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Public confidence in Guatemala's presidential election process was bolstered by the work of Mirador Electoral, a coalition of five independent Guatemalan civil society groups that fielded election observers, provided an independent verification of results and kept tabs on pre-election campaign activity.
The group, with assistance from NDI, was active both before and during first-round balloting on Sept. 9 and the run-off election Nov. 4 that led to the election of businessman Alvaro Colom of the National Unity of Hope Party (Unidad Nacional de Esperanza, UNE) over former General Otto Pérez Molina of the Patriotic Party (Partido Patriota).
In largely peaceful run-off balloting, Colom polled 52.82 percent compared to 47.18 percent for Perez Molina. Perez Molina polled strongly in the capital, but Colom dominated in rural areas, winning 20 of Guatemala’s 22 departments. Perez Molina conceded on election night.
International and national observers lamented the 48 percent participation rate in the run-off as compared to the 60 percent turnout for the September general election. However, second round turnout was slightly higher than for the previous run-off in 2003. Despite a campaign period marked by more than 100 acts of violence and logistical challenges to the election administration, most Guatemalan voters cast their ballots in an atmosphere of relative calm in both rounds of voting.
Mirador Electoral prepared pre-election reports and fielded a network throughout the country of more than 3,500 election day volunteers representative of Guatemala’s diverse population. NDI received funding from the U.S. Agency for International Development and Canada, Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden to provide in-house expertise to Mirador Electoral for both pre-election work and the election day observation. NDI also facilitated an exchange of practical election observation techniques with other domestic monitoring groups and experts from Canada, Nicaragua and Peru.
Prior to the election, Mirador Electoral released five reports for the Guatemalan public providing information on election administration, election-related violence, political party performance, media coverage and the level of political inclusion of the large but under-represented indigenous sector. (Click here to access these reports in Spanish). Mirador’s July 30 report gave evidence that political parties had exceeded campaign spending limits, increasing public pressure for greater scrutiny by the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (Tribunal Supremo Electoral, TSE). Initial results of investigations by the TSE’s auditing department indicated discrepancies between the parties’ spending reports and the amount media sources said parties spent on advertising, underscoring concerns about transparency in party spending and sources of funding.
Using data collected by the observers, Mirador conducted a quick count, or independent verification of the results, pioneered by NDI. Quick counts can help to empower citizens, build local capacity, and provide reliable and comprehensive information. NDI has also found that in contentious electoral environments, the information provided by quick counts can reduce tensions and violence. Mirador’s quick count results were complete just over two hours following the close of the polls.
By law, Mirador was required to report its quick count results to the TSE on election night. The TSE president publicly announced the results that evening, pointing out the minimal differences between Mirador’s count and the official projections. By providing an independent verification of the official results based on the direct observations of non-partisan Guatemalan civic activists, Mirador helped to increase confidence in the electoral process.
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Published on Oct. 25, 2007
