1978 Guatemalan general election

General elections were held in Guatemala on 5 March 1978. No candidate received more than 50% of the vote in the presidential election, resulting in Fernando Romeo Lucas García being elected president by Congress with 35 votes, amidst an opposition boycott. The Congressional elections were won by the National Liberation Movement.

1978 Guatemalan general election

5 March 1978

Presidential election

Nominee Romeo Lucas Enrique Peralta Party PID MLN Running mate Francisco Villagrán Héctor Aragón Electoral vote 35 0 Popular vote 262,960 221,223 Percentage 40.33% 33.93%

President before election Kjell Laugerud García MLN President-elect Fernando Romeo Lucas PID–PR–CAO

Results

President

Candidate		Party	Popular vote		Congress vote
			Votes	%	Votes	%
	Fernando Romeo Lucas García	PID–PR–CAO	262,960	40.33	35	100.00
	Enrique Peralta Azurdia	National Liberation Movement	221,223	33.93
	Ricardo Peralta Méndez	DCG–PRA	167,890	25.75
Total			652,073	100.00	35	100.00
Valid votes					35	100.00
Invalid/blank votes					0	0.00
Total votes					35	100.00
Registered voters/turnout			1,785,764	–	60	58.33
Source: Nohlen, ISLA

Congress

Party		Seats	+/–
	National Liberation Movement	20	+4
	Institutional Democratic Party	17	+3
	Revolutionary Party	14	+4
	Guatemalan Christian Democracy	7	–
	Central Aranista Organization	3	–3
Total		61	+1
Source: Nohlen

Bibliography

• Villagrán Kramer, Francisco. Biografía política de Guatemala: años de guerra y años de paz. FLACSO-Guatemala, 2004.
• Political handbook of the world 1978. New York, 1979.