Colombia elections: peace accord and, with it, safety of women at ...

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Bogota, Colombia (CNN) Today, Colombians will return to the polls to vote in the second round of the country's presidential elections. Six years after the peace deal between the government of Colombia and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) brought five decades of conflict to an end, voters will choose between two different futures for Colombia.

The fate of the country's historic peace process -- and how it impacts Colombians living amid a fragile truce -- may well be at stake. Both candidates have said they are going to support the implementation of the peace process but the detail of that support isn't always clear. This has understandably made those most impacted by the conflict, who worked hard to broker peace, apprehensive.

The contest has a number of firsts. If 62-year-old former guerrilla Gustavo Petro wins on June 19, he will be Colombia's first leftist leader. Petro won the first round with just over 40% of the vote . In this second round he is running against 77-year old centrist construction magnate Rodolfo Hernández, a populist.

Also for the first time, the running mates for both final-round candidates are Afro-Colombian women. Francia Márquez, a 2018 Goldman Environmental Prize winner with a long history of rural social activism, is on the ticket with Petro. With Hernández is Marelen Castillo Torres , who has spent her professional life in academia. She is currently Academic Vice Chancellor at Universidad Minuto de Dios.

In a country where women's representation at many levels of government is low and Indigenous and Afro-Colombian women are disproportionately affected by violence derived from conflict, the fact that Colombia seems on course to have its first Black vice president is noteworthy.

The two women have taken different roles in the campaigns. Márquez -- who after leading women in her community to protest illegal mining and community eviction has been a public figure in Colombia since the 2010s -- has rallied against the country's political and economic status quo while on the campaign trail. Márquez has long championed women's rights, economic empowerment programs, and access to land for the poor.

Beyond a woman at the right hand of the president, what can Colombians -- and specifically Colombian women who bore the brunt of the Western Hemisphere's longest running armed conflict -- expect from their future leaders?

A history of conflict-related violence

Women in Colombia disproportionately suffered in the 50-plus years of conflict between government forces, guerilla and paramilitary groups. Yet, women also played important roles as peace builders in ending that conflict, and in rebuilding their communities in its aftermath.

Sexual violence was widely used to gain social and territorial control. The most up-to-date data from Colombia's victims' registry documents more than 31,000 cases of sexual violence reported. Millions of women have also been affected by forced displacement, with many taking on economic responsibility for their families after their husbands were killed, and they had to flee their homes and communities.

Studies have shown that displaced women face high risk of gender-based violence, including sexual violence. As a direct result of the gendered fallout of the conflict, gender equality featured prominently in the peace accords -- as did the recognition of the need for racial and ethnic justice

Women played important roles during the negotiations, even forming a 'Gender Sub-commission' , a unique space made up of representatives from the FARC, the government, and civil society and intended to ensure that all experiences of conflict were recognized and addressed in the final deal.

When it was finalized, the Colombian Final Accord included commitments in key areas including rural reform, security and protection guarantees, and victims' rights.

"The recognition of racial, ethnic, and gender discrimination as underlying forces in the conflict, and the inclusion of provisions to directly address them ... was a hard-fought accomplishment of civil society, notably women's, LGBTIQ, Afro-Colombian, and Indigenous organizations," wrote associate professor of law at the City University of New York Lisa Davis in the Columbia Human Rights Law Review

Davis added: "Afro-Colombian organizations, with strong leadership from Afro-Colombian women, developed a vision for the peace process that recognized and remedied historic injustices and discrimination committed against them, including gender discrimination, in order to ensure an inclusive and lasting peace."

Yet the conservative government of Iván Duque, that came into power in 2018, has not yet implemented 42 of the 133 gender commitments that had been agreed upon, according to t he Kroc Institute , in charge of monitoring the implementation of the Accord.

Speaking more broadly about the agreement, Washington-based research and advocacy organization WOLA wrote on the fifth anniversary of the accords that "implementing the accord has gone more poorly than anticipated, and opportunities to break the cycle of violence are evaporating."

Although the peace deal is legally binding , the rigor with which it is applied is subject to the interest of the government in power.

Petro and Márquez have a clear outline of how they plan to implement the peace process if elected. While Hernández and Castillo also say they will implement it, their promises are more vague. Hernández has already come under international media scrutiny for what critics say is the gap between the campaign and the man behind the campaign. CNN, for example, reports that while Hernández's "clearest pitch has been his promise to 'get rid of corruption'"... [he] has had his own troubles with allegations of corruption -- and some are ongoing." Hernández has denied the charge that is expected to go to court next month, saying: "With current laws, every candidate can be sued by anyone."

For their part, the social leaders I have been speaking with in recent weeks are not confident that the implementation of the process would be a central focus of Hernández's government, meaning that security conditions in rural areas could stay the same or even become more dangerous.

"Whether, how, and when the next president of Colombia will implement the peace accord could be the difference between life and death for women leaders." Researcher Julia Margaret Zulver

Seeking peace and speaking out against drug trafficking, child recruitment into armed groups, and environmental degradation, has come at great cost to Colombia's women leaders.

For the past seven years, I have been researching how women pursue justice in high-risk contexts. In that time, I have heard dozens of accounts of activists threatened, targeted, and attacked.

Many of the women I interviewed, often with their government-issued bodyguards following closely, said that not only has the 2016 peace process never actually materialized, the threats they face are more intense than ever

Their names have, for example, been included in public death threats circulated by armed groups with a simple message: stop their social activism or die. As a result, many no longer live in their home communities, isolating from their families in order to protect their children.

Last week, a colleague and I spent time with Afro-Colombian women leaders in the north of Cauca province, a conflict-stricken region in the southwest of the country, where Márquez was herself born and began her activism. In recent weeks, many of these women told me they have received death threats via phone calls or messages. Some say they have narrowly survived assassination attempts.

Community leader Doña Tuta suffered a worse fate. She was murdered in the nearby the city of Cali just last week. She is the latest in a long line of women human rights defenders who have lost their lives in Colombia since the signing of the Peace Accords.

For Colombia's grassroots women leaders all around the country, what is at stake in these elections is their ability to live safely in their communities. Whether, how, and when the next president will actually implement the peace accord could be the difference between life and death for them.

Supporters of Colombian left-wing presidential candidate Gustavo Petro paste banners before a rally at the Fontibon neighborhood in Bogota on June 12, 2022.

The peace process is more important than ever

Though Colombia is now a post-conflict state on paper, the number of internally displaced people (IDPs) continues to rise as other armed groups continue to violently clash.

Colombia now has the third largest number of IDPs in the world, coming only behind Syria and the Democratic Republic of Congo. The Latin American state has been described by Reuters as "the world's most dangerous country for environmentalists".

As the FARC demobilized in 2016, other armed groups took their place. Vying for control of valuable resources like coca and illegal mining, and transport routes, these groups intensified their targeting of social leaders who were promoting the implementation of the peace accords in their communities.

Petro and Márquez's platform recognizes that women have suffered during the conflict in particular ways. It promises to fully implement the peace deal with the FARC, and will focus on the rural land reform, protection guarantees, and environmental protections, that are essential for women to have the ability to earn an income and support their families.

Hernández has also said that he would implement the peace accord and would seek a deal with the National Liberation Army, the largest leftist guerrilla group in the country, known by its Spanish acronym, ELN. Compared to Donald Trump in part for his controversial comments , including about women's roles as "ideally...[devoting] themselves to raising children", Hernández has however not detailed how women's unique needs would be included in this implementation of the peace process.

Colombia election results: Left-wing candidate and former guerrilla ...

Bogota, Colombia CNN —

Gustavo Petro will become Colombia’s first leftist leader, after winning the country’s presidential race on Sunday.

The former guerrilla won by a slim margin with over 50% of the votes, against 77-year-old entrepreneur Rodolfo Hernandez. In this historic win, his running mate Francia Marquez will now become the first Afro-Colombian to hold executive powers.

During his victory speech on Sunday night, Petro said he is open to dialogue with Hernandez. He also called for a Great National agreement to end violence in the country, saying, “What is coming here is real change, real change. That is what we are committing our lives to. We will not betray the electorate that has demanded that Colombia change from today.”

“Let’s celebrate the first popular victory. May so many sufferings be cushioned in the joy that today floods the heart of the homeland,” Petro tweeted in celebration on Sunday night.

Outgoing Colombian President Ivan Duque said he called Petro to congratulate him on his victory and that they had “agreed to meet in the coming days to initiate a harmonious, institutional and transparent transition.”

Petro, left, and Noemi Sanin, of the Conservative Party, gesture as they take part in a televized presidential debate in Bogota in May 2010. Ariana Cubillos/ASSOCIATED PRESS

Shortly after Petro claimed victory, rival Hernandez gave a speech saying he accepted the result.

“I accept the result as it should be if we want our institutions to be strong. I sincerely hope that this decision that has been taken is beneficial for all and that Colombia is heading towards the change that prevailed in the vote in the first round,” he said.

Hernandez also said he hopes Petro knows how to lead the country and that “(Petro) is faithful to his speech against corruption and that he does not disappoint those who trust him.”

Both candidates had run on promises of change, seeking to take advantage of how many Colombians are fed up with Duque – a leader whose tenure has been defined by his administration’s handling of police conduct, inequality, and clashes between organized criminal groups.

Petro, 62, had already seen two failed presidential bids in 2010 and 2018. Sunday’s run-off vote suggests that he has finally overcome the hesitation of voters who once saw him a radical left-wing outsider – no small feat for a politician looking to win over one of South America’s most conservative countries.

The support Petro has garnered can be partially attributed to Colombia’s worsening socioeconomic situation, including deteriorating living conditions, made worse by the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and the impact of the war in Ukraine.

While Colombia has seen impressive economic growth in recent years, inequality rates remain among the world’s highest, with nearly half of Colombians saying that the economy is headed in the wrong direction, according to a recent Gallup poll.

Petro has historically campaigned in favor of higher corporate taxes and public subsidies for the working class and the poor, a tactic that might help him draw more people from that demographic to his camp.

Petro’s party and allies were already the largest bloc in the Senate – though they do not control a majority of seats.

A chequered past

Born in the rural north Colombian town of Ciénaga de Oro, Petro spent his youth in the ranks of a leftist guerrilla movement, the 19th of April Movement (M19) — founded to protest against allegations of fraud in the 1970 elections.

The group was part of a so-called second wave of guerrilla movements in the country that swept the region in the 1970s under the influence of the Cuban Revolution.

M19 was associated with illegal activity – including alleged kidnappings for ransom – but Petro says he carried out legal activities that aimed to mobilize people to stand up to what he called a “false democracy,” even serving as a councilman in the city of Zipaquirá.

Petro was detained by the police in 1985 for concealing weapons. Shortly after, M19 launched an attack to take over Bogota’s Supreme Court building that left at least 98 people killed, including 12 magistrates (11 are still missing). Petro denies he was involved in the assault, which took place while he was behind bars.

Colombian military protect a group of magistrates leaving the Palace of Justice in Bogota on November 6, 1985. AFP/Getty Images

By the time Petro was released in 1987, after 18 months in military jail, his ideological perspective had changed. He said that time helped him realize that an armed revolution was not the best strategy to win popular support.

Two years later, M19 entered peace negotiations with the Colombian state, with Petro ready to fight the system from the inside.

A steady campaign

Since losing the 2018 election, Petro has consistently tried to play down fears that his economic plan – which also proposes a halt to fossil fuel explorations and renegotiation of international trade agreements – is “too radical” for Colombia. He has since surrounded himself with more traditional politicians who could build bridges with the establishment.

Now, he’s presenting himself as a new type of progressive.

In April, he signed a pledge not to expropriate any private land if elected. He’s also tipped a moderate to be his economic minister, and has sought to make international ties with new progressives, such as the United States’ Congressional Progressive Caucus, rather than traditional left-wing leaders like Bolivia’s Evo Morales.

Petro speaks during his closing campaign rally ahead of the first round of the presidential elections, in Bogota, Colombia on May 22. Luisa Gonzalez/Reuters

His critics have said he is too intellectual and detached – if not outright pedantic, with even his own campaign team referring to him as “the Petroxplainer,” given his tendency to lecture.

To counter this, he’s been campaigning in some of the country’s most impoverished areas, where he’s been chatting with locals in conversations streamed on Instagram.

Petro bet on Colombians to believe in him as an evolved politician, telling CNN that he’s managed to successfully combine his revolutionary zeal with practice public management.

Next, the former guerrilla – whose nom-de-guerre Aureliano Buendia is taken from writer Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s magical realism classic, One Hundred Years of Solitude – hopes to trigger a scientific revolution in Colombia, asking economists to run through his proposals.

“Magical realism comes from the heart while my scientific proposals are from the brain. To rule you need them both,” he said.

Colombia elections: Left-wing candidate Gustavo Petro wins ...

Regina Garcia Cano and Astrid Suarez

Associated Press

BOGOTA, Colombia — Colombia will be governed by a leftist president for the first time after former rebel Gustavo Petro narrowly defeated a real estate millionaire in a runoff election that underscored people's disgust with the country's traditional politicians.

Petro's third attempt to win the presidency earned him 50.48% of the votes Sunday, while political outsider Rodolfo Hernández got 47.26%, according to results released by election authorities.

The election came as Colombians struggle with rising inequality, inflation and violence — factors that led voters in the election's first round last month to punish long-governing centrist and right-leaning politicians and pick two outsiders for the runoff contest.

Petro's win in Latin America's third most populous nation was more than a defeat of Hernández. It puts an end to Colombia's long stigmatization of the left for its perceived association with the country's half-century of armed conflict. The president-elect was once a rebel with the now-defunct M-19 movement and was granted amnesty after being jailed for his involvement with the group.

Petro issued a call for unity during his victory speech Sunday night and extended an olive branch to some of his harshest critics, saying all members of the opposition will be welcomed at the presidential palace "to discuss the problems of Colombia."

"From this government that is beginning there will never be political persecution or legal persecution, there will only be respect and dialogue," he said, adding that he will listen to those who have raised arms as well as to "that silent majority of peasants, Indigenous people, women, youth."

The vote is also resulting in Colombia having a Black woman as vice president for the first time. Petro's running mate, Francia Márquez, 40, is a lawyer and environmental leader whose opposition to illegal mining resulted in threats and a grenade attack in 2019.

Hernández, whose campaign was based on an anti-corruption fight, conceded his defeat shortly after results were announced.

"I accept the result, as it should be, if we want our institutions to be firm," he said in a video on social media. "I sincerely hope that this decision is beneficial for everyone."

Another Latin American nation picks a leftist leader

Petro's showing was the latest leftist political victory in Latin America fueled by voters' desire for change. Chile, Peru and Honduras elected leftist presidents in 2021, and in Brazil former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is leading the polls for this year's presidential election.

But the results were an immediate reason to fret for some voters, whose closest reference to a leftist government is the troubled neighboring Venezuela.

"We hope that Mr. Gustavo Petro complies with what was said in his government plan, that he leads this country to greatness, which we need so much, and that (he) ends corruption," said Karin Ardila García, a Hernández supporter in the north-central city of Bucaramanga. "That he does not lead to communism, to socialism, to a war where they continue to kill us in Colombia. ... (H)e does not lead us to another Venezuela, Cuba, Argentina, Chile."

About 21.6 million of the 39 million eligible voters cast a ballot Sunday. Abstentionism has been above 40% in every presidential election since 1990.

Petro, 62, will be officially declared winner after a formal count that will take a few days. Historically, the preliminary results have coincided with the final ones.

Several heads of state congratulated Petro on Sunday. So did a fierce critic, former President Álvaro Uribe, who remains a central figure in Colombia's politics.

Polls ahead of the runoff had indicated Petro and Hernández — both former mayors — were in a tight race since they topped four other candidates in the initial May 29 election. Neither got enough votes to win outright and headed into the runoff.

Petro won 40% of the votes in the initial round and Hernández 28%, but the difference quickly narrowed as Hernández began to attract so-called anti-Petrista voters.

Petro's domestic, international agendas are ambitious

Petro has proposed ambitious pension, tax, health and agricultural reforms and changes to how Colombia fights drug cartels and other armed groups. But he will have a tough time delivering on his promises as he does not have a majority in Congress, which is key to carrying out reforms.

"The people who do support him have very high hopes, and they are probably going to be disappointed pretty quickly when he can't move things right away," said Adam Isacson, an expert on Colombia at the Washington Office on Latin America think tank.

"I think you might find a situation where he either has to strike some deals and give up a lot of his programs just to get some things passed or the whole country could be gridlocked," Isacson added.

Petro is willing to resume diplomatic relations with Venezuela, which were halted in 2019. He also wants to make changes to Colombia's relations with the U.S. by seeking a renegotiation of a free trade agreement and new ways to fight drug trafficking.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement that the Biden administration looks forward to working with Petro.

Polls say most Colombians believe the country is heading in the wrong direction and disapprove of President Iván Duque, who was not eligible to seek reelection. The pandemic set back the country's anti-poverty efforts by at least a decade. Official figures show that 39% of Colombia's lived on less than $89 a month last year.

The rejection of politics as usual "is a reflection of the fact that the people are fed up with the same people as always," said Nataly Amezquita, a 26-year-old civil engineer waiting to vote. "We have to create greater social change. Many people in the country aren't in the best condition."

But even the two outsider candidates left her cold. She said she would cast a blank ballot: "I don't like either of the two candidates. ... Neither of them seems like a good person to me."

Garcia Cano reported from Caracas, Venezuela.

Colombia's presidential election: A rattled country looks left, but will ...

Bogota, Colombia (CNN) Colombians are heading back to the polls on Sunday to elect their next president in a runoff vote .

No major reports of violence or unrest marred the first round of voting in South America's second largest country, which is going through one of its most turbulent times in its modern history.

Six candidates contended for Colombia's highest post in May after campaigning on how to fix a country plagued by the economic fallout of the Covid-19 pandemic, social unrest and a deteriorating security situation

In the first round, left-wing candidate Gustavo Petro won just over 40% of the vote, with populist real estate magnate-turned-politician Rodolfo Hernandez taking 28% -- edging out Petro's expected competitor, the right-wing former Mayor of Medellin, Federico "Fico" Gutierrez.

Since none of the candidates won by an absolute majority, Petro and Hernandez will now face off in a second round of voting.

Here's what you need to know about Colombia's election.

The last election was 4 years ago. Why is there another so soon?

Colombian presidents are only elected for a single, four-year term. And Colombians are ready for change: Right-wing President Iván Duque's approval rating is at a low, with his tenure marred by his administration's handling of police conduct, inequality, and clashes between organized criminal groups.

That discontent has placed the left in sight of the presidency for the first time in the country's history. Meanwhile, more conservative candidates have rallied voters to trust a more gradual series of reforms to correct Colombia's course.

Who are Petro and Hernandez?

Petro is a former mayor of Bogota, whose 2022 bid marks his third presidential campaign. The 62-year-old ran on a platform that proposes a radical overhaul of the country's economy to combat one of the highest inequality rates in the world. Petro, a former guerrilla fighter, who today preaches reconciliation and an end to violence, has framed his campaign around whether Colombia is ready to elect a revolutionary. He's campaigned on attracting foreign investment in clean energy, new technologies, transportation and telecommunications.

Gustavo Petro speaks at an election debate in Bogota on Monday.

Meanwhile, 77-year-old entrepreneur Hernandez surged in popularity in the few weeks leading up to May's vote, attracting centrist voters who reject Petro's revolutionary calls and Gutierrez's traditionalism. Hernandez's unique social-media campaign has drawn comparisons to that of former US President Donald Trump and Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro. The self-proclaimed "King of TikTok" has adopted a confrontational stance with traditional media: He did not appear in several of the televised debates organized by Colombia's main broadcasters, and rarely gave interviews to foreign outlets -- although he did appear on CNN, wearing his pajamas, saying that he was a "man of the people."

Rodolfo Hernandez greets supporters at the Palonegro International Airport in Bucaramanga, Colombia on May 21.

The first Black VP?

Petro's running mate, vice-presidential candidate Francia Marquez, has sent shockwaves through Colombia's political scene. The 40-year-old Black feminist and single-mother garnered the third-most votes in March's primary elections, with her charismatic rallies attracting supporters across the country. If elected, she would become the first Afro-Colombian to hold executive powers.

Colombians of African descent, the second largest community of its kind in South America, have long been marginalized in politics and in society. Marquez's candidacy has given millions of Afro-Colombians a chance to identify themselves with a national politician -- and hope for societal change in their country.

Francia Marquez is seen at a vice-presidential campaign event in Bogota on March 22.

During a recent speech in Bogota, she quoted Martin Luther King saying she also had "the dream to see my country at peace."

Compared to Petro, who has been in politics for 20 years, Marquez is part of a new wave of progressive leftists in Latin America who are prioritizing issues like the environment. In 2018, she won the Goldman Environmental Prize for successfully organizing a women's group to stop illegal gold mining on their ancestral land. She's also an advocate for LGBTQ rights, gender issues, and economic equality.

The economy, security and drugs

Colombia has been among the fastest growing countries in Latin America in recent years, but that growth is not trickling down to working families and poorer populations.

Petro is relying on voters disillusioned by the country's economic outlook and who have suffered the most in the last four years, as wages stagnated under Duque's watch.

As a whole, the country is richer than it was since Duque came to power in 2018, however the value of the average worker's annual salary has dropped significantly as the Colombian peso has plunged 40% in value against the dollar since. That situation is only exacerbated by rising inflation and the war in Ukraine.

While Hernandez is also trying to exploit some voters' discontent with the traditional political system, his approach on the economy -- with a focus on corruption -- is more moderate than Petro's.

A shopper buys produce at the Silvia Market in Cauca, Colombia, this month. Colombian inflation accelerated to its fastest pace since July 2000 in April.

On neighboring Venezuela, Petro has said he plans to re-establish diplomatic relations, even with strongman Nicolás Maduro in power. Hernandez, too, is in favor of thawing Colombia's relationship with Venezuela.

The election is also being held as the country's security situation is deteriorating.

Last month, the notorious "Clan del Golfo" drug cartel imposed an "armed curfew" in retaliation to the US' extradition of Diaro Usuga "Otoniel," one of its bosses, with six people killed and over 180 vehicles attacked across the country's Caribbean coast.

And during the first three months of this year alone, nearly 50,000 Colombians were forcibly confined as a result of ongoing clashes between armed groups, according to the United Nations.

A Colombian soldier stands guard near the port city of Buenaventura, Colombia, this month.

The violence is tied to the country's narcotics production and trafficking, with Colombia's cocaine production having significantly increased in recent years. The pandemic has coincided with an uptick of criminal activity, with several groups exerting de-facto control over swathes of Colombian territory including the Arauca , Cauca and Catatumbo regions.

How to restore state control over those areas -- and fight back the cartels -- is a key conversation in this election, and will prove a formidable challenge for the next president.

Petro has proposed to tackle the problem by legalizing cannabis and partially de-criminalizing the consumption of cocaine and other drugs. He has said that he favors engaging with criminal groups through peace agreements akin to the 2016 peace deal with the now-demobilized Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC-EP) that brought to an end to over half a century of guerrilla conflict between the state and communist rebels. Petro has been the target of criticism for his promises of "land democratization" and "social forgiveness" to convicted criminals, including those charged for corruption.

Hernandez is also in favor of ending the war on drugs. But he has flip-flopped on his view of the peace agreement. In 2016 he revealed that he voted against the historic deal, but in his presidential campaign pledge, he said that he would respect the treaty -- and even proposed "a copy-paste solution" to negotiate with the National Liberation Army, the largest leftist guerrilla group in the country, known by its Spanish acronym ELN.

While the candidates are presenting their plans for the future, how Colombia mends the wounds of its past will be just as present on the ballot.

Australia election results: Labor leader Anthony Albanese will be the ...

Brisbane, Australia (CNN) Australian voters have delivered a sharp rebuke to the center-right government, ending nine years of conservative rule, in favor of the center-left opposition that promised stronger action on climate change.

Australian Labor Party leader Anthony Albanese claimed victory Saturday, though it was unclear as counting continued if his party would have the 76 seats required to form a majority.

Early counting showed a strong swing towards Greens candidates and Independents who demanded emissions cuts far above the commitments made by the ruling conservative coalition.

Amanda McKenzie, CEO of the research group the Climate Council, declared climate action the winner of the vote.

"Millions of Australians have put climate first. Now, it's time for a radical reset on how this great nation of ours acts upon the climate challenge," she said in a statement.

Other than climate, this election focused on the character of the leaders. Incumbent Scott Morrison. was deeply unpopular with voters and seemed to acknowledge as much when he admitted during the last week of the campaign that he had been a "bit of a bulldozer." He was referring to making hard decisions during the pandemic and severing a submarine deal with France, but it reflected claims about his leadership style as being more authoritarian than collaborative.

Speaking to his supporters late Saturday night, Morrison said he had called Albanese and congratulated him on his election victory. "I've always believed in Australians and their judgment, and I've always been prepared to accept their verdict," he said.

Just before midnight, Albanese walked out to to cheers from his supporters and said he would seek to unite the nation. "I will work every day to bring Australians together. And I will lead a government worthy of the people of Australia."

He added: "I can promise all Australians this no matter how you voted today, the government I lead will respect every one of you every day."

Scott Morrison, flanked by his wife and daughters as he concede defeat to Labor leader Anthony Albanese.

What Albanese will do as Prime Minister?

One of Albanese's first priorities as Prime Minister will be to rebuild relations with foreign leaders he says Morrison has neglected in recent years. They include Pacific Island leaders, including the Solomon Islands whose leader signed a security pact with Beijing, stoking fears that China plans to build its first military base in the Pacific.

On Tuesday, Albanese intends to travel Tokyo with Foreign Minister Penny Wong for talks with Quad members from the United States, India and Japan, where they'll discuss priorities to safeguard free passage in the Indo-Pacific.

The climate crisis was one of the defining issues of the election, as one of the few points of difference between the coalition and Labor, and a key concern of voters, according to polls.

Marija Taflaga, lecturer in politics and international relations at the Australian National University, said the swing towards the Greens was remarkable. "I think everyone has been taken by surprise by these results...I think it will mean there will be greater and faster action on climate change more broadly."

Labor has promised to cut emissions by 43% by 2030 and to reach net zero by 2050, partly by strengthening the mechanism used to pressure companies to make cuts.

But research institute Climate Analytics says Labor's plans aren't ambitious enough to keep global temperature rise within 1.5 degrees Celsius, as outlined in the Paris Agreement.

Labor's policies are more consistent with a rise of 2 degrees Celsius, the institute said, marginally better than the coalition's plan.

To speed up the transition to renewable energy, Labor plans to modernize Australia's energy grid and roll out solar banks and community batteries. But despite its net zero commitment, Labor says it'll approve new coal projects if they're environmentally and economically viable.

In inner-city seats, results show voters threw their support behind Independents, mostly highly-educated female candidates standing on a platform of higher cuts to greenhouse emissions and integrity in government. They targeted traditionally safe Liberal seats, challenging voters to take a stand on decades of government inaction.

Albanese is supporting a rise in the minimum wage of 5.1%, though he doesn't have the power to impose it, only leeway to submit a recommendation to the Fair Work Commission that the minimum wage keeps pace with inflation.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison and his wife Jenny cast their votes at a polling booth in Sydney on Saturday.

A modest upbringing to PM

Albanese often refers to his background as the son of a single mother to demonstrate his commitment to making life better for struggling Australians.

His mother, Maryanne, suffered rheumatoid arthritis and lived on disability benefits while she raised him alone in council housing in the 1960s.

"It gave me a determination each and every day to help the people like I was growing up to have a better life. And I think that's what Australians want," he told the National Press Club in January.

Albanese repeatedly credited his mother for her strength during his campaign, most recently on Friday when he paid tribute to a "incredible woman."

"She'd be proud as punch because she made the courageous decision in 1963 to keep a child that she had out of wedlock," he said.

Albanese's father was a steward on a cruise ship, and the new Australian Prime Minister was born of a brief liaison that was scandalous at the time for a single Catholic woman.

So she told him that his father had died to spare him the truth, he said.

"That was a tough decision," he said. "It says something about the pressure that was placed on women and pressures that are still placed on women when faced with difficult circumstances. The fact that that young kid is now running for Prime Minister says a lot about her and her courage, but it also says a lot about this country."

Albanese may have won over Australians, but one of his challenges as Prime Minister will be to unite the factions of his party, said Zareh Ghazarian, a lecturer in politics at Monash University.

"He's presented himself as someone who's going to be a level-headed leader. The challenge that he will have is getting on top of and keeping on top of the Labor party caucus," he said.

Albanese served as a minister in the previous Labor government under prime ministers Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard, before taking over as Labor leader after the party's most recent election loss in 2019.

That loss knocked the wind out of Labor and they returned to this election campaign with more modest promises to avoid scaring off voters worried about radical change.

Paul Williams, a political scientist with Griffith University, said Albanese lacked experience in major portfolios but predicted he would "grow into the job."

"I think it will be a steep learning curve for Albanese because he hasn't had a very senior portfolio like treasurer or foreign affairs minister. And he's going to be thrown into the mix of the Quad meeting next week. So it's going to be baptism by fire," he said.

Albanese said he hoped his win would show young Australians that "the doors of opportunity are open to us all."

"Every parent wants more for the next generation than they had. My mother dreamt of a better life for me. And I hope that my journey in life inspires Australians to reach for the stars."

Australia election: Xi Jinping looms large over political campaign ...

Brisbane, Australia (CNN) The faces of Australian election candidates are plastered on campaign posters across the country -- but there's one face that stands out, and it belongs to Xi Jinping.

The Chinese leader, though not a participant in any modern democracy, has become a familiar presence in a campaign dogged by allegations of foreign interference and partly fought on issues of national security.

Xi's face is not only on billboards, his name has come up in press conferences, interviews, and election debates between Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, who leads a Liberal-National coalition, and the Labor Party leader who wants to replace him, Anthony Albanese.

"Xi has changed the nature of the Chinese Communist Party ... It's more forward leaning. It's more aggressive. And that means that Australia, of course, must respond," said Albanese during a leaders' debate, in words that appeared to echo the government's hardline stance.

Before the federal election campaign even started, accusations were being hurled that China wanted a Labor win. One week out from the vote on May 21, public opinion polls -- though notoriously unreliable -- suggest that it may actually happen, putting a Labor government in power for the first time since 2013.

How that may change Australia's relationship with China has been a common question ahead of the vote. The coalition has suggested Labor will be soft on China -- a serious accusation by a government whose defense minister recently warned that, in order to preserve peace, Australia must "prepare for war."

On paper, it seems there is little difference between both major parties on foreign policy. Labor says it's committed to the AUKUS security pact, the deal Morrison struck with the United States and United Kingdom, to the detriment of Australia's relations with France. And both support the Quad, the loose four-way alliance between Australia, the US, India and Japan that is set to meet in Tokyo next week, after the election.

It's not clear yet who will attend on Australia's behalf, but analysts say that person faces a tough challenge when it comes to China -- especially after a bitter election campaign that has put Xi and his intentions front and center.

Australian opposition leader Anthony Albanese and Prime Minister Scott Morrison debate on live television ahead of the federal election, during the second leaders' debate on May 8.

The unraveling of relations

China was always going to play a role in the Australian election, as a regional heavyweight with significant trade ties to a smaller nation that it relies on for iron ore and coal, if not other sanctioned exports.

Xi's rise to power in China neatly aligns with the coalition's latest stint in government -- both took office in 2013, and since then relations have deteriorated, most rapidly in the last six years.

Some of the angst stretches back to 2016, when links emerged between a senior Labor senator and a wealthy Chinese businessmen, prompting a closer inspection of alleged foreign political interference. Under then Liberal Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, laws were passed preventing foreigners from donating to Australian political campaigns, among other measures, and a ban was imposed on Chinese telecoms giants Huawei and ZTE from building Australia's 5G network. After the 5G ban, China's foreign affairs spokesman urged the country to "abandon (its) ideological prejudices."

Relations soured further in 2020 when the Australian government -- then led by Morrison -- called for an investigation into the origins of Covid-19. China responded with sanctions against Australian exports, including beef, barley, wine, and rock lobster.

Charles Edel, the inaugural Australia Chair and a senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), said China's aim was to make Australia more compliant, but it hasn't worked.

"It has had the opposite effect," he said. "It hardened public attitudes in Australia and pushed Canberra to lead the charge against China's coercive actions."

According to the Lowy Institute's 2021 poll of Australians on China , the vast majority were negative about China's system of government and China's military activity in the region, though they were positive about China's people and Chinese culture. China's tacit support of Russia's actions in Ukraine has also hardened attitudes, and the Australian government has rushed to supply Ukraine with tanks, coal, and humanitarian aid.

While sanctions have undoubtedly hurt Australian businesses, the loss of the Chinese market forced some to diversify and they've found replacement markets. China meanwhile continues to buy Australia's iron ore at near record prices. So in that respect, Australia hasn't lost.

In fact, Edel says Australia's tough response to Beijing's coercion has created another model for other countries in the region to follow.

"Australia has reacted to a deteriorating strategic environment by investing in its own capabilities, increasing its cooperation with the United States, and reaching out to strengthen its connections with other countries in the region," he said. "Pursuing a proactive foreign policy while investing in its own resilience offers a model for other states under pressure from revisionist powers."

Chances of a reset

But there's no consensus on the success of the Morrison government's approach to China. During the election campaign, even as the coalition touted its superior experience in foreign affairs, Beijing signed a security pact with the Solomon Islands, a Pacific Island nation that also has a security deal with Canberra.

Suddenly the specter of a Chinese military base on a nation just 2,000 kilometers (1,600 miles) from Australia's shores became a live election issue -- even as the Solomon Islands and Beijing denied they had any such plans. The issue was so contentious that in the first few weeks of the campaign mentions of China and the Solomon Islands outpaced that of climate change across Australian media, according to media monitors Isentia.

Labor slammed the deal as "a massive foreign policy failure" that occurred despite warnings that Honiara was moving closer to China. In the heat of an election campaign, it suits Labor to call out the coalition's foreign policy failings -- in fact, the timing of the deal was so opportune for Labor that Home Minister Karen Andrews speculated, without evidence, that it was deliberately timed by Beijing to fall just weeks before the vote -- a claim Labor attacked as "unhinged."

Early voting has begun in Australia's federal election ahead of the official polling day on May 21.

Both sides say "China has changed." In recent years, Beijing has stepped up the militarization of the South China Sea, committed alleged human rights abuses against the minority Uyghur population in Xinjiang, and clamped down on freedoms in Hong Kong, where police recently arrested a 90-year-old cardinal under national security laws.

But James Laurenceson, director of the Australia-China Relations Institute, said the Morrison government must accept some responsibility for deteriorating relations.

"Rhetoric and posturing and a lack of diplomacy has actually played a pretty major role in how we got there," he said.

"We haven't just protected our sovereignty. We've gone out on a limb in front of any other country in the region to, I would argue, be pretty provocative," he said, citing Defense Minister Peter Dutton's comment that Australia should "prepare for war" as one example.

Laurenceson doesn't see relations with Beijing improving under a re-elected Morrison government. "I think they have given up on the Morrison government," he said, but added that a Labor win wouldn't necessarily mean a reset either.

"No one's talking about going back to the way the world was five years ago. But putting our relationship on a less adversarial stance, I think that's within our capacity. And I think Labor has options where it can make some subtle shifts in its diplomacy and that will make that a realistic option."

In an opinion piece published in Australian media last week, China's ambassador to Australia, Xiao Qian, said Canberra should not see "China's rise" as a threat.

"The cooperation between China and the South Pacific island countries is conducive to people's well-being on both sides and regional prosperity and stability, and will by no means threaten Australia's security," he wrote.

Where to from here

Under Australian law, there are no rules on truth in political advertising, so using Xi's image on posters claiming he supports candidates of various political persuasions is entirely legal.

Xi's face is not only on ads alleging he supports Labor but also on billboards claiming he's backing a Liberal candidate, as well as at least one independent. Appealing to Xi, it seems, is the highest political insult.

A poster that claims Chinese President Xi Jinping backs a Liberal candidate.

Andrew Hughes, a marketing expert at the Australian National University, says Australia is known as the "Wild West" when it comes to political advertising, but the use of China in this campaign had nonetheless been remarkable.

"It's actually more noticeable, I think, in this election than I've ever seen the use of a foreign government in election campaigns outside wartime," Hughes said.

Hughes said the coalition was using China to establish the connection in people's minds that "Labor equals fear," though he questioned the effectiveness of that strategy with an audience with only half an eye on the issues.

"Most people don't have that level of engagement with politics in the first place to make that messaging effective. Hence why (the coalition) is probably going a little bit more negative, and a little bit harder on things."

Edel, from CSIS, said no matter who wins, Australia has a better chance of improving its relationship if it stands its ground, and that's possible under either leadership.

"While there may be differences in tone and approach, both parties now support increasing Australia's defense budget, working more closely with the United States and other like-minded countries, countering China's push into the Pacific, calling out Beijing's egregious human rights violations, and taking actions to protect Australia's democracy," he said.

However, Laurenceson said a calmer approach and the realization that Australia can't dictate China's relationships in the Pacific would go a long way towards putting the relationship on a firmer footing.

"There's a track record of overreaction and panic, that's for sure. And how does that actually help you respond?" he said. "Having a strategy with a goal of denying the Beijing enhanced relationships in the region is just ridiculous. It's unrealistic. So yes, let's take it seriously, let's respond with a clear strategy. But let's make sure our assessments and our strategy are at least based on reality."

Israel's coalition government disbands, calls new elections

Jotam Confino

Special to USA TODAY

JERUSALEM – Israel’s Prime Minister Naftali Bennett announced in a televised speech on Wednesday that his government would put forward a bill to dissolve parliament next week, effectively sending the country to a fifth election in three years.

Bennett said he had “exhausted all options to stabilize” his fragile minority coalition, which has suffered from rebellious lawmakers in recent weeks.

According to Israeli media, Bennett’s decision took a number of his colleagues by surprise, among them Defense Minister Benny Gantz.

The most recent pressing issue that brought the coalition on a verge of collapse was a failure to pass a bill that would extend Israeli law to Jewish settlers in the West Bank.

Bennett ousted Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in June 2021, ending his 12 years in power. The right-wing leader and former Netanyahu ally’s eight-party coalition consisted of his own nationalist party, as well as right-wing, centrist, leftist parties and for the first time in the country’s history, an Arab-Israeli party.

Despite portraying itself as a “government of change,” a number of Netanyahu policies have remained in place, such as the opposition to a Palestinian state, expansion of West Bank settlements, air strikes against Iranian targets in Syria and an opposition to a nuclear deal with Iran.

More:Who is Naftali Bennett, Israel’s next prime minister if Benjamin Netanyahu is ousted?

Right-wing lawmakers hopeful

Oppositions leader Netanyahu welcomed Bennett’s decision to dissolve parliament next week, saying he intends to form “a wide, national government headed by Likud,” his party.

The former prime minister also accused the government of being “dependent on supporters of terrorism,” a reference to the Arab-Israeli coalition party, United Arab List.

Netanyahu’s closest confidant, Likud lawmaker Micky Zohar, told USA TODAY that he hopes the elections will result in a “right wing government” headed by Netanyahu.

Netanyahu, the longest serving prime minister in Israel’s history, is on trial in three different corruption cases, one of the main reasons why a number of right-wing lawmakers and former allies refuse to join a government headed by him.

According to recent polls in Israeli media, the Netanyahu block, which consists of Likud, two ultra-orthodox parties, Shas and United Torah Judaism, and the right-wing nationalist Religious Zionism party, won’t be able to form a government, falling short of one mandate.

Foreign Minister Yair Lapid, who will become interim prime minister when parliament dissolves, as per the coalition agreement, hailed Bennett as a “vital Israeli leader, while promising to continue to “wage the campaign against Iran, Hamas, and Hezbollah.”

Lapid will welcome U.S. President Joe Biden when he makes his first visit to Israel next month. The political crisis, however, is now threatening to overshadow Biden’s visit to Israel, which is still expected to take place.

Elections are expected to be held at the end of October. Elections can however be avoided if 61 lawmakers rally behind a candidate to form a new government in the coming days.

Photos this week: June 16-June 23, 2022

Bakhtar News Agency/AP Afghans evacuate after a deadly magnitude 5.9 earthquake struck the country's east, killing more than 1,000 people and wounding many more on Wednesday, June 22. See photos from the earthquake The week in 36 photos

Bakhtar News Agency/AP Afghans evacuate after a deadly magnitude 5.9 earthquake struck the country's east, killing more than 1,000 people and wounding many more on Wednesday, June 22. See photos from the earthquake

Afghanistan was rocked by its deadliest earthquake in decades on Wednesday when a magnitude 5.9 quake struck the country's east, killing more than 1,000 people and wounding many more.

The earthquake hit in the early hours of the morning near the city of Khost by the Pakistan border and the death toll is expected to rise as many of the homes in the area were constructed out of materials vulnerable to damage.

The humanitarian disaster comes at a difficult time for the Taliban-ruled country, currently in the throes of hunger and economic crises.

Here are some of the stories that made headlines over the past week, as well as some photos that caught our eye.

Snubs from key leaders at Summit of the Americas reveal Biden's ...

(CNN) The decision by Mexico's President to boycott this week's summit for regional leaders in Los Angeles rendered futile months of work by President Joe Biden and other top officials to convince him to attend.

Now, key nations in Central America are following President Andrés Manuel López Obrador's lead, dispatching only lower-level delegates instead of their leaders. And by the time Biden arrives to the summit Wednesday, questions over the event's invitation list and attendees will have obscured its larger purpose, a source of frustration to administration officials who didn't necessarily expect the mess.

The decision by several countries to stay away from the southern California gathering, a protest of Biden's decision not to invite three regional autocrats, has underscored the struggle to exert US influence in a region that has become fractured politically and is struggling economically.

And it has exposed the difficulties and contradictions in Biden's vow to restore democratic values to American foreign policy. Even as he takes a stand against inviting dictators to a summit on US soil, prompting anger and boycotts from those key regional partners, his aides are simultaneously planning a visit to Saudi Arabia — seen as a necessity at a moment of a global energy crisis, despite the kingdom's grave human rights record. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Tuesday the kingdom is an "important partner," though Biden once said it must be made a "pariah."

In the end, the White House announced Tuesday that 23 heads of state will attend this week's Summit of the Americas, which administration officials said was in line with past iterations of the triennial confab. One leader who was on the fence, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, will attend and meet Biden for the first time.

Yet the absences of the presidents of Mexico, El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala are still notable since the United States has worked to cultivate those leaders as partners on immigration, an issue that looms as a political liability for Biden.

Administration officials on Monday dismissed concerns about attendance at the summit, saying they did not believe lower-level delegates from certain countries will alter the outcome.

"We really do expect that the participation will not be in any way a barrier to getting significant business done at the summit. In fact, quite the opposite, we are very pleased with how the deliverables are shaping up and with other countries commitment to them," one senior administration official said, adding the commitments will range from short term to long term.

And the White House insisted the President was firm in his view that the autocratic leaders of Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua should not be invited to participate — even if it means widening rifts with other countries in the region.

"At the end of the day, to your question, we just don't believe dictators should be invited. We don't regret that, and the President will stand by his principle," Jean-Pierre said.

Troubles have been on the horizon for months

Biden, who arrives in Los Angeles on Wednesday, is expected announce a new partnership with countries in the Western Hemisphere during the gathering as part of a broader effort to stabilize the region, according to the officials.

He and his administration have been working since last year to organize the summit, which was formally announced last August. The city of Los Angeles was selected as the venue in January. Biden named former Sen. Chris Dodd, his friend and former colleague on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, as the special adviser for the event.

Dodd traveled in the region to muster support, one of a number of administration envoys to Central and South America that included Vice President Kamala Harris and even first lady Jill Biden. Yet as the summit approached, it became evident an event designed to reassert American leadership in the region was facing serious hurdles.

For weeks before the summit began, López Obrador hinted that he would boycott unless all leaders from the region were invited -- including those from Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela, each of whom has faced US opposition because of their human rights records. Other, mostly leftist leaders signaled they, too, may not attend if invitations did not go to everyone.

Administration officials privately cast doubt those leaders would follow through on their threats, suggesting they were instead attempts to play to domestic audiences that are often skeptical of the United States.

During an April telephone call between Biden and López Obrador, the subject of the summit arose. In a readout, the White House said the men "looked forward to meeting again at the June Summit of the Americas," a sign the administration believed then the Mexican president would attend.

Over the past weeks, Dodd spent lengthy virtual sessions lobbying López Obrador to reconsider his threat of a boycott. Members of Congress -- including Sen. Bob Menendez, Democratic chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee -- began to publicly agitate against inviting any leaders from Cuba, Venezuela or Nicaragua. And frustration mounted among administration officials that questions over the invitations and attendees were clouding out the summit's intended goals.

"The biggest problem is that the focus on attendance takes us away from the focus on substance, but that is the logical thing that happens ahead of a summit. It's like the sausage-making period. We don't talk much about the substance because the summit hasn't started yet, we talk only about who might be there," said Roberta Jacobson, the former US ambassador to Mexico who also served as an adviser to Biden on southern border policy.

Ultimately, the weeks of speculation were put to rest — but not in the way the White House had hoped.

"There cannot be a Summit of the Americas if all countries of the Americas cannot attend," López Obrador said at a news conference in Mexico City. "This is to continue the old interventionist policies, of lack of respect for nations and their people."

Mexican President's absence not a part of a larger rift, officials say

Mexican officials had conveyed their President's decision to the White House beforehand, and Biden was made aware before the news became public. Instead of meeting at the summit, Biden and López Obrador will meet in Washington next month.

"The fact that they disagree about this issue is now very clear," a senior administration official said.

Officials sought to emphasize the decision to boycott was rooted in a specific disagreement over the invite list and was not indicative of a larger rift.

"What we have done in recent weeks, going back almost a month now, is consulted -- consulted with our partners and friends in the region so that we understood the contours of their views," the senior administration official said. "In the end, the President decided and very much made this point in all of the engagements that we had ... which is that we believe the best use of this summit is to bring together countries that share a set of democratic principles."

Biden is turning his focus to the Americas after a series of foreign policy crises in other parts of the world, including the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan and Russia's invasion of Ukraine. He completed his first visit to Asia at the end of last month.

That region is one where his animating message of "autocracy versus democracy" is playing out in real time, as China works to make inroads and economically challenged nations look for support from abroad.

In opening remarks Wednesday, Biden will unveil the so-called "Americas partnership" that will focus on five issues, including economic recovery, mobilizing investments, supply chains, clean energy and trade -- all with the hopes of strengthening US partnerships in a region many US leaders have been accused of ignoring.

During the summit, Biden is also expected to announce more than $300 million in assistance to fight food insecurity, in addition to other private sector commitments, as well as health initiatives and a partnership on climate resilience.

Biden to unveil new initiatives at summit

While at the summit, the President and his team will be unveiling a series of new initiatives.

Harris, who arrived in Los Angeles earlier in the week, on Tuesday announced two updates to her work in addressing the root causes of migration to the southern border. First, she announced that through her "Call to Action," which aimed to promoting economic opportunity, she has now secured more than $3.2 billion in private investment for the region.

CNN previously reported the new commitments come from 10 companies totaling more than $1.9 billion, including the Gap Inc. which has pledged $150 million by 2025 to increase their sourcing from Central America, according to a fact sheet from the White House. Other companies include Millicom, Yazaki, Unifi, San Mar, Pantaleon and Fundación Terra.

Harris also said she will be launching "In Her Hands," a new private sector program aimed at empowering, training and protecting men in the northern Central America region and across the Western Hemisphere.

And on Wednesday the Biden administration will unveil an "Action Plan on Health and Resilience in the Americas," which is aimed at helping partner nations "prevent, prepare for, and respond to future pandemic threats and other public health emergencies while also expanding the equitable delivery of healthcare and public health services to remote, vulnerable, and marginalized populations," a senior administration official said. The senior administration official said the plan is expected to be fully implemented by 2030.

Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra is expected to announce the initiative at the CEO Summit Plenary Session as well..

As part of Wednesday's announcement, the administration is slated to announce roughly $100 million in funding, in concert with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), to provide basic and specialized training for 500,000 public health, health science and medical professionals through the next five years through the newly launched Americas Health Corps, or Fuerza de Salud de las Americas.

Caravan highlights need to work fast on migration

As the summit was getting underway, the imperative to make progress on immigration was being starkly illustrated in southern Mexico. A new migrant caravan there set out on foot Monday, timed to bring attention to the issue as leaders were gathering in Los Angeles.

An official with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said a group of about 2,300 people left the southern Mexican city of Tapachula on Monday heading north. The official said the group is comprised mostly of Venezuelans, but also includes migrants from Nicaragua, Cuba, El Salvador and Honduras.

A regional immigration group, Colectivo de Observación y Monitoreo de Derechos Humanos en el SE Mexicano, said in a bulletin that the group included principally families and children "who demand access to migration procedures and dignified treatment by the authorities." Tapachula, located just across the border from Guatemala, is a popular way station for migrants traveling from Central America.

Under Mexican immigration laws, migrants and asylum-seekers are often made to wait in the area for several months with limited opportunities for work. Northward caravans of migrants have left Tapachula regularly in the past year, although this week's appears to be one of the largest. This caravan gathered partially in protest to immigration policies and it would be weeks before they arrived to the US southern border, assuming they all do.

In Los Angeles, Biden and other leaders are expected to agree to a new migration document, dubbed the Los Angeles Declaration, during their Friday meetings. It's meant to spell out how countries in the region and around the world should share responsibility for taking in migrants.

Officials said they were confident Mexico would sign on.

Primary election: California voters send a stark message to ...

(CNN) Voters in two of the most liberal cities in America sent a clear message to the Democratic Party on Tuesday: they want their leaders to refocus on the most basic functions of government by ensuring their safety, protecting their quality of life and restoring order.

For months now, voters in San Francisco and Los Angeles have voiced their concerns that daily life in their cities appears to be spiraling out of control. Residents in San Francisco have been contending with a rise in burglaries and car thefts, as well an alarming spate of hate crimes directed against Asian Americans. Los Angeles residents have witnessed a sharp increase in violent crime, while city leaders have been grappling with a homelessness crisis that has led to the proliferation of tents and trash across parks, sidewalks and public spaces, while exposing an untreated mental health emergency on their streets.

On Tuesday, San Francisco voters registered their disquiet by recalling District Attorney Chesa Boudin amid concern that he was advancing progressive policies as a national criminal justice reform advocate at the cost of their safety. It was a move that signaled just how far the political pendulum has swung since the 2020 election cycle when many Democratic voters cited police accountability and criminal justice overhauls among their top concerns -- a debate that reached a crescendo following the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

On the same night, voters in the overwhelmingly progressive city of Los Angeles signaled their unease with Democrats' handling of crime and homelessness by elevating billionaire shopping mall magnate Rick Caruso, a former Republican who became a Democrat earlier this year, into a runoff race to replace term-limited Mayor Eric Garcetti.

Six-term US Rep. Karen Bass was once viewed as the frontrunner in the mayor's race, but Caruso mounted an unexpectedly strong challenge against her, spending $40 million to push the argument that city leaders have failed to keep people safe and have proven inept in finding solutions to house some 41,000 people living on the streets.

Bass, a Democrat who led the House negotiations on legislation to increase police accountability after Floyd's death, has promised to make public safety a priority. She pledged to restore the Los Angeles Police Department to its authorized force of 9,700 officers, in part by hiring more civilians to free up 250 officers to return to street patrols. But she has not gone as far as Caruso, who has promised to hire 1,500 additional officers and to bring on some 500 sanitation workers to clean up the streets -- proposals that his critics say the city cannot afford.

For months now, the crosswinds facing Democrats nationally as they struggle to find an effective message on crime and inflation have been apparent in races across California, where Democrats currently hold all the statewide offices and dominate the congressional delegation.

The new map that was drawn by the state's nonpartisan redistricting commission last year yielded as many as ten competitive House races in California, where Democrats were bullish about the potential for pickups.

But those ambitions have been tempered by the fact that Golden State voters are contending with the highest gas prices in the nation, unsettled by the spike in violent crime and frustrated by the fact that they see no improvement in homelessness even though billions of dollars are flowing to build housing and shelters. All those issues have surfaced in close races in the state, emboldening Republicans who are advancing the notion that Democratic policies are leading to chaos.

The low turnout in Tuesday's elections in California and New Jersey was another sign that Democrats are failing to energize their voters in states that will be key to their hopes of holding control of Congress.

JUST WATCHED Hear Elizabeth Warren's plan to avoid an election loss for Democrats Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Hear Elizabeth Warren's plan to avoid an election loss for Democrats 01:19

Despite an array of competitive House races -- where the top two vote-getters regardless of party will advance to the general election -- only 19% of California ballots had been returned as of Tuesday even though they were mailed to nearly 22 million voters weeks ago, according to ballot tracking data from the California-based firm Political Data Intelligence.

Mississippi, Montana, Voters also cast ballots in Iowa New Mexico and South Dakota on Tuesday in primary contests that offered a window into how much voters intend to blame the party in power for their dissatisfaction about the state of the economy and the country.

Several California Republican incumbents faced their own challenges as the various factions of the GOP continue to wrestle for dominance. Rep. David Valadao, one of ten GOP members who supported Trump's 2021 impeachment, faced a challenge on his right in his Democratic-leaning Central Valley seat -- the new 22nd District. Former Fresno City Councilmember Chris Mathys said he decided to run because of Valadao's impeachment vote, but Trump has not gotten involved in the race.

GOP Rep. Young Kim confronted strong competition from her right flank in the newly drawn 40th District in Orange County from Marine veteran Greg Raths, another Trump loyalist.

On the flip side, Democrats hope to use GOP Rep. Mike Garcia's ties to Trump against him in California's 27th District after redistricting made his northern Los Angeles County seat more Democratic. (Garcia voted against certifying the 2020 presidential election results in Arizona and Pennsylvania.) Former state Assemblywoman Christy Smith, a Democrat, will advance to a runoff in the district with Garcia, CNN projected.

Iowa Democrats delivered an upset on Tuesday night by rejecting a onetime star in the party, former Rep. Abby Finkenauer, in her bid to take on veteran GOP Sen. Chuck Grassley in November.

Following Finkenauer's recent blunder -- where she almost failed to qualify for the ballot when a judge found that she had not met the signature requirements -- as well as her loss two years ago to Republican Rep. Ashley Hinson, Democrats in the Hawkeye State went in a different direction. They chose retired Navy Adm. Mike Franken to go up against Grassley, the longest-serving Republican in the US Senate, who will win his party's primary as he seeks an eighth term, CNN projected.

Finkenauer served for one term in Congress after she won a district in 2018 that former President Donald Trump had carried two years earlier. At that time, she was the second-youngest woman ever elected to Congress, at the age of 29.

Elsewhere in Iowa, one of the most competitive races is in the 3rd District, where Rep. Cindy Axne, the only Democrat in the congressional delegation, hopes to hold her seat in a district that Trump would have won by less than half a point. CNN projected that state Sen. Zach Nunn, an Air Force veteran, will win the Republican primary in the Des Moines-area district.

The other two competitive House races in Iowa are set. GOP Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks will face Democratic state Rep. Christina Bohannan in the new 1st District. In the 2nd District, Hinson will face Democratic state Sen. Liz Mathis, who is also a former local TV news anchor.

There were also several high-profile congressional races in New Jersey. In the state's 7th District, a battleground that became more Republican in redistricting, CNN projected that Democratic Rep. Tom Malinowski and Republican Tom Kean Jr., the former state Senate minority leader and son of former New Jersey Gov. Tom Kean, will face off in the general election.

In the 8th District in northern New Jersey, Democrat Rob Menendez Jr., son of New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez, will win the Democratic primary, CNN projects, as he runs for the seat of retiring Democratic Rep. Albio Sires.

GOP Rep. Chris Smith, who voted for the bipartisan infrastructure bill, fended off an array of primary challengers in the 4th District in central New Jersey, including Mike Crispi, a talk show host endorsed by Trump allies such as Roger Stone and Rudy Giuliani.

In Montana, Trump backed his former Interior secretary Ryan Zinke -- despite his history of controversy -- as the candidate attempts to return to Congress . The state won a second congressional seat following the 2020 census results. Zinke faced four other candidates in the GOP primary, including former state Sen. Al Olszewski and pastor Mary Todd, as questions swirl about Zinke's residency

In South Dakota, Rep. Dusty Johnson will win the GOP primary for the state's only congressional seat, CNN projected. He faced a primary challenge after voting to certify the 2020 presidential election results. CNN also projected that South Dakota GOP Gov. Kristi Noem , a potential 2024 contender, will defeat her primary challenger, state Rep. Steven Haugaard, who had accused her of being insufficiently conservative and spending too much time as governor tending to her ambitions for higher office.

This story has been updated with additional developments.