Quick summary
- President: cannot be re-elected, ever, not even for a later non-consecutive term. Anyone who was President by popular election “no podrá volver a desempeñarlo en ningún caso” — may not hold it again under any circumstances (Art. 187).
- Someone who stood in for the President: barred for life only if they exercised the office “por más de dos años en sustitución del titular” — for more than two years as a substitute (Art. 187).
- Congress deputies (diputados): four-year term, pudiendo ser reelectos — they may be re-elected (Art. 157).
- Mayor, síndicos and councillors: four-year term, pudiendo ser reelectos (Art. 254).
- Limit: Articles 157 and 254 set no maximum number of re-elections for deputies or for the municipal council.
- Can it be amended? The presidential ban, no: Art. 281 makes it unamendable.
- Next general elections: 2027 — see our voting-from-abroad guide.
This is general legal information, not legal advice. For a specific case, consult a Guatemalan abogado y notario (lawyer and notary).
The short answer depends on the office. Guatemala’s Constitution treats the Presidency completely differently from Congress and municipal councils: for the President, the ban on re-election is absolute and shielded from amendment; for deputies and mayors, the constitutional text expressly says they may be re-elected and sets no cap.
Every quotation on this page comes from the annotated edition of the Constitution published by Guatemala’s Instituto de la Defensa Pública Penal (IDPP), Constitución Política de la República de Guatemala con notas de Jurisprudencia de la Corte de Constitucionalidad, updated with rulings issued up to 24 October 2020 (IDPP PDF, consulted on 23 September 2026). Quotations stay in the original Spanish; English glosses sit outside the quotation marks.
Table: who can be re-elected?
| Office | Term | Re-election? | Article |
|---|---|---|---|
| President of the Republic (elected) | Four years, improrrogable (cannot be extended) | No, never — neither consecutive nor non-consecutive | Arts. 184, 187, 281 |
| Someone who exercised the Presidency as a substitute | — | Barred for life if they exercised it for more than two years; Art. 186(b) also bars them from the election held in the same term in which they exercised it | Arts. 186(b), 187 |
| Vice President of the Republic | Same term as the President, on the same ticket | Art. 187 refers to the office of President; for the Vice President, what the Constitution says is in Arts. 186 and 190 (see below) | Arts. 186, 190 |
| Deputy in Congress | Four years | Yes — pudiendo ser reelectos; the article sets no limit | Art. 157 |
| Mayor, síndicos and councillors | Four years | Yes — pudiendo ser reelectos; the article sets no limit | Art. 254 |
The President: Article 187, word for word
The article is headed Prohibición de reelección (prohibition of re-election) and reads:
“La persona que haya desempeñado durante cualquier tiempo el cargo de Presidente de la República por elección popular, o quien la haya ejercido por más de dos años en sustitución del titular, no podrá volver a desempeñarlo en ningún caso”.
“La reelección o la prolongación del período presidencial por cualquier medio, son punibles de conformidad con la ley”. “El mandato que se pretenda ejercer será nulo”.
In English: a person who has held the office of President by popular election for any length of time, or who exercised it for more than two years as a substitute for the office-holder, may not hold it again under any circumstances. Re-election or extending the presidential term by any means is punishable under the law, and a mandate someone attempts to exercise that way is null.
Three things follow from the text:
- Having exercised the presidency by popular election “durante cualquier tiempo” is enough. The ban does not depend on completing the term.
- There is no non-consecutive comeback. The phrase is en ningún caso: there is no waiting period after which a former elected President may run again. Separately, in a case about Article 186(a), the Constitutional Court (case file 1089-2003, ruling of 14/07/2003) observed that Art. 187 is the provision “que en pretérito perfecto prohíbe la reelección de la persona” who has already held the office — written in the past perfect, it looks back at anyone who has ever held it.
- Attempting it has consequences. Re-election or extending the presidential term by any means is punishable under the law, and the mandate someone attempts to exercise is null. Art. 187 does not name the penalty; it refers to the law.
The term itself is also closed: Art. 184 says the President and Vice President are elected by the people “para un período improrrogable de cuatro años” (for a four-year term that cannot be extended), by universal and secret suffrage. If no candidate wins an absolute majority, there is a second round between the top two “dentro de un plazo no mayor de sesenta ni menor de cuarenta y cinco días” — no more than sixty and no fewer than forty-five days later (Art. 184).
What about someone who stood in for the President?
Article 187 treats an elected President and a substitute differently (a substitute such as the Vice President, who under Art. 190 exercises the functions of President in the cases and manner the Constitution establishes):
- Elected President: barred for having held the office durante cualquier tiempo — for any length of time.
- Substitute: barred for life only if they exercised it “por más de dos años en sustitución del titular”.
A second rule applies to anyone exercising, or who has exercised, the office in the current term. Article 186(b) says the following may not run for President or Vice President:
“La persona que ejerza la Presidencia o Vicepresidencia de la República cuando se haga la elección para dicho cargo, o que la hubiere ejercido durante cualquier tiempo dentro del período presidencial en que se celebren las elecciones”.
That is: the person exercising the Presidency or Vice Presidency when the election is held, or who exercised it for any length of time within the presidential term in which the election takes place. So a substitute who served less than two years is not barred for life by Art. 187, but is kept out of the election held within the presidential term in which they exercised the office, by Art. 186(b).
The Vice President: what the text says, and nothing more
Article 190 says the Vice President “Será electo en la misma planilla con el Presidente de la República, en idéntica forma y para igual período” — elected on the same ticket as the President, in the same way and for the same term. Article 186(b), quoted above, bars anyone exercising the Presidency or Vice Presidency when the election is held, or who exercised it for any length of time within the presidential term in which the election takes place, from running for President or Vice President.
Article 187 speaks of the office of President of the Republic. This page does not extend its rule to the Vice President or draw conclusions the text does not state; a question about a specific Vice President’s situation is one for a constitutional lawyer.
The President’s relatives
Article 186(c) also bars from running for President or Vice President “Los parientes dentro del cuarto grado de consanguinidad y segundo de afinidad del Presidente o Vicepresidente de la República, cuando este último se encuentre ejerciendo la Presidencia” — relatives within the fourth degree of blood relationship and second degree by marriage of the President, or of the Vice President when the latter is exercising the Presidency — as well as the relatives of the people covered by clause (a). Clause (a) covers “El caudillo ni los jefes de un golpe de Estado, revolución armada o movimiento similar, que haya alterado el orden constitucional, ni quienes como consecuencia de tales hechos asuman la Jefatura de Gobierno” — the caudillo and the leaders of a coup d’état, armed revolution or similar movement that has altered the constitutional order, and anyone who takes over as head of government as a result of those events.
In a case about this Article 186(c) bar on relatives, the Constitutional Court (case file 1584-2019, ruling of 13/5/2019) referred to “la justificación y la utilidad de la norma prohibitiva, así como su carácter pétreo” — the justification and usefulness of the prohibition and its set-in-stone character.
Could the Constitution be amended to allow presidential re-election?
No. Article 281 is headed Artículos no reformables (unamendable articles) and says: “En ningún caso podrán reformarse los artículos 140, 141, 165 inciso g), 186 y 187” — Articles 140, 141, 165(g), 186 and 187 can never be amended — nor, in any form, anything relating to the republican form of government or “al principio de no reelección para el ejercicio de la Presidencia de la República” (to the principle of no re-election for the Presidency), nor may the articles establishing alternation in the Presidency be weakened or suspended.
Note that Art. 281 protects both Art. 187 (the re-election ban) and Art. 186 (the bars on running for President or Vice President).
Article 136(f) also makes defending that principle a citizen’s duty: among citizens’ rights and duties is to “Defender el principio de alternabilidad y no reelección en el ejercicio de la Presidencia de la República”.
Congress deputies: Article 157
Article 157 (amended by Acuerdo Legislativo 18-93, ratified in the popular referendum of 30 January 1994) says legislative power belongs to Congress, made up of deputies elected directly by the people through universal and secret suffrage, via electoral districts and a national list, “para un período de cuatro años, pudiendo ser reelectos” — for a four-year term, and they may be re-elected.
The article sets no maximum number of re-elections. This page covers the Constitution only: we did not review the Ley Electoral y de Partidos Políticos or other rules on candidate registration, so we make no claim either way about conditions any other law may set.
Mayors and municipal councils: Article 254
Article 254 (also amended by Acuerdo Legislativo 18-93) says municipal government is exercised by a council “el cual se integra con el alcalde, los síndicos y concejales” — made up of the mayor, the síndicos and the councillors — elected directly by universal and secret suffrage “para un período de cuatro años pudiendo ser reelectos”.
As with deputies, the article sets no limit on the number of terms, and it applies to the whole council: mayor, síndicos and councillors.
Why the difference
Among the offices this page covers, the Constitution ties the no-re-election rule to one only: the Presidency of the Republic. It appears in Art. 136(f) (citizen’s duty), Art. 187 (the ban) and Art. 281 (unamendable). For deputies and mayors the Constitution does the opposite and expressly writes pudiendo ser reelectos. That contrast is the answer to the question.
The Constitution does bar re-election for some offices that are not chosen by popular vote. One example is the Comptroller General (Contralor General de Cuentas), who is elected by Congress: Art. 233 says “En ningún caso el Contralor General de Cuentas podrá ser reelecto”. Its reach differs from the presidential ban: according to the Constitutional Court (case file 5851-2014, ruling of 24/06/2015), the prohibition “alude únicamente a la persona que ejerció el cargo de Contralor General de Cuentas en el período constitucional inmediato anterior a la elección, es decir, a quien en el momento en que se verifica la elección y posterior designación funge en tal cargo, no así a quien lo haya ejercido con antelación en cualquier tiempo” — it reaches only whoever holds the office at the time of the election, not someone who held it at any earlier time. Those offices are outside the scope of this page.
The 2027 general elections
Guatemala’s next general elections are in 2027. If you plan to vote, these guides cover the procedures:
- Vote from the USA in Guatemala’s 2027 elections
- TSE voter registration
- TSE migrant vote from the USA
- Change your electoral address
This page gives no voting dates; for those, see the voting-from-abroad guide linked above.
Notice
This page reports the text of the Constitution and Constitutional Court case notes as printed in the IDPP edition. It does not comment on any candidacy or any individual politician. It is not legal advice: for a specific case, consult a Guatemalan abogado y notario.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can the president of Guatemala be re-elected?
No. Article 187 of the Constitution says that a person who has held the office of President by popular election ‘durante cualquier tiempo’ (for any length of time) cannot hold it again ’en ningún caso’ (under any circumstances). It does not matter whether the later term would be consecutive or years later: someone elected President can never be President again. The same article adds that re-election or extending the presidential term by any means is punishable under the law, and that any mandate someone attempts to exercise that way is null.
Can a former president run again after sitting out a term?
No. Article 187 makes no distinction between immediate and non-consecutive re-election; the ban applies ’en ningún caso’. That ’en ningún caso’ is what rules out any waiting period. Separately, in a case about Article 186(a), the Constitutional Court (case file 1089-2003, ruling of 14/07/2003) observed that Art. 187 is written in the past perfect tense (‘haya desempeñado’), so the ban reaches every person who has already exercised the office by popular election (a substitute is barred only if they exercised it for more than two years).
What about someone who stood in for the President, such as the Vice President?
Under Article 187, a person who exercised the Presidency as a substitute for the office-holder is barred for life only if they exercised it ‘por más de dos años’ (for more than two years). Separately, Article 186(b) bars from running for President or Vice President anyone exercising the Presidency or Vice Presidency when the election is held, or who exercised it for any length of time within the presidential term in which the election takes place.
How many times can a member of Congress be re-elected in Guatemala?
Article 157 of the Constitution says deputies are elected ‘para un período de cuatro años, pudiendo ser reelectos’ (for a four-year term, and may be re-elected), and that article sets no maximum number of re-elections. This page covers the Constitution only; we did not review other laws.
Can a mayor be re-elected in Guatemala?
Yes. Article 254 of the Constitution says the municipal council is made up of the mayor, the síndicos and the councillors, elected ‘para un período de cuatro años pudiendo ser reelectos’. That article sets no limit on the number of terms.
Could the Constitution be amended to allow presidential re-election?
Not through the amendment process. Article 281 says Articles 140, 141, 165(g), 186 and 187 can never be amended, nor anything relating to the principle of no re-election for the Presidency of the Republic.
When are Guatemala's next general elections?
The next general elections are in 2027. For registration and voting from the United States, see the 2027 elections section on this page, which links to our voting-from-abroad guide.
