At a news conference Friday, prosecutors said there were alleged irregularities in some precinct vote tallies that could lead to the election results being annulled.
Rafael Curruchiche, special prosecutor against impunity, said the Supreme Electoral Tribunal would have to resolve the situation. “All of the political parties and all of the candidates in all of the elections were affected here,†he said.
The Supreme Electoral Tribunal responded almost immediately that the election results were inalterable.
“The results are valid, certified, and the people (who won their races) are necessarily accredited and must take office Jan. 14. If not, it would be a rupture of the constitutional order,†tribunal President Blanca Alfaro said.
The OAS in a statement said it “condemns the coup attempt by Guatemalan prosecutors†and urged Guatemala's courts and congress not to allow it.
“The attempt to nullify this year's general elections represents the worst form of breaking with democracy and consolidating a political fraud against the will of the people,†the OAS wrote.
Attorney General Consuelo Porras, who has been sanctioned by the U.S. government, has faced months of protests and calls for her resignation as well as international condemnation for her office’s interference. Porras, as well as outgoing , have denied any intent to meddle in the election results.
Earlier this month, four magistrates of Guatemala’s Supreme Electoral Tribunal hours after the Congress opened them up to prosecution by stripping them of their immunity as the losing side in the presidential election continued its efforts to interfere with the results.
The magistrates certified the election result but came under pressure from two attorneys tied to a far-right candidate who did not advance to the runoff round of the presidential election.
The lawyers contended that the tribunal overpaid for software purchased to carry out and publish rapid initial vote tallies. The Attorney General’s Office had previously said that its preliminary investigation suggested there had been less expensive options available.
In testimony to the special committee investigating the Supreme Electoral Tribunal, Karen Fisher, one of the attorneys who brought the complaint, urged them to move quickly. “Time is short because Jan. 14 is coming up,†she said.
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