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Unionist Party (Guatemala)

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Not to be confused with Unionist Party (Guatemala, 1920).
Unionist Party
Partido Unionista
General SecretaryÁlvaro Arzú Escobar
Founded2002; 22 years ago (2002)
Preceded byNational Advancement Party
Headquarters1a. Avenida 3-30 Zona 10, Guatemala City
Youth wingLegión Unionista
IdeologyNational conservatism
Social conservatism[1]
Economic liberalism[1]
Christian right[2][3][4]
Political positionRight-wing[5] to far-right[6][7][8][9][10][11]
International affiliationInternational Democracy Union[12][13]
ColoursBlack, rainbow
Seats in Congress
2 / 160
Website
www.unionistas.org

The Unionist Party (Partido Unionista) is a conservative political party in Guatemala, who advocates the re-creation of a Central American union.[citation needed]

The party has been a member of the centre-right International Democracy Union since 2008 and is associated with the Union of Latin American Parties.[14]

It is not to be confused with the party of the same name formed in 1920.

History

[edit]

The party originated from a split experienced by the National Advancement Party in 2000 after Álvaro Arzú lost his standing in the party, prompting him to establish the Unionist Party with old companions and functionaries during his time as president.[15]

At the legislative elections, 9 November 2003, the party won 6.2% of the popular vote and 7 out of 158 seats. Its presidential candidate Fritz García Gallont won 3.0% at the presidential elections of the same day.

In the run-up to the elections in 2007, the party nominated Rudy Vinicio Pozuelos Alegría, who was investigated for his role in the murder of bishop Juan José Gerardi Conedera on 26 April 1998 in his function as the former head of the Presidential General Staff, for a seat in the congressional delegation from the Chimaltenango Department.[16][17]

Classic logo used between 2002 until 2010

At the 2007 elections, the party again chose García Gallont as its presidential candidate. He won about 2.9% of the vote. The party won 6.2% of the national vote and 6 seats in the congressional elections.

The party was reduced to 2.7% of the nationwide vote at the elections in 2011, thereby retaining a single legislator in Congress. Their presidential candidate was Patricia Escobar, who won close to 2.2% of the electorate.

For the elections in 2015 the party entered into an alliance with Commitment, Renewal and Order. The unified list was able to garner approximately 5.7% of the vote in the congressional elections, increasing their share of seats to 5. The alliance nominated Roberto González Díaz-Durán as their presidential candidate, who gained about 3.5% in the elections.

In January 2018, in return for their support of president Jimmy Morales, General Secretay Álvaro Arzú Escobar was elected as President of the Congress.[18]

In February 2019, Arzú Escobar was one of the most vocal opponents of the International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG) and supported a decree terminating the agreement between the UN and Guatemala.[19]

Logo used by the Unionist Party from 2010 to 2016

In June 2019, the leading prosecutor of the Special Prosecutor's Office against Impunity (FECI) Juan Francisco Sandoval brought charges of embezzlement and fraud against the mayor of Guatemala City, Ricardo Quiñónez Lemus.[20] The proceedings had to be stopped in January 2021, after the CSJ determined that the prosecutorial immunity of the mayor can not be revoked.[20] In the same month, Héctor Cifuentes was also arrested for illegal party financing, but after changes to the law in 2022, charges were dropped in October 2022 and he was released.[21][22] The party was one of nine parties that rejected a four-point minimum compromise on human rights, initiated by the Human Rights Ombudsman and the Guatemalan office of the OHCHR.[23]

The party contested the elections in 2019 on their own again and achieved 2.9% of the national vote in the legislative elections, thereby electing 3 legislators to Congress. The party contested the presidential elections with Pablo Duarte and Roberto Villeda as their ticket, falling to 1.4% of the vote.

After the election, the party was generally seen as an ally of the government faction.[24] In October 2019, the party supported the impeachment of the Ombudsman for Human Rights, Jordán Rodas, for his alleged inaction in five different cases, in Congress.[25] The motion failed to reach the required quorum.

On 5 August 2022, the party announced they would enter into a political alliance with Valor to contest the upcoming election in 2023 together.[26] The agreement was officialised at the national convention of the party on 11 December 2022, where the slate of candidates for Congress and the presidential candidate duo were proclaimed.[27] The alliance nominated Zury Ríos and Héctor Cifuentes as presidential and vice-presidential candidate, respectively.

Ideology

[edit]

The party's reduced popular support has not allowed it to achieve a significant number of public positions, preventing it from consolidating a defined ideology. However, due to the origins of its leaders in other political movements, it can be classified as a right-wing party on the classic political spectrum. It is a notably nationalist movement, socially conservative but at the same time promoting a free market economy.

Electoral history

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Presidential elections

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Election Candidates First round Second round Status
President Vice President Votes % Votes %
2003 Fritz García Gallont Héctor Cifuentes 80,943 3.02 — — Lost Red XN
2007 Enrique Godoy García Granados 95,280 2.91 — — Lost Red XN
2011 Patricia Escobar Álvaro Rodas 97,498 2.19 — — Lost Red XN
2015[a] Roberto González Díaz-Durán Rodolfo Neutze Aguirre 166,960 3.48 — — Lost Red XN
2019 Pablo Duarte Roberto Villeda 62,679 1.43 — — Lost Red XN
2023[b] Zury Ríos Héctor Cifuentes 365,028 8.69 — — Lost Red XN
  1. ^ Joint ticket with CREO.
  2. ^ Joint ticket with Valor.

Legislative elections

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Election Votes % Seats +/– Status
2003 157,893 6.19 (#5)
7 / 158
 New Opposition
2007 192,295 6.10 (#6)
7 / 158
 Decrease 1 External support
2011 118,309 2.70 (#10)
1 / 158
 Decrease 5 External support
2015[a] 261,040 5.73 (#7)
5 / 158
 Increase 4 External support
2019 118,337 2.94 (#15)
3 / 160
 Decrease 2 External support
2023[b] 229,861 5.51 (#6)
5 / 160
 Increase 1 Opposition
  1. ^ In coalition with CREO.
  2. ^ In coalition with Valor.

References

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  1. ^ a b https://porquienvoto.org.gt/descargas/informe_partidos_politicos.pdf Page 72
  2. ^ "Guatemala increases punishment for abortions and bans same-sex marriage". The Guardian. 9 March 2022.
  3. ^ "Guatemalan Women Face Up to 10 Years in Prison Under New Abortion Law". The New York Times. 9 March 2022.
  4. ^ "Guatemala Congress ramps up prison sentence for abortion, bans gay marriage". France24. 9 March 2022.
  5. ^ "Pablo Duarte: "Se necesita una reestructuración del Estado"". March 28, 2019.
  6. ^ "Pablo Duarte: "Se necesita una reestructuración del Estado"". Prensa Libre. May 28, 2019.
  7. ^ "El país que ellos necesitan". elPeriódico. 8 August 2022.
  8. ^ "Cara al sol, versión mariachi". El Mundo. September 8, 2011.
  9. ^ "Arzú en dos actos: la paz neoliberal y la sombra de la corrupción". Plaza Pública. April 29, 2018.
  10. ^ "Au Guatemala, la candidate de gauche interdite d'élection présidentielle, celle d'extrême droite adoubée". Le Monde (in French). 2023-03-07.
  11. ^ "Estos son los candidatos favoritos que lucharán por la Presidencia de Guatemala". France 24 (in Spanish). Retrieved 2023-06-23.
  12. ^ "International Democracy Union » Member Parties". Archived from the original on 2017-02-24. Retrieved 2015-12-06.
  13. ^ "Elecciones en Guatemala: ratificaron el veto a la única mujer indígena pero podrá competir la hija de un ex dictador". Infobae (in Spanish). 2023-03-02.
  14. ^ "International Democrat Union » Member Parties". Archived from the original on 2017-02-24. Retrieved 2015-12-06.
  15. ^ "Estos son los "dueños" o "caciques" de los partidos políticos inscritos en el TSE". Prensa Libre (in Spanish). Prensa Libre, S.A. 29 April 2019. Retrieved 25 February 2023.
  16. ^ "Gerardi und die Politiker" (PDF). Fijáte (in German). Verein ¡Fijáte!. 11 July 2007. Retrieved 23 March 2023.
  17. ^ "Piloto que muere en accidente de helicóptero en Chisec fue investigado por el caso Gerardi". Prensa Libre (in Spanish). Prensa Libre, S.A. 8 August 2020. Retrieved 23 March 2023.
  18. ^ "Álvaro Arzú Escobar es electo presidente del Congreso". Prensa Libre (in Spanish). Prensa Libre, S.A. 18 January 2018. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
  19. ^ "Morales, Arzú y Vásquez habrían hablado sobre decreto para respaldar cese de Cicig, según diputado". Prensa Libre (in Spanish). Prensa Libre, S.A. 11 February 2019. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
  20. ^ a b "Alcalde capitalino, Ricardo Quiñónez, mantiene inmunidad por el caso Financiamiento electoral al Partido Unionista". Prensa Libre (in Spanish). Prensa Libre, S.A. 15 January 2021. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
  21. ^ "Así cree el MP y la Cicig que los Unionistas fraguaron el plan para retener la alcaldía". Prensa Libre (in Spanish). Prensa Libre, S.A. 14 June 2019. Retrieved 25 February 2023.
  22. ^ Pérez, Regina (7 February 2023). "TSE valida la inscripción de candidaturas señaladas por vínculos con el narco y la corrupción". Prensa Communitaria (in Spanish). Retrieved 25 February 2023.
  23. ^ Antonio Ramón, Simón (4 June 2019). "Solamente 11 partidos firmaron compromiso por los derechos humanos". Prensa Communitaria (in Spanish). Retrieved 9 March 2023.
  24. ^ "Wahlen 2023: 28 Parteien sind bereit, 30 Parteikomitees wollen bereit sein" (PDF). Fijáte (in German). Verein ¡Fijáte!. 31 August 2022. Retrieved 23 March 2023.
  25. ^ "Pulso en el Congreso para destituir al procurador de Derechos Humanos". Prensa Libre (in Spanish). Prensa Libre, S.A. 29 October 2019. Retrieved 25 February 2023.
  26. ^ "Alianza política: Partidos Valor y Unionista anuncian coalición de cara a las elecciones generales de 2023". Prensa Libre (in Spanish). Prensa Libre, S.A. 5 August 2022. Retrieved 4 February 2023.
  27. ^ "Comienza asamblea nacional del Partido Unionista". Prensa Libre (in Spanish). Prensa Libre, S.A. 11 December 2022. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
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