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WORLD NEWS Tuesday 21 June 2022
Colombia picks 1st leftist president in tight runoff contest

By REGINA GARCIA CANO bly going to be disappoint-
and ASTRID SUAREZ ed pretty quickly when he
Associated Press can’t move things right
BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — away,” said Adam Isacson,
Colombia will be governed an expert on Colombia at
by a leftist president for the the Washington Office on
first time after former rebel Latin America think tank.
Gustavo Petro narrowly “I think you might find a situ-
defeated a real estate ty- ation where he either has to
coon in a runoff election strike some deals and give
that underscored people’s up a lot of his programs just
disgust with the country’s to get some things passed
traditional politicians. or the whole country could
Petro’s third attempt to win be gridlocked,” Isacson
the presidency earned him added.
50.48% of the votes Sun- Petro is willing to resume
day, while political outsider diplomatic relations with
Rodolfo Hernández got Venezuela, which were
47.26%, according to re- halted in 2019. He also
sults released by election wants to make changes to
authorities. Colombia’s relations with
The election came as Co- the U.S. by seeking a rene-
lombians struggle with ris- gotiation of a free trade
ing inequality, inflation and agreement and new ways
violence factors that led to fight drug trafficking.
voters in the election’s first U.S. Secretary of State Ant-
round last month to pun- ony Blinken said in a state-
ish long-governing centrist ment that the Biden ad-
and right-leaning politi- Former rebel Gustavo Petro, left, his wife Veronica Alcocer, back center, and his running mate ministration looks forward
cians and pick two outsid- Francia Marquez, celebrate before supporters after winning a runoff presidential election in to working with Petro.
ers for the runoff contest. Bogota, Colombia, Sunday, June 19, 2022. Polls say most Colombi-
Petro’s win in Latin Amer- Associated Press ans believe the country is
ica’s third most populous heading in the wrong di-
nation was more than a rection and disapprove of
defeat of Hernández. running mate, Francia Petro complies with what Hernández both former President Iván Duque, who
It puts an end to Colom- Márquez, 40, is a lawyer was said in his government mayors were in a tight race was not eligible to seek re-
bia’s long stigmatization of and environmental leader plan, that he leads this since they topped four oth- election.
the left for its perceived as- whose opposition to illegal country to greatness, which er candidates in the initial The pandemic set back the
sociation with the country’s mining resulted in threats we need so much, and May 29 election. Neither country’s anti-poverty ef-
half century of armed con- and a grenade attack in that (he) ends corruption,” got enough votes to win forts by at least a decade.
flict. The president-elect 2019. said Karin Ardila García, outright and headed into Official figures show that
was once a rebel with the Hernández, whose cam- a Hernández supporter in the runoff. 39% of Colombia’s lived on
now-defunct M-19 move- paign was based on an an- the north-central city of Bu- Petro won 40% of the votes less than $89 a month last
ment and was granted ti-corruption fight, conced- caramanga. “That he does in the initial round and year.
amnesty after being jailed ed his defeat shortly after not lead to communism, to Hernández 28%, but the dif- The rejection of politics as
for his involvement with the results were announced. socialism, to a war where ference quickly narrowed usual “is a reflection of the
group. “I accept the result, as it they continue to kill us in as Hernández began to at- fact that the people are
Petro issued a call for unity should be, if we want our Colombia. ... (H)e does not tract so-called anti-Petrista fed up with the same peo-
during his victory speech institutions to be firm,” he lead us to another Ven- voters. ple as always,” said Nataly
Sunday night and extend- said in a video on social ezuela, Cuba, Argentina, Petro has proposed ambi- Amezquita, a 26-year-old
ed an olive branch to some media. Chile.” tious pension, tax, health civil engineer waiting to
of his harshest critics, saying “I sincerely hope that this About 21.6 million of the 39 and agricultural reforms vote.
all members of the opposi- decision is beneficial for ev- million eligible voters cast a and changes to how Co- “We have to create great-
tion will be welcomed at eryone.” ballot Sunday. Abstention- lombia fights drug cartels er social change. Many
the presidential palace “to Petro’s showing was the ism has been above 40% in and other armed groups. people in the country aren’t
discuss the problems of Co- latest leftist political victory every presidential election But he will have a tough in the best condition.”But
lombia.” in Latin America fueled by since 1990. time delivering on his prom- even the two outsider can-
“From this government that voters’ desire for change. Petro, 62, will be officially ises as he does not have a didates left her cold. She
is beginning there will never Chile, Peru and Honduras declared winner after a majority in Congress, which said she would cast a blank
be political persecution or elected leftist presidents in formal count that will take is key to carrying out re- ballot:
legal persecution, there 2021, and in Brazil former a few days. Historically, the forms. “I don’t like either of the
will only be respect and President Luiz Inácio Lula preliminary results have co- “The people who do sup- two candidates. ... Neither
dialogue,” he said, adding da Silva is leading the polls incided with the final ones. port him have very high of them seems like a good
that he will listen to those for this year’s presidential Several heads of state con- hopes, and they are proba- person to me.”q
who have raised arms as election. gratulated Petro on Sun-
well as to “that silent major- But the results were an im- day. So did a fierce critic,
ity of peasants, Indigenous mediate reason to fret for former President Álvaro
people, women, youth.” some voters whose closest Uribe, who remains a cen-
The vote is also resulting in reference to a leftist gov- tral figure in Colombia’s
Colombia having a Black ernment is the troubled politics.
woman as vice president neighboring Venezuela. Polls ahead of the runoff
for the first time. Petro’s “We hope that Mr. Gustavo had indicated Petro and