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Guatemalans – or presumably at least some of them – will head to the polls today in what’s probably the country’s most meaningless presidential election ever.
With seemingly the whole political class under suspicion or investigation for corruption or some other type of mischief, former comedian and relative political newcomer Jimmy Morales appears to be the frontrunner, if Guatemalan polls are to be trusted – and they’re not. In any event, the quipster’s unlikely rise to the head of the pack is mostly the result of addition by subtraction as the other candidates fall off around him due to their perceived ties to past or ongoing corruption scandals. It also raises the question: if a comedian wins the presidential election, does that make Guatemala’s democracy a farce? Still, the funnyman’s leader status is anything but funny for Guatemala’s awakening grassroots democracy. Many young people are calling for a boycott of today’s election under the hashtags #NoQueremosElecciones (We Don’t Want Elections) or the slightly more unruly #EnEstasCondicionesNoQueremosElecciones.