Guatemala has a presidential representative democratic republic form of government, officially a constitutional republic under its 1985 Constitution. The President of Guatemala serves as both the head of state and head of government and is elected by popular vote for a single four-year term, with no immediate re-election allowed. The government operates under a multi-party system. The government is divided into three branches with a clear separation of powers:

• Executive branch : Headed by the President, who oversees the government and acts as Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces.
• Legislative branch : A unicameral Congress of the Republic with 160 members elected for four-year terms, partly by departmental constituencies and partly by nationwide proportional representation.
• Judicial branch : Independent from the executive and legislative branches, consisting mainly of the Supreme Court of Justice and the Constitutional Court. The Constitutional Court has five judges elected by different bodies including the President, Congress, Supreme Court, a university council, and the Bar Association, all serving five-year terms.

Guatemala’s political system has been influenced by its history of civil war and military influence, but since the late 1990s, it has seen improvements in civilian control and anti-corruption efforts, although democratic backsliding has been noted since 2017

. In summary, Guatemala is a constitutional presidential republic with a separation of powers among executive, legislative, and judicial branches, governed under a democratic framework with elected representatives.