Comedian Wins Guatemalan Presidential Election in Landslide
- 9 years ago
A television comedian with no prior political experience won Guatemala's presidential election by a landslide on Sunday, capitalizing on a corruption scandal that engendered national hostility toward the country's ruling old guard.
Forty-six-year-old Jimmy Morales, who once played a hapless cowboy who accidentally becomes President, took more than 72% of the vote, easily defeating his opponent, former First Lady Sandra Torres, Reuters reported.
"As President, I received a mandate, and the mandate of the people of Guatemala is to fight against the corruption that is consuming us.
God bless and thank you," Morales said as he watched the votes come in.
Morales had been atop the election polls since early September, after President Otto Pérez Molina stepped down in the face of a bribery scandal.
Forty-six-year-old Jimmy Morales, who once played a hapless cowboy who accidentally becomes President, took more than 72% of the vote, easily defeating his opponent, former First Lady Sandra Torres, Reuters reported.
"As President, I received a mandate, and the mandate of the people of Guatemala is to fight against the corruption that is consuming us.
God bless and thank you," Morales said as he watched the votes come in.
Morales had been atop the election polls since early September, after President Otto Pérez Molina stepped down in the face of a bribery scandal.