Colombians go to the polls on Sunday (19) to choose the next president, between leftist candidate Gustavo Petro, who promises profound social reforms, and eccentric businessman Rodolfo Hernández, who has found fertile ground in anti-corruption rhetoric despite facing investigations into irregularities. .
With polls showing the candidates in a technical tie, the election could be one of the tightest in Colombia’s recent history.
Petro, former mayor of Bogotá and current senator, promised to improve social and economic conditions in a country where half the population lives in some form of poverty.
“Petro is the president Colombia needs right now,” said Nora Guevara, a 48-year-old accountant from Bogotá who was handing out pamphlets to him.
A former member of the M-19 guerrilla movement, Petro has proposed an ambitious $13.5 billion tax reform – equivalent to 5.5% of Colombia’s gross domestic product – financed by higher taxes on the richest.
Hernández, a surprise run-off candidate, was buoyed by anti-corruption pledges, plans to shrink the government and housing for the poor.
However, he faces an investigation by the Attorney General’s Office for allegedly intervening in a garbage collection tender, when he was mayor of Bucaramanga, to benefit a company his son worked for. lobby.
Hernández denies the allegations and supporters like his anti-establishment.
“Rodolfo… it’s a protest vote, a vote in which anything that sounds political is rejected,” property manager Juan González, 45, said at a Hernández campaign event outside Bogotá.
The next president of Colombia will receive a growing economy, after the deep crisis caused by the covid-19 pandemic.
The country’s GDP grew by a record 10.7% in 2021 and is expected to rise by 6.5% in 2022. The government deficit is expected to reach 5.6% of GDP, compared to a previous target of 6.2%.
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