Guatemalan justice discharged a notable blow to the Movimiento Semilla, a political group that finished second in the presidential race, when its legal status as a political entity was suspended this Wednesday. The election had taken place on June 25.
Rafael Curruchiche, the special prosecutor charged with fighting impunity, announced that the seventh criminal court halted the party’s registration at the prosecutor’s office request, following a complaint from a citizen alleging irregularities with the party’s registration. He said there were indications that more than 5,000 individuals joined the Seed Movement through signed attestations, and that some names and fingerprints appeared on multiple forms. Curruchiche noted the presence of anonymous signatures and altered pages. He has previously faced United States sanctions, imposed in 2022, for actions described as manufacturing cases against authorities.
In defense of the party, the prosecutor claimed that the individual in question had been confronted with a copy of the official member list. Curruchiche asserted that the party might be implicated in money laundering or related financial irregularities, pointing to a payment of roughly 175,000 Guatemalan quetzales (about 20,200 euros) for the signatures needed to gain formal recognition as a political entity.
La Hora newspaper reported that Movimiento Semilla noted the unusual but foreseeable development and said the case was under review with the legal team and that they would provide updates when possible.
Karin Herrera, described as the party’s second-in-command, commented that certain obstacles had been set by the same authorities repeatedly. He added that doubts had been cleared and confirmed that the party enjoyed substantial citizen backing. Herrera, a biologist and chemist who had supported Arévalo de León’s candidacy, emphasized that the will of the people must be respected and reflected on social media.
When the news emerged, judges of the Supreme Electoral Court were meeting at their headquarters as protesters gathered outside with banners and chants. Bernardo Arévalo, the left-leaning challenger who was seen as one of the frontrunners, placed second behind Sandra Torres of the National Unity of Hope, according to the latest polls. Those polls had positioned the Seed Movement as one of the few left-wing options among the twenty proposals presented, typically ranking from seventh to eighth in voter preference.
Arévalo spoke about forces that allegedly prefer to keep the public from freely deciding its future. He stressed that this matter affected the entire nation, not just Semilla or his own campaign. He asserted that the effort would not deter those committed to change, promising that the seeds of reform and hope would not be trampled. The 64-year-old academic, who had finished second to Sandra Torres in the June 25 election, framed the moment as a broader fight for democratic participation.
According to the local press, the criminal court’s decision places a 24-hour deadline for the Supreme Electoral Court to comply with the suspension of Semilla. If the court fails to act within that window, some experts warned that further legal consequences could follow. Other constitutional and electoral specialists, however, argued that election law normally prevents a party from being canceled while elections are underway and that the Electoral Court operates independently of such directives.
“Election Coup Attempt”
Several civil groups in Guatemala condemned what they described as a campaign to undermine the electoral process, labeling the action an attempt at an election coup. In a joint statement, the parties asserted that the decision to dismiss Semilla was unlawful and urged the Supreme Electoral Court to disregard the judicial ruling. The statement was signed by Transparency International Guatemala, Citizens’ Action, the Network of National Commissions, and various citizen groups focused on transparency and integrity, among others.