Colombia faces a historic moment in 2022. For the first time in history the right wing is not leading in the polls, the left has united behind a coalition called “Historical Pact” and the Center and Center-left has also united in coalition called “Coalition of Hope”. Both are leading in the polls to the 2022 election. The winner of the previous 2018 election was Democratic Center (right wing) but has mainly done things that were not promised and thus there is Democratic Center fatigue. Current president Duque is highly unfavorable and people want change. Before COVID-19 hit, there were riots across the country demanding fair changes to the economic system which is one of the most anti-equality in the world. There will be a minimun of three alliances. The Democratic Center and allies, which represent the establishment and the right and far right. There is a set of candidates from the Democratic Center, Maria del Rosario Guerra Senator from Democratic Center, Paloma Valencia Senator from Democratic Center, Paola Holguin Senator from Democratic Center, 2014 Democratic Center nominee for President Oscar Ivan Zuluaga. Democratic Center allies also have their candidates, Alejandro Char from Radical Change, Dilian Francisca Toro from Party of the U will also participate in the Right wing alliance. Enrique Penalosa, former mayor of Bogota wants to participate too along with Federico Gutierrez. There will also be a primary between the candidates of the Center and Center left called Coalition of Hope. The Coalition of Hope is made by the Green Alliance, Compromise Citizens of Colombia of Sergio Fajardo the 2018 nominee of Coalition Colombia (including Green Alliance), as well as the new party “Dignity” from Senator Jorge Robledo. There are more candidates from this Coalition, former liberal party members Juan Manuel Galan, Juan Fernando Cristo and Former VP Humberto de la Calle. Green Alliance will choose it’s nominee from a set of several polls and then it’s nominee will face Jorge Robledo from Dignity (center left), Sergio Fajardo from Compromise Citizens of Colombia (center/center left), Juan Manuel Galan a former Liberal party senator running as an independent in the intra-party primary and Humberto de la Calle former 2018 Liberal Party nominee for president who will also run as an independent in the intra party primary. The Liberal party officialy will not participate in this alliance. The only party in the alliance who doesn’t have a nominee is the Green Alliance. Which has it’s own set of pre-candidates: Camilo Romero, Ivan Marulanda and Antonio Sanguino. On the side of the left, there is Gustavo Petro from Human Colombia (left wing), he represents the hard left and a populist left, which has had ties with Venezuelan president Hugo Chaves, and has had favorable opinions of Cuba and Venezuelan regimes. Petro might face Alexander Lopez from Alternative Democratic Pole (Left Wing) and has expressed interest in participating in a primary against left wing figures, but he is the most highly visible and popular figure in the left. Those three alliances will participate in the election as for now. As an independent, and without participating in any alliance or coalition, Rodolfo Hernandez, a successful mayor in Bucaramanga, will go alone to the first round of the presidential election. His party “Liga Anticorruption” will have candidates to congress too.
