1966 Guatemalan general election

General elections were held in Guatemala on 6 March 1966.^[1] After no candidate received 50% or more of the national vote, Julio César Méndez Montenegro was elected President by Congress on 5 May.^[2] In the Congressional elections, the Revolutionary Party won 28 of the 54 seats. Voter turnout was 56.27% in the presidential election and 55.01% in the Congressional elections. Despite historical odds he faced, left-of-centre Méndez, a former law professor who held the rank of civilian, would be successfully be elected and sworn in as President of Guatemala, which had at this point been long led by military government since its independence in 1847.^[3]

Results[]

President[]


Candidate		Party	Popular vote		Congress vote
Candidate		Party	Votes	%	Votes	%
	Julio César Méndez Montenegro	Revolutionary Party	209,204	44.78	35	64.81
		Institutional Democratic Party	148,025	31.68	19	35.19
		National Liberation Movement	109,981	23.54
Total			467,210	100.00	54	100.00

Valid votes			467,210	87.94	54	100.00
Invalid/blank votes			64,060	12.06	0	0.00
Total votes			531,270	100.00	54	100.00
Registered voters/turnout			944,170	56.27	55	98.18
Source: Nohlen, Dombrowski

Congress[]


Party		Votes	%	Seats	+/–
	Revolutionary Party	192,366	44.07	29	+23
	Institutional Democratic Party	138,873	31.81	21	New
	National Liberation Movement	105,306	24.12	5	+5
Total		436,545	100.00	55	–11

Valid votes		436,545	84.05
Invalid/blank votes		82,848	15.95
Total votes		519,393	100.00
Registered voters/turnout		944,170	55.01
Source: Nohlen

References[]

^ Dieter Nohlen (2005) Elections in the Americas: A data handbook, Volume I, p323 ISBN 978-0-19-928357-6
^ John Dombrowski (1970) Area Handbook for Guatemala p172
^ "Guatemala: Against the Odds". Time Magazine. July 8, 1966. Retrieved June 12, 2021.

Bibliography[]

Guía del organismo legislativo República de Guatemala. Preparada por el Instituto Nacional de Administración para el Desarrollo, Dobierno de la República. 1968.
Villagrán Kramer, Francisco. Biografía política de Guatemala: años de guerra y años de paz. FLACSO-Guatemala, 2004.

[N1-1] Dieter Nohlen (2005) Elections in the Americas: A data handbook, Volume I, p323 ISBN 978-0-19-928357-6

[2] John Dombrowski (1970) Area Handbook for Guatemala p172

[3] "Guatemala: Against the Odds". Time Magazine. July 8, 1966. Retrieved June 12, 2021.

[1]

[2]

[3]

v t Elections and referendums in Guatemala
Presidential elections	1873 1880 1892 1898 1904 1910 1916 1920 1926 1931 1944 1950 1954 1957 1958 1966 1970 1974 1978 1982 1985 1990–91 1995–96 1999 2003 2007 2011 2015 2019 2023
Parliamentary elections	1873 1880 1923 1925 1926 1927 1929 1931 1935 1944 (Nov) 1944 (Dec) 1947 1948 1950 1953 1954 1955 1957 1958 1959 1961 1964 1966 1970 1974 1978 1982 1984 1985 1990 1994 1995 1999 2003 2007 2011 2015 2019 2023
Local elections
Referendums	1935 1994 1999 2018
See also: Elections in the Federal Republic of Central America