Mexico vs. Guatemala
Government
| Mexico | Guatemala | |
|---|---|---|
| Country name | conventional long form: United Mexican States conventional short form: Mexico local long form: Estados Unidos Mexicanos local short form: Mexico etymology: named after the capital city, whose name stems from the Mexica, the largest and most powerful branch of the Aztecs; the meaning of the name is uncertain | conventional long form: Republic of Guatemala conventional short form: Guatemala local long form: Republica de Guatemala local short form: Guatemala etymology: the Spanish conquistadors used many native Americans as allies in their conquest of Guatemala; the site of their first capital (established in 1524), a former Maya settlement, was called "Quauhtemallan" by their Nahuatl-speaking Mexican allies, a name that means "land of trees" or "forested land", but which the Spanish pronounced "Guatemala"; the Spanish applied that name to a re founded capital city three years later and eventually it became the name of the country |
| Government type | federal presidential republic | presidential republic |
| Capital | name: Mexico City (Ciudad de Mexico) geographic coordinates: 19 26 N, 99 08 W time difference: UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC, during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins first Sunday in April; ends last Sunday in October note: Mexico has four time zones etymology: named after the Mexica, the largest and most powerful branch of the Aztecs; the meaning of the name is uncertain | name: Guatemala City geographic coordinates: 14 37 N, 90 31 W time difference: UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC, during Standard Time) etymology: the Spanish conquistadors used many native Americans as allies in their conquest of Guatemala; the site of their first capital (established in 1524), a former Maya settlement, was called "Quauhtemallan" by their Nahuatl-speaking Mexican allies, a name that means "land of trees" or "forested land", but which the Spanish pronounced "Guatemala"; the Spanish applied that name to a re founded capital city three years later and eventually it became the name of the country |
| Administrative divisions | 32 states (estados, singular - estado); Aguascalientes, Baja California, Baja California Sur, Campeche, Chiapas, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Colima, Cuidad de Mexico, Durango, Guanajuato, Guerrero, Hidalgo, Jalisco, Mexico, Michoacan, Morelos, Nayarit, Nuevo Leon, Oaxaca, Puebla, Queretaro, Quintana Roo, San Luis Potosi, Sinaloa, Sonora, Tabasco, Tamaulipas, Tlaxcala, Veracruz, Yucatan, Zacatecas | 22 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Alta Verapaz, Baja Verapaz, Chimaltenango, Chiquimula, El Progreso, Escuintla, Guatemala, Huehuetenango, Izabal, Jalapa, Jutiapa, Peten, Quetzaltenango, Quiche, Retalhuleu, Sacatepequez, San Marcos, Santa Rosa, Solola, Suchitepequez, Totonicapan, Zacapa |
| Independence | 16 September 1810 (declared independence from Spain); 27 September 1821 (recognized by Spain) | 15 September 1821 (from Spain) |
| National holiday | Independence Day, 16 September (1810) | Independence Day, 15 September (1821) |
| Constitution | history: several previous; latest approved 5 February 1917 amendments: proposed by the Congress of the Union; passage requires approval by at least two thirds of the members present and approval by a majority of the state legislatures; amended many times, last in 2020 | history: several previous; latest adopted 31 May 1985, effective 14 January 1986; suspended and reinstated in 1994 amendments: proposed by the president of the republic, by agreement of 10 or more deputies of Congress, by the Constitutional Court, or by public petition of at least 5,000 citizens; passage requires at least two-thirds majority vote by the Congress membership and approval by public referendum, referred to as "popular consultation"; constitutional articles such as national sovereignty, the republican form of government, limitations on those seeking the presidency, or presidential tenure cannot be amended; amended 1993 |
| Legal system | civil law system with US constitutional law influence; judicial review of legislative acts | civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory | 18 years of age; universal; note - active duty members of the armed forces and police by law cannot vote and are restricted to their barracks on election day |
| Executive branch | chief of state: President Andres Manuel LOPEZ OBRADOR (since 1 December 2018); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government head of government: President Andres Manuel LOPEZ OBRADOR (since 1 December 2018) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president; note - appointment of attorney general, the head of the Bank of Mexico, and senior treasury officials require consent of the Senate elections/appointments: president directly elected by simple majority popular vote for a single 6-year term; election last held on 1 July 2018 (next to be held in July 2024) election results: 2018: Andres Manuel LOPEZ OBRADOR elected president; percent of vote - Andres Manuel LOPEZ OBRADOR (MORENA) 53.2%, Ricardo ANAYA (PAN) 22.3%, Jose Antonio MEADE Kuribrena (PRI) 16.4%, Jaime RODRIGUEZ Calderon 5.2% (independent), other 2.9% 2012: Enrique PENA NIETO elected president; percent of vote - Enrique PENA NIETO (PRI) 38.2%, Andres Manuel LOPEZ OBRADOR (PRD) 31.6%, Josefina Eugenia VAZQUEZ Mota (PAN) 25.4%, other 4.8% | chief of state: President Alejandro GIAMMATTEI (since 14 January 2020); Vice President Cesar Guillermo CASTILLO Reyes (since 14 January 2020); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government head of government: President Alejandro GIAMMATTEI (since 14 January 2020); Vice President Cesar Guillermo CASTILLO Reyes (since 14 January 2020) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections/appointments: president and vice president directly elected on the same ballot by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 4-year term (not eligible for consecutive terms); election last held on 16 June 2019 with a runoff on 11 August 2019 (next to be held in June 2023) election results: 2019: Alejandro GIAMMATTEI elected president; percent of vote in first round - Sandra TORRES (UNE) 25.54%, Alejandro GIAMMATTEI (VAMOS) 13.95%, Edmond MULET (PHG) 11.21%, Thelma CABRERA (MLP) 10.37%, Roberto ARZU (PAN-PODEMOS) 6.08%; percent of vote in second round - Alejandro GIAMMATTEI (VAMOS) 58%, Sandra TORRES (UNE) 42% 2015: Jimmy Ernesto MORALES Cabrera elected president in second round; percent of vote in first round - Jimmy Ernesto MORALES Cabrera (FNC) 23.9%, Sandra TORRES (UNE) 19.8%, Manuel BALDIZON (LIDER) 19.6%, other 36.7%; percent of vote in second round - Jimmy Ernesto MORALES Cabrera 67.4%, Sandra TORRES 32.6% |
| Legislative branch | description: bicameral National Congress or Congreso de la Union consists of: Senate or Camara de Senadores (128 seats; 96 members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by simple majority vote and 32 directly elected in a single, nationwide constituency by proportional representation vote; members serve 6-year terms) Chamber of Deputies or Camara de Diputados (500 seats; 300 members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote and 200 directly elected in a single, nationwide constituency by proportional representation vote; members serve 3-year terms) elections: Senate - last held on 1 July 2018 (next to be held in July 2024) Chamber of Deputies - last held on 6 June 2021 (next to be held in July 2024) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - MORENA 58, PAN 22, PRI 14, PRD 9, MC 7, PT 7, PES 5, PVEM 5, PNA/PANAL 1; composition - men 65, women 63, percent of women 49.3% Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - MORENA 197, PAN 111, PRI 69, PVEM 44, PT 38, MC 25, PRD 16; composition - NA note: as of the 2018 election, senators will be eligible for a second term and deputies up to 4 consecutive terms | description: unicameral Congress of the Republic or Congreso de la Republica (160 seats; 128 members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies in the country's 22 departments and 32 directly elected in a single nationwide constituency by closed party-list proportional representation vote, using the D'Hondt method; members serve 4-year terms) elections: last held on 16 June 2019 (next to be held on June 2023) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UNE 53, VAMOS 16, UCN 12, VALOR 9, BIEN 8, FCN-NACION 8, SEMILLA 7, TODOS 7, VIVA 7, CREO 6, PHG 6, VICTORIA 4, Winaq 4, PC 3, PU 3, URNG 3, PAN 2, MLP 1, PODEMOS 1; composition - men 129, women 31, percent of women 19.4% |
| Judicial branch | highest courts: Supreme Court of Justice or Suprema Corte de Justicia de la Nacion (consists of the chief justice and 11 justices and organized into civil, criminal, administrative, and labor panels) and the Electoral Tribunal of the Federal Judiciary (organized into the superior court, with 7 judges including the court president, and 5 regional courts, each with 3 judges) judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court justices nominated by the president of the republic and approved by two-thirds vote of the members present in the Senate; justices serve 15-year terms; Electoral Tribunal superior and regional court judges nominated by the Supreme Court and elected by two-thirds vote of members present in the Senate; superior court president elected from among its members to hold office for a 4-year term; other judges of the superior and regional courts serve staggered, 9-year terms subordinate courts: federal level includes circuit, collegiate, and unitary courts; state and district level courts Note: in mid-February 2020, the Mexican president endorsed a bill on judicial reform, which proposes changes to 7 articles of the constitution and the issuance of a new Organic Law on the Judicial Branch of the Federation | highest courts: Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (consists of 13 magistrates, including the court president and organized into 3 chambers); note - the court president also supervises trial judges countrywide; Constitutional Court or Corte de Constitucionalidad (consists of 5 titular magistrates and 5 substitute magistrates) judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court magistrates elected by the Congress of the Republic from candidates proposed by the Postulation Committee, an independent body of deans of the country's university law schools, representatives of the country's law associations, and representatives of the Courts of Appeal; magistrates elected for concurrent, renewable 5-year terms; Constitutional Court judges - 1 elected by the Congress of the Republic, 1 by the Supreme Court, 1 by the president of the republic, 1 by the (public) University of San Carlos, and 1 by the Assembly of the College of Attorneys and Notaries; judges elected for renewable, consecutive 5-year terms; the presidency of the court rotates among the magistrates for a single 1-year term subordinate courts: numerous first instance and appellate courts |
| Political parties and leaders | Citizen's Movement (Movimiento Ciudadano) or MC [Clemente CASTANEDA] Institutional Revolutionary Party (Partido Revolucionario Institucional) or PRI [Claudia RUIZ Massieu] It's For Mexico (Va Por Mexico) - alliance that includes PAN, PRI, PRD Labor Party (Partido del Trabajo) or PT [Alberto ANAYA Gutierrez] Mexican Green Ecological Party (Partido Verde Ecologista de Mexico) or PVEM [Carlos Alberto PUENTE Salas] Movement for National Regeneration (Movimiento Regeneracion Nacional) or MORENA [Andres Manuel LOPEZ Obrador] National Action Party (Partido Accion Nacional) or PAN [Damian ZEPEDA Vidales] Party of the Democratic Revolution (Partido de la Revolucion Democratica) or PRD [Manuel GRANADOS] Together We Make History (Juntos Hacemos Historia) - alliance that includes MORENA, PT, PVEM | Bienestar Nacional or BIEN [Alfonso PORTILLO and Evelyn MORATAYA] Citizen Alliance or AC Citizen Prosperity or PC [Dami Anita Elizabeth KRISTENSON Sales] Commitment, Renewal, and Order or CREO [Roberto GONZALEZ Diaz-Duran] Convergence [Sandra MORAN] Encounter for Guatemala or EG [Nineth MONTENEGRO Cottom] Everyone Together for Guatemala or TODOS [Felipe ALEJOS] Force or FUERZA [Mauricio RADFORD] Guatemalan National Revolutionary Unity or URNG-MAIZ or URNG [Gregorio CHAY Laynez] Humanist Party of Guatemala or PHG [Edmond MULET] Movement for the Liberation of Peoples or MLP [Thelma CABRERA] Movimiento Semilla or SEMILLA [Thelma ALDANA] National Advancement Party or PAN [Harald JOHANNESSEN] National Convergence Front or FCN-NACION or FCN [Jimmy MORALES] National Unity for Hope or UNE [Sandra TORRES] Nationalist Change Union or UCN [Mario ESTRADA] Patriotic Party or PP PODEMOS [Jose Raul VIRGIL Arias] Political Movement Winaq or Winaq [Sonia GUTIERREZ Raguay] Reform Movement or MR Renewed Democratic Liberty or LIDER (dissolved mid-February 2016) TODOS [Felipe ALEJOS] Unionista Party or PU [Alvaro ARZU Escobar] Value or VALOR [Zury RIOS] Vamos por una Guatemala Diferente or VAMOS [Alejandro GIAMMATTEI] Victory or VICTORIA [Amilcar RIVERA] Vision with Values or VIVA [Armando Damian CASTILLO Alvarado] note: parties represented in the last election, but have since dissolved - FCN (2017), LIDER (2016), and PP (2017) |
| International organization participation | APEC, Australia Group, BCIE, BIS, CAN (observer), Caricom (observer), CD, CDB, CE (observer), CELAC, CSN (observer), EBRD, FAO, FATF, G-3, G-15, G-20, G-24, G-5, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), LAES, LAIA, MIGA, NAFTA, NAM (observer), NEA, NSG, OAS, OECD, OPANAL, OPCW, Pacific Alliance, Paris Club (associate), PCA, SICA (observer), UN, UNASUR (observer), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, Union Latina (observer), UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | BCIE, CACM, CD, CELAC, EITI (compliant country), FAO, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), LAES, LAIA (observer), MIGA, MINUSTAH, MONUSCO, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, Pacific Alliance (observer), PCA, Petrocaribe, SICA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIFIL, Union Latina, UNISFA, UNITAR, UNMISS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Esteban MOCTEZUMA Barragan (since 20 April 2021) chancery: 1911 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20006 telephone: [1] (202) 728-1600 FAX: [1] (202) 728-1698 email address and website: mexembussa@sre.gob.mx https://embamex.sre.gob.mx/eua/index.php/en/ consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, El Paso (TX), Houston, Laredo (TX), Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Nogales (AZ), Phoenix, Sacramento (CA), San Antonio (TX), San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose (CA), San Juan (Puerto Rico) consulate(s): Albuquerque (NM), Boise (ID), Brownsville (TX), Calexico (CA), Del Rio (TX), Detroit, Douglas (AZ), Eagle Pass (TX), Fresno (CA), Indianapolis (IN), Kansas City (MO), Las Vegas, Little Rock (AR), McAllen (TX), Milwaukee (WI), New Orleans, Omaha (NE), Orlando (FL), Oxnard (CA), Philadelphia, Portland (OR), Presidio (TX), Raleigh (NC), Saint Paul (MN), Salt Lake City, San Bernardino (CA), Santa Ana (CA), Seattle, Tucson (AZ), Yuma (AZ); note - Washington DC Consular Section is located in a separate building from the Mexican Embassy and has jurisdiction over DC, parts of Virginia, Maryland, and West Virginia | chief of mission: Ambassador Alfonso Jose QUINONEZ LEMUS (since 17 July 2020) chancery: 2220 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 745-4953 FAX: [1] (202) 745-1908 email address and website: infoembaguateeuu@minex.gob.gt consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Chicago, Del Rio (TX), Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, McAllen (TX), Miami, New York, Oklahoma City, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Providence (RI), Raleigh (NC), San Bernardino (CA), San Francisco, Seattle consulate(s): Lake Worth (FL), Silver Spring (MD), Tucson (AZ) |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Stephanie SYPTAK-RAMNATH (since 20 July 2021) embassy: Paseo de la Reforma 305, Colonia Cuauhtemoc, 06500 Mexico, CDMX mailing address: 8700 Mexico City Place, Washington DC 20521-8700 telephone: (011) [52]-55-5080-2000 FAX: (011) 52-55-5080-2005 email address and website: ACSMexicoCity@state.gov https://mx.usembassy.gov/ consulate(s) general: Ciudad Juarez, Guadalajara, Hermosillo, Matamoros, Merida, Monterrey, Nogales, Nuevo Laredo, Tijuana | chief of mission: Ambassador William W. POPP (since 13 August 2020) embassy: Avenida Reforma 7-01, Zone 10, Guatemala City mailing address: 3190 Guatemala Place, Washington DC 20521-3190 telephone: [502] 2326-4000 FAX: [502] 2326-4654 email address and website: AmCitsGuatemala@state.gov https://gt.usembassy.gov/ |
| Flag description | three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and red; Mexico's coat of arms (an eagle with a snake in its beak perched on a cactus) is centered in the white band; green signifies hope, joy, and love; white represents peace and honesty; red stands for hardiness, bravery, strength, and valor; the coat of arms is derived from a legend that the wandering Aztec people were to settle at a location where they would see an eagle on a cactus eating a snake; the city they founded, Tenochtitlan, is now Mexico City note: similar to the flag of Italy, which is shorter, uses lighter shades of green and red, and does not display anything in its white band | three equal vertical bands of light blue (hoist side), white, and light blue, with the coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms includes a green and red quetzal (the national bird) representing liberty and a scroll bearing the inscription LIBERTAD 15 DE SEPTIEMBRE DE 1821 (the original date of independence from Spain) all superimposed on a pair of crossed rifles signifying Guatemala's willingness to defend itself and a pair of crossed swords representing honor and framed by a laurel wreath symbolizing victory; the blue bands represent the Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea; the white band denotes peace and purity note: one of only two national flags featuring a firearm, the other is Mozambique |
| National anthem | name: "Himno Nacional Mexicano" (National Anthem of Mexico) lyrics/music: Francisco Gonzalez BOCANEGRA/Jaime Nuno ROCA note: adopted 1943, in use since 1854; also known as "Mexicanos, al grito de Guerra" (Mexicans, to the War Cry); according to tradition, Francisco Gonzalez BOCANEGRA, an accomplished poet, was uninterested in submitting lyrics to a national anthem contest; his fiancee locked him in a room and refused to release him until the lyrics were completed | name: "Himno Nacional de Guatemala" (National Anthem of Guatemala) lyrics/music: Jose Joaquin PALMA/Rafael Alvarez OVALLE note: adopted 1897, modified lyrics adopted 1934; Cuban poet Jose Joaquin PALMA anonymously submitted lyrics to a public contest calling for a national anthem; his authorship was not discovered until 1911 |
| International law organization participation | accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction | has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction |
| National symbol(s) | golden eagle; national colors: green, white, red | quetzal (bird); national colors: blue, white |
| Citizenship | citizenship by birth: yes citizenship by descent only: yes dual citizenship recognized: not specified residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years | citizenship by birth: yes citizenship by descent only: yes dual citizenship recognized: yes residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years with no absences of six consecutive months or longer or absences totaling more than a year |
Source: CIA Factbook
