Guatemala Likely To Require Runoff Presidential Election

NPR | By Marie Andrusewicz

Published September 7, 2015 at 6:24 AM EDT

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Television comedian and presidential candidate for the National Front of Convergence party Jimmy Morales, flashes a victory sign to his supporters at his party headquarters in Guatemala City, Sunday night. (AP Photo/Luis Soto)

Early results from Guatemala's presidential election show comedian Jimmy Morales in the lead with 26 percent of the vote.

If no candidate receives a simple victory in the first round, the two top finishers will face each other in a runoff late next month.

With about 79 percent of polling stations reporting, it appears Morales will face either business man Manuel Baldizón or former first lady Sandra Torres.

Baldizón has 18.5 percent of the vote to Torres's 17.7 percent.

There are twelve other candidates in the field.

Voter turnout was a concern since President Otto Pérez Molina was forced to resign last week, under allegations that he had received millions of dollars in bribes.