Among the titular magistrates is the vote of Julia Marisol Rivera, a magistrate elected by the Higher University Council, led by the rector. His participation has been questioned by the Association of Research and Social Studies (Asies), to protect the credibility of the CC and avoid ethical conflicts.
Judge Rivera was appointed by the majority of members of the Higher University Council (CSU), the Sancarlista body that has been questioned for an apparent lack of legitimacy, by not renewing many of its representatives, who continue to serve with expired appointments without elections being called to renew them or, alternatively, the elections have been held but the new ones are not given office, because they do not sympathize with Mazariegos’ management.
Right now there is no legal text that forces a constitutional magistrate to excuse himself from hearing any issue due to a conflict of interest.
Rise of Mazariegos
Mazariegos was dean of Humanities and rose to the rectorship in the 2022 Usac elections, an event that was flagged as fraudulent by student groups and teachers who could not participate.
Four years later, history seems to repeat itself and the formula is the same: teaching and student groups criticize that through administrative processes voters who put Mazariegos’ re-election at risk were left out.
Since this election, on April 8, the opposition grew, coordinated by the group Usac, Dignidad y Resistencia (Usac-DIRE), made up of students, teachers and graduates of the only public university in the country, who turned their complaints into legal allegations that are still pending in the CC.
Some courts, Courts of Appeal and the CC itself have received legal actions that seek to stop last April’s election, held in a hotel in Antigua Guatemala, Sacatepéquez. On April 17, the CSU ratified the electoral results and the victory of Mazariegos.
They ask for ethics
There have been 12 legal actions presented before the CC, so far, the majority have been rejected or referred to other judicial instances.
Julia Marisol Rivera, head elected by the CSU of Mazariegos in the highest constitutional body, has participated in these decisions. Rivera has also known and voted in his favor for an injunction that questioned his appointment; It was an action presented by Javier Monterroso, who questioned the process in which the CSU had made the appointment of its representatives before the CC.
Through a note @ASIES_GT asks Judge Julia Rivera, appointed by the CSU-USAC to the @CC_Guatemalato stay away from cases where their ethics may be doubted. The note comes after the CC rejected actions for the re-election of Walter Mazariegos as rector of the USAC pic.twitter.com/279bAUJrbu
—Douglas Cuevas (@dcuevas_pl) June 5, 2026
This Friday, June 5, the Association for Research and Social Studies (Asies), through a statement, asks Judge Rivera to stay away from cases that may put professional ethics at risk.
“Public confidence in constitutional courts rests not only on the technical quality of their decisions, but also on the certainty that these are adopted under conditions that guarantee the broadest independence and impartiality possible,” Asies explains.
He adds: “The willingness to voluntarily deviate from matters that may generate reasonable doubts about the impartiality of the judge strengthens the courts, protects the credibility of their resolutions and contributes to preserving citizen confidence in the rule of law. Otherwise, it undermines that necessary confidence.”
Indicates conflict of interest
Lawyer Edwin Orozco, a member of USAC-DIRE, shares the meaning of Asies’ public note, indicating that the judge appointed by the CSU would have to step aside to hear her own cases that involve the people who voted for her for the position.
“In the case of Judge Julia Rivera, the ideal thing to avoid any type of conflict of interest is for her to refrain from knowing about matters related to the USAC, she is even linked to the general secretary of the USAC who is Mazariegos’ right hand man,” indicates the lawyer.
He points out that due to the context, the resolutions around the USAC that bear his signature will leave an atmosphere of doubt. “That she carries the resolutions, which are resolutions that favor Mazariegos, is what causes the most doubts and she is criticized that she is not being impartial.”
Unlike other processes that allow the figure of recusal, in the CC there is no such procedure that seeks to separate judges from those who have doubts about their actions.
“In matters of protection, it is at the discretion of the magistrate to be able to recuse herself; she would have to do so to give transparency to the decisions of the CC, there are four substitutes available,” Indian.
The Department of Social Communication of the CC was consulted if there was any position on the part of Judge Rivera, and they were also asked if they had received more letters in the same sense, but so far they have not responded.
They chain themselves
Meanwhile, a group of young people identified as USAC students stood on the morning of this Friday, June 5, at the entrance of the CC to peacefully demonstrate against the re-election of rector Walter Mazariegos.
The students took this place to make their statement because the CC is pending signing some resolutions of the process, among them two that annul the amparo resolutions that had annulled the April 8 re-election.
USAC students chain themselves at the entrance of the @CC_Guatemala as a protest against the resolutions issued for the election of rector that favor Walter Mazariegos, questioned by social and academic groups of alleged fraud
Photography: Courtesy of Jero Flores pic.twitter.com/V5w1DUbH1P—Douglas Cuevas (@dcuevas_pl) June 5, 2026
Three students chose to chain themselves in front of the CC, without specifying how long they would remain making that statement, which seeks to make a call before the legal actions for the USAC process are finalized.
Until now, Walter Mazariegos or the Usac have not commented on the criticism that weighs on this alleged electoral fraud, nor was it possible to request a position from the Communications Department of the Usac, because there is no communication channel open to the press to communicate with that house of studies.
