Following the March 7 elections which were widely seen as rigged in favor of the government-backed candidate Angel Anibal Guevara, dissatisfied junior army and air force officers who wanted free elections and a civilian president began planning a coup to prevent Anibal's rise to power, who was scheduled to be inaugurated as president on July 1.

[1] About 19 military officers, along with Lionel Sisniga Otero, Vice-presidential candidate for the National Liberation Movement (MLN) in the March elections, participated in the plotting of the coup attempt for eight days.

[1] Following the successful coup attempt, General Efraín Ríos Montt was summoned to the National Palace, chosen to lead as he was once the Military Academy's dean and thus respected by many in the army.

"[4] Unable to gain the support of key power holders in Guatemala, such as wealthy landowners, conservative politicians, and army officers, he was deposed on August 8, 1983, by defense minister General Meíja Víctores.

[6] Contributing factors to his downfall included his erratic behavior and religious zealotry, a declining economy, and a deteriorating human rights record.