Elections: Colombia elected president, with left favorite for the first time

For the first time in its history, The Colombian left is heading to win the presidential election. Former guerrilla and senator Gustavo Petro is the best position candidate for Sunday’s vote, in which the country chooses Iván Duque’s successor, who left the post with strong rejection.

The left turn is based on a strong erosion of the right to power and the social unrest that revealed the wave of widespread protests that rocked the country with the so -called National Strike of 2021, which lasted from April last year until the beginning of 2022.

Petro, 62, was widely dominant in the goal of voting in his third attempt to reach the presidency, but all indications are that will not have enough margin to avoid the ballot of June 19.

Federico Gutiérrez (47) and Rodolfo Hernández (77), the first candidates for a right-wing coalition and associated with the ruling party; the second millionaire outsider, emerges as his likely rivals in the second round, according to polls.

If expectations are met,the left will achieve the best electoral result in this country of 50 million inhabitants, historically ruled by elites and plagued by drug trafficking and increasing violence, despite a peace agreement in 2016 with the dissolved FARC guerrillas.

Petro, who laid down his weapons in 1990 after the demobilization of the M-19, the nationalist rebel group of which he was a member for 12 years, reflects on the devastation. “There are two options really: keep things as they are in Colombia or change “he assured.

Regarding the end of this polarized campaign, Gutiérrez aligned himself with the desire for reforms: “I will call on all sectors to change Colombia because it needs change, but that change must be safe. “

“In the last four years, inequality and levels of poverty, discord and discontent have deepened, and Petro has been able to read and interpret and connect with voters,” said academic analyst Daniel García-Peña of the AFP. .

Thus, the choice is defined between the radical change proposed by Petro, the moderate proposed by Gutiérrez or the successor of Hernández, who wants to end the corruption he sees everywhere. The three became mayors of Bogotá, Medellín and Bucaramanga, respectively. The column is being completed by three candidates without any options, including centrist Sergio Fajardo, according to polls.

A country looking for change

None of the favorites defended Duque’s management, very unpopular due to the economic management of the pandemic. Here is added the repressive and violent response given by the government in mass protests in 2019 and 2021, mainly led by young people.

Approximately 39 million Colombians are eligible to vote

The Historic Pact, the coalition led by Petro and Francia Márquez, the charismatic Afro-leader who wants to reach the vice presidency, only got the best result for the left in the legislative elections, although it did not get a majority.

The body that organizes the voting is being questioned by inconsistencies in the preliminary count of those elections, which reduced votes in Petro’s movement. Concerned about fraud, the leftist unsuccessfully requested an external audit of the software used in calculating the votes.

His doubts about the transparency of the process further fueled tension in this campaign, which took place amid much debate and concern for the safety of applicants.

Both Petro and Gutiérrez denounced the threats, after which they stepped up their protection. Mainly leftist, which was necessary Armor yourself with a bulletproof vest and shields around them to climb the platforms in fear of an assassination as in the 20th century, when five hopefuls for the presidency were killed.

Petro’s possible promotion resulted in unusual military intervention in politics, despite the fact that the Constitution prevents them from voting and deliberating.

But it’s not just the nervousness in the troops. Entrepreneurs and the conservative upper-class sector fear Petro will lead the country deep into its plan to suspend contracts for oil exploration, which is responsible for a third of exports (13.5 billion dollars in 2021). .

The senator, who hopes to start the transition to clean energy in this way in the face of the climate emergency, also proposes to reform the public-private pension system and remove the police from the Ministry of Defense.

Gutiérrez, meanwhile, focused on security against advancement of groups funded by drug traffickers, and the rebound in homicides and theft in cities. It was also presented as a guarantee of private property, which was threatened according to him by Petro’s plans.

“For the first time Colombia can elect a president who does not come from traditional politics,” but Petro “does not offer confidence,” said economist Jorge Restrepo, from Javeriana University.

Whoever wins will have to face a country still recovering from pandemic injuries. Poverty reaches 39% of the population, urban unemployment at 17.2% and informality at 43.5%. Corruption and the economic situation are the main concerns of Colombians, according to the company Invamer.

With information from the AFP