Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
The Israeli Walla! website: We are running out of stockpiles, our forces are exhausted, and the lives of the captives are in danger. It is time for a ceasefire deal in Gaza.
Several wounded in an Israeli bombardment of a tent in al-Mawasi, south of Khan Younis in the Gaza Strip.
Israeli media: Three wounded, three killed in an ongoing operation in the Gaza Strip.
Al Mayadeen's correspondent in southern Lebanon: Israeli artillery shelling targets the outskirts of the town of Shebaa
Al-Qassam Brigades: The targeting took place at the intersection of 'Street 5' with the western line north of Khan Younis
Al-Qassam Brigades: A NIMR armored personnel carrier carrying an Israeli soldier was targeted with an Al-Yassin missile north of Khan Younis
Israeli media: At least two soldiers killed by anti-tank missile fired at Israeli army forces in the Gaza Strip
Local Syrian sources: Mortar shells fell on more than nine villages in the Sweida countryside
Local Syrian sources: Dozens of dead and wounded have arrived at Sweida hospitals as a result of ongoing clashes at several locations in the western Sweida countryside
Local sources: Civilians, including children and women, were injured in the al-Maqous neighborhood of Sweida, in Syria, as a result of ongoing clashes

Colombian left leads Presidential election race

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: Agencies
  • 29 May 2022 16:28
4 Min Read

Colombia is preparing to open polls for a new presidential election, amid the likelihood of a leftist candidate being elected in a historic move.

  • x
  • Colombians rally as the Presidential elections voting is launched
    Colombians rally as the Presidential elections voting is launched

Colombia opened its polls earlier on Sunday, May 29 for the new presidential elections. The pre-election polls showed that Colombia, through the peoples’ choices, has decided to make a historic change and seeks to elect a leftist Presidential candidate.

Running under the slogan of change, these elections show that Gustavo Petro leads the race to become, if he wins, the first left-wing president in the country's modern history. 39 million voters were invited to cast their votes in 12,000 polling stations throughout Colombia. The people will choose their new president from among 6 candidates. The new president will succeed unpopular conservative president Ivan Duque who’s ineligible for a second term.

The elections are taking place in an atmosphere of extreme political tension. The first term for Duque witnessed no major reforms and was predominantly overshadowed by the pandemic, economic stagnation, mass demonstrations in the cities, and an exacerbation of violence by armed groups in the countryside.

Leftist senator Petro, currently leading the polls, was able to take advantage of the situation and turn it into an opportunity for real change.

“In the end, there are two choices: either we keep what we have, corruption, violence, and hunger, or we make a change to move towards peace, productive progress, and a transparent democracy, calling on citizens to unite ‘for life’,” said Petro.

This is the third time Petro, 62, runs for presidential elections, and several activists from his coalition, Historic Charter, believe that this election will be a turning point for the nation’s benefit. The Vice President candidate running with Petro, Francia Marquez, is a women’s rights and anti-racism activist. These two causes have become the leading points of interest for the people on the coalition’s electoral platform.

In parallel, conservative candidate Federico Gutierrez, former mayor of northwest Medellin, who appears to be receiving about 27% of the votes, presented himself as a defender of "ordinary" Colombians and promised to bring "order and security".

Related News

'Condemn Israel or be complicit in genocide': Colombia's Gustavo Petro

Colombia arrests alleged mastermind behind Uribe assassination plot

Last Friday, Gutierrez stated, "what I want is the unification of Colombia because it needs a change, but this change must of course lead us to safety without endangering the country."

Other than the leftist candidate Petro, Gutierrez is faced with stiff competition from independent candidate Rodolfo Hernandez, a 77-year-old businessman, who adopted populist rhetoric against corruption.

Read more: Fact-checked: Video documenting David Schenker's statements on Lebanon

 

In the event that candidate Petro does not achieve a 50% majority in the first round, there will be a second round of elections on June 19th of this year.

Preparations finalized amid fears of fraud

Amid a deeply polarized election campaign, leftist candidates, Petro and Marquez, have received death threats that necessitated perpetual protection for them through a barrier of bulletproof shields.

The Election Observation Mission, a coalition of NGOs, warned that recent days had revealed "a high level of violence and disinformation on social networks and in the media".

After the discrepancies that had occurred prior to the counting of votes in the legislative elections at the expense of his coalition, Petro expressed his concerns this past Friday about the "lack of guarantees and the occurrence of fraud" in the presidential elections, especially with regard to the program for counting the votes.

Petro’s Historic Coalition is prepared to engage about 69 thousand activists to oversee the electoral process to ensure democratic procession, while Gutierrez planned on having 61,500 activists to oversee the process. There will also be The Organization of American States and the European Union present to oversee the process.

The government deployed an additional 220,000 security personnel throughout the country, bringing the total number to 300,000, tasked with ensuring a peaceful electoral day, supervised by 690,000 observers.

  • Latin America
  • Colombia
  • Bogota
  • Left
  • Presidential elections

Most Read

Hezbollah SG reveals war details on Al Mayadeen for the first time

Hezbollah SG reveals war details on Al Mayadeen for the first time

  • Politics
  • 8 Jul 2025
Major ambush in Gaza kills 6 Israeli troops, injures dozens

Major ambush in Gaza kills 5 Israeli troops, injures 14

  • Politics
  • 8 Jul 2025
Israeli soldiers are seen in Beit Hanoun ahead of an operation by the al-Qassam Brigades, undated (Al-Qassam Brigades Military Media)

'Israel' on blast as media exposes report discrepancies in Gaza ambush

  • Palestine
  • 8 Jul 2025
Yemen Navy sinks ETERNITY C ship, shares footage of operation

Yemen Navy sinks ETERNITY C ship, shares footage of operation

  • Politics
  • 9 Jul 2025

Coverage

All
The Ummah's Martyrs

Read Next

All
The Freedom Flotilla ship Handala as it departs for Gaza, where it aims to break the maritime blockade at a port in Syracuse, Sicily in southern Italy on July 13, 2025. (AFP)
Palestine

Freedom Flotilla's Handala departs Sicily in bid to break Gaza siege

The container ship CMA CGM Laperouse, left, docks at the Georgia Ports Authority's Port of Savannah, Sept. 29, 2021, in Savannah, Ga (AP)
Politics

US shipbuilding woes deepen as tariffs, outdated policies backfire

Gaza war raises ethical questions for ex-Obama, Biden officials
Politics

Mercenary firm tied to Gaza war crimes hires Obama-Biden PR operatives

'Israel' targets children in Gaza collecting water
Palestine

'Israel' strikes Gaza kids fetching water, blames it on 'malfunction'

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS