Encuentro por Guatemala

{{Infobox political party

| name = Encounter for Guatemala

| native_name = Encuentro por Guatemala

| logo = EGLogo.svg

| colorcode = {{party color|Encuentro por Guatemala}}

| leader = Nineth Montenegro

| chairperson =

| president =

| secretary_general = Nineth Montenegro

| spokesperson =

| founder =

| leader1_title =

| leader1_name =

| slogan =

| split = New Nation Alternative{{cite web|url=https://www.prensalibre.com/tribuna/plus/los-partidos-como-propiedades-estos-son-los-duenos-de-las-organizaciones-politicas/ |publisher=Prensa Libre|author=Manuel Hernández Mayén|title=Estos son los "dueños" o "caciques" de los partidos políticos inscritos en el TSE|date=29 April 2019}}

| founded = {{Start date|2007}}

| dissolved = February 27, 2020{{cite web|url=https://www.prensalibre.com/guatemala/politica/tse-publica-cancelacion-de-seis-partidos-politicos/ |publisher=Prensa Libre|title=TSE publica cancelación de seis partidos políticos }}

| ideology = Ethnic interests of the Indigenous
Social democracy{{cite web |url=https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/ATAG/2015/564395/EPRS_ATA(2015)564395_EN.pdf |title=Guatemala: Political parties |last=Casalprim |first=Eva |date=July 2015 |website=European Parliament |publisher=European Parliamentary Research Service |access-date=18 September 2022}}
Progressivism{{cite web|url=https://www.plazapublica.com.gt/content/mejoro-la-izquierda-o-el-voto-contra-el-establishment-o-que |publisher=Plaza Pública|title=¿Mejoró la izquierda o el voto contra el «establishment» o qué?|date=3 July 2019}}{{cite web|url=https://www.pagina12.com.ar/diario/elmundo/4-89982-2007-08-20.html |publisher=Página 12|title=Una campaña sucia de sangre|date=2007-08-20}}

| position = Centre-left{{Cite web|url=https://bora.uib.no/bora-xmlui/bitstream/handle/1956/15345/dr-thesis-2016-Maren-Christensen-Bjune.pdf?sequence=3&isAllowed=y|page=163|title=Religious change and political continuity |date=2016|publisher=University of Bergen|author=Maren Christensen Bjune|access-date=19 January 2023}}
Before 2011:
Centre-left{{Cite web|url=https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=10485&context=noticen|title=Presidential Run For Rioberta Menchu Would Alter The Political Equation In Guatamala|author= Mike Leffert |date=22 February 2007|website=University of New Mexico|access-date=19 January 2023}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.laprensani.com/2007/05/28/internacionales/1301977-guatemala-asesinan-a-dos-activistas-politicos|title=Guatemala: asesinan a dos activistas políticos|date=28 May 2007|website=La Prensa|access-date=19 January 2023|language=Spanish}} to left-wing{{Cite web|url=https://nuso.org/articulo/rigoberta-menchu-und-was-die-nachste-regierung-guatemalas-erwartet/|title= Rigoberta Menchú und was die nächste Regierung Guatemalas erwartet |author= Carlos Aníbal Martínez |date=January 2007|website=Nueva Sociedad / Democracia y política en América Latina|access-date=16 January 2023|language=German}}{{Cite web|url=https://carleton.ca/cifp/wp-content/uploads/1036-1.pdf|page=8|title=Guatemala |date=September 2007|work=Carleton University|access-date=19 January 2023}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.soy502.com/articulo/historia-repite-28-partidos-politicos-horizonte|title=La historia se repite: 28 partidos políticos en el horizonte |date=10 March 2015|work=Soy502|access-date=19 January 2023}}

| national =

| affiliation1_title =

| affiliation1 =

| colors = Red and Green

| blank1_title =

| blank1 =

| seats1_title = Congress

| seats1 = {{Composition bar|0|160|hex={{party color|Encuentro por Guatemala}}}}

| symbol =

| flag =

| website = http://encuentro.gt/

| country = Guatemala

| footnotes =

}}

Encuentro por Guatemala ("EG")– a Spanish name variously translated as "Encounter for Guatemala" (for example, by the BBC[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6384845.stm BBC NEWS | Americas | Menchu seeks Guatemala presidency] and CNN[http://edition.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/americas/08/31/guatemala.debate/ Crime, immigration issues dominate Guatemala debate - CNN.com]), or as "Together for Guatemala" (Reuters[http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N05273313.htm Reuters AlertNet - Ex-general gains in Guatemala election polls]) – was a Guatemalan political party; encuentro may also translate as "gathering", "meeting", or "union".

Its logo is a red circle with four green dots on its circumference, representing the coming together of the four peoples that make up the Guatemalan nationality: Mayas, Garifunas, Xincas and Ladinos.

History

=Foundation and early splits=

The party was founded in 2007, in the run-up to that year's 9 September general election. Its presidential candidate was Rigoberta Menchú, the Nobel Peace Prize-winning indigenous activist, running on a ticket with businessman Luis Fernando Montenegro as her vice-presidential hopeful. They secured 3.09% of the popular vote.

In the Congressional election held on the same day, the party fared somewhat better, receiving 6.17% of the popular vote, which was enough to secure them four national-list deputies in Congress for the 2008–12 legislative period: Armando Sánchez Gómez, Rodolfo Aníbal García, Nineth Montenegro and Otilia Lux. Subsequently, only Nineth Montenegro has remained with the party; the other three deputies have left Encounter for Guatemala to operate as independents. Rodolfo Aníbal García has since formed a new political party, the New Republic Movement (Movimiento Nueva República (MNR)). Rigoberta Menchú has gone on to form the Winaq political party. Both MNR and Winaq participated in the 2011 elections as part of the Broad Leftist Front (Frente Amplio de Izquierda).

=Shift to the right=

For the 2011 elections, Encuentro formed a political alliance with center-right ViVa, another political party; its presidential and vice-presidential candidates were Harold Caballeros and Efraín Medina, with party leader Nineth Montenegro leading the list of legislative candidates.

The alliance between the two parties eventually broke up and the party ran on its own again in 2015, receiving 6.35% of the national vote for the legislature, while its presidential ticket with José Ángel López and Peter Lamport fared significantly worse garnering only 0.91% of the vote.

=Electoral decline and closure=

In the 2019 election, the party chose Manfredo Marroquín as its presidential candidate. He came in fourteenth place with 1.15% of the vote. In the Legislative Election, the party won 1.79% of the vote and no seats in Congress. Having failed to secure the minimum of 5% of the popular vote or one seat in Congress, Encuentro por Guatemala forfeited its registration as a party.

Election results

= Presidential elections =

class="wikitable" style="text-align:left;"
rowspan=2 |Election

! colspan=2 |Candidates

! colspan=2 |First round

! colspan=2 |Second round

! rowspan=2 |Status

President

! Vice President

! Votes

! %

! Votes

! %

2007{{efn|Run in coalition with Winaq.}}

| Rigoberta Menchú

| Luis Fernando Montenegro

| 100,365

| 3.06 (#7)

| style="background: silver" | -

| style="background: silver" | -

| {{no2|Lost}}

2011{{efn|Run in coalition with ViVa.}}

| Harold Caballeros

| Efraín Medina

| 277,365

| 6.23 (#5)

| style="background: silver" | -

| style="background: silver" | -

| {{no2|Lost}}

2015

| José Ángel López

| Peter Lamport

| 43,916

| 0.91 (#12)

| style="background: silver" | -

| style="background: silver" | -

| {{no2|Lost}}

2019

| Manfredo Marroquín

| Oscar Adolfo Morales

| 50,594

| 1.16 (#14)

| style="background: silver" | -

| style="background: silver" | -

| {{no2|Lost}}

{{Notelist}}

= Legislative elections =

class="wikitable" style="text-align:left;"
Election

! Votes

! %

! Seats

! +/–

! Status

2007{{efn|Run in coalition with Winaq.}}

| 194,809

| 6.18 (#5)

| {{composition bar|4|158|hex={{party color|Encuentro por Guatemala}}}}

| New

| {{no2|Opposition}}

2011{{efn|Run in coalition with ViVa.}}

| 345,709

| 7.88 (#6)

| {{composition bar|6|158|hex={{party color|Encuentro por Guatemala}}}}

| {{increase}} 2

| {{no2|Opposition}}

2015

| 289,646

| 6.35 (#6)

| {{composition bar|7|158|hex={{party color|Encuentro por Guatemala}}}}

| {{increase}} 1

| {{no2|Opposition}}

2019

| 71,668

| 1.78 (#20)

| {{composition bar|0|160|hex={{party color|Encuentro por Guatemala}}}}

| {{decrease}} 7

| {{no|Extra-parliamentary}}

{{Notelist}}

References

{{Reflist}}