Early vote count for Guatemala’s presidential election gives no indication of leaders

By SONIA PÉREZ D. and CHRISTOPHER SHERMAN
Associated Press

GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — Electoral workers are slowly tallying ballots across Guatemala, and early counts are giving no indication of which two candidates from a huge field of presidential contenders will advance to a runoff. Voters also cast ballots Sunday in hundreds of congressional and local races. Many Guatemalans had expressed disappointment with their presidential choices after three opposition candidates were excluded by authorities. Early in the count, with about 7% of the votes tallied, null votes led all 22 candidates in the presidential race late Sunday. It was almost certain that no one would win meet the 50% vote threshold for winning outright, so a second round of voting would be held Aug. 20 between the top two finishers.