police lines, demanding Arévalo take office, with some shouting "if [the elites] won't swear him in, we will."
Meanwhile, top U.S. officials alongside Latin American leaders, the EU, and the OAS all condemned the delays and called for Arévalo to take office.
He was sworn into office a few minutes after midnight, improbably overcoming a sustained barrage of attempts to undercut Guatemala’s democratic will. His political party might even be able to cobble together enough of a coalition to push his agenda forward.
What he world saw yesterday was a microcosm of the two of the forces most responsible for not allowing Arévalo to fail: Key public street protests from the Guatemalan public, and vocal, immediate international support.
Each transparently ridiculous obstacle Guatemala's corrupt elite threw at Arévalo and his political party since their win last summer was overwhelmingly rejected by the Guatemalans who voted for him, led most forcefully by Indigenous groups and young people. They protested loudly and consistently, refusing to let the presidency be snatched away from them.
Separately, and nearly as important, was the international community's quick recognition of Arévalo's victory and its swift condemnation of any anti-democratic actions. The U.S., multiple Latin American democracies, and the EU were all involved, with the U.S. even sanctioning public officials and private citizens involved in attempting to stand in Arévalo's way.
Only Guatemalans can and should control Guatemala’s political future. But the simple fact is that the U.S. holds enormous economic influence in the affairs of its neighbor to the south – and in this case, it used that leverage to help support a democratic transition of power.
El presidente Arévalo still faces myriad challenges as he attempts to begin governing, but for now, there's at least this: In a world where democratic norms seem to be eroding more and more every day, Guatemala has afforded us a poignant reminder of what's possible when a motivated public and the international community say, "enough."
ABC News' Conor Finnegan contributed to this report.
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