Profile: Guatemala's comedian-turned president-elect Jimmy Morales

Former comedian and actor Jimmy Morales will become the new president of Guatemala in January.

Morales' inexperience in public life appeared to have worked in his favor in the race for the presidency as many Guatemalans are fed up with corruption.

Morales, a relative political novice, quickly became the favorite out of 14 candidates with a simple slogan: "Neither corrupt, nor a thief," a message that went to the heart of the problems convulsing the Central American country.

As the candidate of the opposition National Convergence Front (FCN), the 46-year-old handily won a first-round poll in September, as well as Sunday's runoff with a substantial 67.44 percent of the vote.

Being an outsider of the political establishment, Morales is far from progressive and is often described as being right-wing.

Prior to his presidential bid, he made an unsuccessful attempt in a race for the mayor of the small town of Mixco, in the department of Guatemala, in 2011. He came in the third, but went on to be elected the secretary general of the FCN in 2013.

The FCN has been criticized for having close ties with the military, both in terms of financing and party membership, a sensitive issue in a country that was roiled by civil war for more than 30 years, but Morales has denied the allegations and downplayed the military's participation in the party.

Born in Guatemala City on March 18, 1969, Morales studied business administration and theology before going into show business with his brother Sammy, according to a profile on a movie-making site.

The two have hosted a long-running TV comedy program called "Moralejas," a word that refers both to their family surname and to the moral of a story. Morales has also produced and acted in a string of movies. Endi