2022 Colombian presidential election
Presidential elections will be held in Colombia on 29 May 2022. If no candidate receives a majority of the vote, a second round of voting will be held at a later date. Incumbent President Iván Duque is ineligible for a second term. Electoral system. Colombian presidents are elected for four-year terms using a two-round system; if no candidate receives a majority of the vote in the first round, a runoff is held between the top two candidates. The Vice President is elected on the same ticket as the President. Presidents are limited to a  single four-year term and Article 191 of the constitution requires candidates to be Colombian by birth and at least thirty years old. In line with the constitution, Colombian citizens by birth or by naturalization, aged eighteen or older have the right to vote. Several scenarios can cause the loss of the right to vote, as outlined in the constitution. Citizens in detention centers can vote from the establishments determined by the National Civil Registry. The civil registry inscription is not automatic, and citizens must go to the regional office of the Registry to register. Legislative Act No. 2 of  2015 established that the runner-up in the presidential elections is given a seat in the Senate and their vice president candidate will become a member of the House of Representatives.<ref name="ActoLegislativo02/2015"></ref> Registration of candidates. In order to be accepted as a candidate, applicants must either have the backing of a recognized political party in order to run as their official candidate, or to collect a minimum number of signatures in order to run as an independent candidate. The National Registry confirmed that the minimum number of signatures required was 580,620, equivalent to 3% of the total valid vote  in the 2018 Colombian presidential election, and that they had to be delivered to the registry by 17 December 2021. On 17 December, the National Registry confirmed that seven pre-candidates had delivered the necessary number of signatures: Alejandro Char, Rodolfo Hernández, Federico Gutiérrez, Alejandro Gaviria, Luis Pérez, Roy Barreras and Juan Carlos Echeverry. Of these seven pre-candidates, Char, Gutiérrez and Gaviria accepted the endorsements of political parties, thereby bypassing the necessity to run as independents, while Barreras and Echeverry later decided to drop out of the presidential race. This left Hernández and Pérez as the only independent candidates  in the race. Candidates. Summary of candidates. The following candidates registered with the National Registrar of Civil Status and will appear on the ballot of the first round. Historic Pact for Colombia. The Historic Pact for Colombia (Spanish: "Pacto Histórico por Colombia") is a coalition of left-wing, progressive and indigenous politicians. Five pre-candidates representing six political parties or movements announced that they would be standing for election as the unified presidential candidate for the coalition. The candidate was chosen by public vote on 13 March 2022. The candidates were: Gustavo Petro was announced as the winner of the  public vote and will be the candidate of the Historic Pact for Colombia coalition in the presidential election. Hope Center Coalition. The Hope Center Coalition (Spanish: "Coalición Centro Esperanza"), formerly known as the Coalition of Hope (Spanish: "Coalición de la Esperanza") until 28 November 2021, is a coalition of centre and centre-left politicians. Five pre-candidates announced that they would be standing for election as the unified presidential candidate for the coalition. The candidate was chosen by public vote on 13 March 2022. The candidates were: Sergio Fajardo was announced as the winner of the public vote and will  be the candidate of the Hope Center Coalition in the presidential election. Team for Colombia Coalition. The Team for Colombia Coalition (Spanish: "Coalición Equipo por Colombia") is a coalition of centre-right and right-wing politicians. Five pre-candidates announced that they would be standing for election as the unified presidential candidate for the coalition. The candidate was chosen by public vote on 13 March 2022. The candidates were: Federico Gutiérrez was announced as the winner of the public vote and will be the candidate of the Team for Colombia Coalition in the presidential election. Campaign. The economist and former  mayor of Bogotá, Gustavo Petro, previously a candidate in the 2018 presidential election, is leading some opinion polls and could become the first president of Colombia from a left-wing coalition. His political party, Humane Colombia, has promoted the creation of the Historic Pact for Colombia coalition, which includes social movements, socialist, environmental and feminist associations. The ideological diversity of the coalition is seen as a source of internal tension. Petro has been trying to win over more of the middle class during his campaign, which has led him to moderate his economic program and his criticism of the private  sector, while trying to distance himself from Venezuela, which he previously supported. He is critical of Colombia's neoliberal economic system and its reliance on oil and gas. He advocates progressive proposals on women's rights and LGBTQ issues, and supports a peace agreement between the state and the guerrillas. The centrist coalition, made up of significant figures ranging from the center-left to the center-right, is placed as second most voted in some opinion polls. The coalition is seen as having strong support among the upper socio-economic strata in the big cities.