SHOWDOWN

Conservative Alejandro Giammattei Wins Guatemala Elections on Vow to End Migration Deal

The former surgeon won on a promise to end a controversial migration accord with the Trump administration.

Conservative politician Alejandro Giammattei won the Guatemala presidential election Sunday on a promise he would abolish the migration deal his predecessor made with the Trump administration. The deal reached with Trump aims to turn the Central American country into a buffer zone to stem migration into the U.S., but the president-elect has called it “bad news” and said Guatemala wasn’t ready to cope with a potential jump in asylum seekers. Giammattei has also promised to build what he called an “investment wall” on the border with Mexico to curb migration and has vowed to bring back the death penalty in his country. He beat his center-left rival, Sandra Torres, the country’s former first lady, with nearly 60 percent of the vote. “It will be an immense honor to be president of this country that I love so much,” he said in a victory speech.