Guatemala - Government
Based on the etymolgy of Guatemala, it was the Spanish conquistadors used many native Americans as allies in their conquest of Guatemala; the site of their first capital (established in 1524), a former Maya settlement, was called "Quauhtemallan" by their Nahuatl-speaking Mexican allies, a name that means "land of trees" or "forested land", but which the Spanish pronounced "Guatemala"; the Spanish applied that name to a re-founded capital city three years later and eventually it became the name of the country. The Government system in this country is the presidential republic type and the different Administrative divisions includes: 22 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Alta Verapaz, Baja Verapaz, Chimaltenango, Chiquimula, El Progreso, Escuintla, Guatemala, Huehuetenango, Izabal, Jalapa, Jutiapa, Peten, Quetzaltenango, Quiche, Retalhuleu, Sacatepequez, San Marcos, Santa Rosa, Solola, Suchitepequez, Totonicapan, Zacapa
National symbols
Quetzal (bird); national colors: blue, white.
The flag
The National flag of Guatemala has three equal vertical bands of light blue (hoist side), white, and light blue, with the coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms includes a green and red quetzal (the national bird) representing liberty and a scroll bearing the inscription LIBERTAD 15 DE SEPTIEMBRE DE 1821 (the original date of independence from Spain) - all superimposed on a pair of crossed rifles signifying Guatemala's willingness to defend itself and a pair of crossed swords representing honor - and framed by a laurel wreath symbolizing victory; the blue bands represent the Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea; the white band denotes peace and purity.
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note: one of only two national flags featuring a firearm, the other is Mozambique
The National Anthem
| Title | "Himno Nacional de Guatemala" (National Anthem of Guatemala) |
|---|---|
| Lyric/music | Jose Joaquin PALMA/Rafael Alvarez OVALLE |
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note: adopted 1897, modified lyrics adopted 1934; Cuban poet Jose Joaquin PALMA anonymously submitted lyrics to a public contest calling for a national anthem; his authorship was not discovered until 1911
More about the government of Guatemala
| Date of Independence | 15 September 1821 (from Spain) |
|---|---|
| National holiday | Independence Day, 15 September (1821) |
| Legal system | civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts |
| International law organization participation | has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction |
| Constitution | |
| History | Several previous; latest adopted 31 May 1985, effective 14 January 1986; suspended and reinstated in 1994 |
| Amendments | Proposed by the president of the republic, by agreement of 10 or more deputies of Congress, by the Constitutional Court, or by public petition of at least 5,000 citizens; passage requires at least two-thirds majority vote by the Congress membership and approval by public referendum, referred to as "popular consultation"; constitutional articles such as national sovereignty, the republican form of government, limitations on those seeking the presidency, or presidential tenure cannot be amended; amended 1993 |
| Citizenship | |
| Citizenship by birth | yes |
| Citizenship by descent only | yes |
| Dual citizenship recognized | yes |
| Residency requirement for naturalization | 5 years with no absences of six consecutive months or longer or absences totaling more than a year |
| Executive Branch | |
| Chief of state | President Bernardo ARÉVALO de León (since 15 January 2024) |
| Head of government | President Bernardo ARÉVALO de León (since 15 January 2024) |
| Cabinet | Council of Ministers appointed by the president |
| Elections/appointments | president and vice president directly elected on the same ballot by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 4-year term (not eligible for consecutive terms); election last held on 25 June 2023 with a runoff on 20 August 2023 (next to be held in June 2027) |
| Election results | 2023: Bernardo ARÉVALO de León elected president in second round; percent of vote in first round - Sandra TORRES (UNE) 21%; Bernardo ARÉVALO de León (SEMILLA) 15.6%, Manuel CONDE Orellana (VAMOS) 10.4%; Armando CASTILLO Alvarado (VIVA) 9.6%, other 43.4%; percent of vote in second round - Bernardo ARÉVALO de León 60.9%, Sandra TORRES 39.1% 2019: Alejandro GIAMMATTEI elected president; percent of vote in first round - Sandra TORRES (UNE) 25.5%, Alejandro GIAMMATTEI (VAMOS) 14%, Edmond MULET (PHG) 11.2%, Thelma CABRERA (MLP) 10.4%, Roberto ARZU (PAN-PODEMOS) 6.1%, other 32.8%; percent of vote in second round - Alejandro GIAMMATTEI 58%, Sandra TORRES 42% |
| Legislative branch | |
| Description | Unicameral Congress of the Republic or Congreso de la Republica (160 seats; 128 members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies in the country's 22 departments and 32 directly elected in a single nationwide constituency by closed party-list proportional representation vote, using the D'Hondt method; members serve 4-year terms) |
| Elections | Last held on 25 June 2023 (next to be held in June 2027) |
| Election results | Percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - VAMOS 39, UNE 28, SEMILLA 23, CABAL 18, Valor-Unionist 12, VIVA 11, TODOS 6, VOS 4, BIEN 4, CREO 3, PPN 3, Victoria 3, Blue 2, Elephant 2, Change 1, Winaq-URNG 1; composition - men 128, women 32, percentage women 20% |
| Judicial branch | |
| Highest court(s) | Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (consists of 13 magistrates, including the court president and organized into 3 chambers); note - the court president also supervises trial judges countrywide; note - the Constitutional Court or Corte de Constitucionalidad of Guatemala resides outside the country's judicial system; its sole purpose is the interpretation of the constitution and to see that the laws and regulations are not superior to the constitution (consists of 5 titular magistrates and 5 substitute magistrates) |
| Judge selection and term of office | Supreme Court magistrates elected by the Congress of the Republic from candidates proposed by the Postulation Committee, an independent body of deans of the country's university law schools, representatives of the country's law associations, and representatives of the Courts of Appeal; magistrates elected for concurrent, renewable 5-year terms; Constitutional Court judges - 1 elected by the Congress of the Republic, 1 by the Supreme Court, 1 by the president of the republic, 1 by the (public) University of San Carlos, and 1 by the Assembly of the College of Attorneys and Notaries; judges elected for renewable, consecutive 5-year terms; the presidency of the court rotates among the magistrates for a single 1-year term |
| Subordinate courts | Appellate Courts of Accounts, Contentious Administrative Tribunal, courts of appeal, first instance courts, child and adolescence courts, minor or peace courts |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | |
| Chief of mission | Ambassador Hugo Eduardo BETETA (since 17 June 2024) |
| Chancery | 2220 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 |
| Telephone | [1] (202) 745-4953 |
| FAX | [1] (202) 745-1908 |
| Email address and website | [email protected] https://estadosunidos.minex.gob.gt/home/home.aspx |
| Consulate(s) general | Atlanta, Chicago, Columbus (OH), Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, Nashville (TN), New York, Oklahoma City, Omaha (NE), Philadelphia, Phoenix, Providence (RI), Raleigh (NC), Rockville (MD), San Francisco, Seattle |
| Consulate(s) | Dallas, Del Rio (TX), Lake Worth (FL), McAllen (TX), Riverhead (NY), San Bernardino (CA), Tucson (AZ) |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | |
| Chief of mission | Ambassador Tobin BRADLEY (since 12 February 2024) |
| Embassy | Avenida Reforma 7-01, Zone 10, Guatemala City |
| Mailing address | 3190 Guatemala Place, Washington DC 20521-3190 |
| Telephone | [502] 2326-4000 |
| FAX | [502] 2326-4654 |
| Email address and website | [email protected] https://gt.usembassy.gov/ |
| National heritage | |
| Total World Heritage Sites | 4 (3 cultural, 1 mixed) |
| Selected World Heritage Site locales | Antigua Guatemala (c); Tikal National Park (m); Archaeological Park and Ruins of Quirigua (c); National Archaeological Park Tak'alik Ab'aj (c) |
Key Political parties and their leaders in Guatemala
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International organization participation
All Important Facts about Guatemala
Want to know more about Guatemala? Check all different factbooks for Guatemala below.
