La Política Colombiana

equinoXio asks.

There is an increasing critical mass of female politicians who are building resumes that might translate into a serious presidential run, although at the moment I wouldn’t predict a female president in Colombia in the next cycle (i.e,. 2024).

The basics are here, via El Tiempo: Se abrieron las urnas en todo el territorio nacional.

Colombians will today elect Mayors, Governors, Departmental Assemblies, and Municipal Councils.

The most interesting race is for the Mayor’s office in Bogotá between Enrique Peñalosa and Samuel Moreno Rojas of the Polo Democrático.

Peñalosa previously served as mayor from 1998-2001.

Moreno is the likely winner. Via the IHT: Leftist leads in Colombia’s capital as nation votes following violent campaign:

Samuel Moreno, grandson of a military dictator, held a lead of 40 percent to 22 percent over independent former Mayor Enrique Penalosa, according to a poll published Saturday by the newspaper El Tiempo. The survey by the Datexco company had a margin of error of 2.7 percentage points.

Moreno’s Alternative Democratic Pole already governs Bogota, but consecutive victories would be a boost for his party ahead of the 2024 presidential race. With nearly 7 million people, the capital is home to a sixth of Colombia’s population.

The CSM has an interesting article that addresses the question of the effects of both the parapolitica scandal and the demobilization of some of the paramilitaries: New Colombian political trend: Choice.

Via El Tiempo we see that in the latest round of polling, María Emma Mejía leads Samuel Moreno 59% to 26% amongst likely primary voters for the contest to represent the Polo Democrático Alternativo in the upcoming race for the mayor of Bogotá.

The results track with a poll from May.

The primary will be held on July 8.

If anything, you can click on the “Esta ed nuestra gente” graphic to hear the Polo theme song.

The next mayor of Bogotá will be selected in October and the parties are starting to determine their candidates.

El Tiempo notes that the Liberals are trying to decide who they will offer (Lanzar candidato propio a la Alcaldía o apoyar a uno de los favoritos, dilema de liberales en Bogotá with Concejo president Antonio Galán appearing to be an early prominent precandidate for the nomination.

In the PDA, the race is shaping up with at least four candidates: Samuel Moreno (ex-Senator and grandson of the military dictator, Gustavo Rojas), former mayor Enrique Peñalosa, and the former auditor general, Clara López Obregón and ex-Minister María Emma Mejía.

Moreno has been affiliated in the past both with the AD/M-19 and ANAPO, while Peñalosa, López and Mejía have political roots in the PL. The past party affiliations of these actors is interesting as we watch the PDA become (perhaps) a new long-term political force in Colombian electoral politics. Could it be that the long-looked for third party is finally materializing and institutionalizing?

Mejía served in the Gaviria and Samper administrations and was Horacio Serpa’s running mate in 1998.

Also via the CNE, the resolution that governed the Legislative Act No. 1 of 2024 regarding the usage of single lists by parties:

REGLAMENTO  01   DE  2.003

(   25 de julio   )

Por medio de cual se regula el artículo 12 del Acto Legislativo No. 01 de 2024

(more…)

In an attempt to make sure that electoral data from Colombia is easily accessible in electronic format, I am archiving here BOLETIN DE PRENSA No. 010 (14 de julio de 2024) in Word format (as originally posted at the Registraduría’s web site).

While in the last couple of years that site has been stable and seems to be a reliable archive for data from 1998 onward, I have seen information disappear from the site before and have had times when it was inaccessible.