Guatemala’s first lady starts divorce proceedings to run for President

Summary of story from Al Jazeera, March 22, 2011

Sandra Torres de Colom, Guatemala’s first lady, has now started divorce proceedings so that she can stand in the race to succeed her husband as president (see WVoN story).

Guatemala’s constitution prohibits members of a president’s extended family running for office.

Torres announced earlier this month that she will be the presidential candidate of the governing National Unity for Hope (UNE) party.

The main right-wing opposition candidate, Otto Perez Molina, branded the divorce a ‘fraud’, saying ‘we will not allow them to mock the law with this move’.

The divorce papers cited a mutual desire for separation, despite the incumbent president’s earlier statements that divorce was not an option and that his wife was in fact eligible to run.