Samuel Pérez Álvarez

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Pérez and the second or maternal family name is Álvarez.

Samuel Pérez Álvarez
Official portrait, 2020
President of the Congress of Guatemala
In office 14 January 2024 – 19 January 2024
Preceded by	Shirley Rivera
Succeeded by	Nery Ramos
Member of the Congress of Guatemala
Incumbent
Assumed office 14 January 2020
Constituency	Guatemala City
Personal details
Born	(1992-08-27) 27 August 1992 (age 32) Guatemala City
Political party	Movimiento Semilla[1]
Parent	Samuel Pérez-Attías
Alma mater	Rafael Landívar University

Samuel Andrés Pérez Álvarez (born 27 August 1992) is a Guatemalan economist and politician who served as the president of the Congress of Guatemala in January 2024.^[2] A member of the political party Semilla, he has been a member of Congress since January 2020.^[3]

Personal life

The International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala presented a case of espionage and illegal wiretapping in 2019, allegedly requested by the then Minister of Economy, Acisclo Valladares Urruela, against members of the Semilla, including Lucrecia Hernández Mack, Patricia Orantes and Pérez.^[4] The process was archived in 2023.^[5]

Pérez was re-elected to Congress in 2023. A nine-hour delay of the inauguration of president-elect Bernardo Arévalo and Vice-President-elect Karin Herrera caused by a delay of the inauguration of incoming deputies, due to a judicial order earlier in the day by the Constitutional Court stripping Semilla of party status. Led by Pérez, the Semilla deputies negotiated a deal to be recognized as a bloc in Congress and elect Semilla deputies to congressional leadership, including the Board of Directors and the Debate Board. The deal secured a majority of 92 votes against a rival bid by Shirley Rivera, and Pérez was elected president of the Board. The Board members were elected and sworn in minutes before midnight, which then allowed for Congress to proceed with the inauguration of Arévalo and Herrera minutes after the constitutional deadline of midnight, which was officiated by Pérez as president of Congress. Pérez is the youngest person to take office as President of Congress.^[6]

References

1. "Comité Ejecutivo Nacional". Movimiento Semilla. 2019. Retrieved 25 Oct 2021.
2. Hora, Redacción La (2024-01-15). "Con 92 votos, planilla de Samuel Pérez presidirá el Congreso en el 2024". La Hora (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-01-15.
3. "Diputados/ Samuel Andrés Pérez Alvarez". Congreso de la República. Retrieved 25 Oct 2021.
4. Quino, Hedy (30 August 2019). "Semilla podría accionar por nuevo caso que involucra a Acisclo Valladares". La Hora (in Spanish). Retrieved 13 September 2023.
5. "Sala cierra investigación por espionaje contra el exministro de Economía Acisclo Valladares Urruela". Prensa Libre (in Spanish). 8 May 2023. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
6. "Samuel Pérez es el nuevo presidente del Congreso y Semilla vuelve a ser bancada" (in Spanish). 2024-01-14. Retrieved 2024-01-15.