Duque poised to become Colombia’s next president
BOGOTA, Colombia — Ivan Duque, the young conservative protege of a powerful former president, was elected Colombia’s next leader Sunday after promising to roll back a fragile peace accord that has divided the South American nation.
Duque captured almost 54 percent of the vote, putting him 12 points ahead of former leftist guerrilla Gustavo Petro in a tense runoff election that had appeared to be tightening in recent days.
In the end, the prematurely graying 41-year-old sailed to victory, promising to change parts of the accord with leftist rebels but not “shred it to pieces” as some of his hawkish allies had been urging.
When he takes office in August, he will be Colombia’s youngest president in more than a century.
“I’ve come here to fulfill a dream,” Duque said outside his polling center. “For Colombia to be governed by a new generation, one that wants to govern for all and with. One that unites the country and turns the page on corruption.”
The new president will inherit a country still scarred by five decades of bloody armed conflict and grappling with soaring cocaine production. Former guerrillas of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia are struggling to reinsert themselves in civilian life in a nation where many people remain hesitant to forgive. Vast swaths of remote territory remain under the control of violent drug mafias and residual rebel bands.
“Undoubtedly, for the peace process, this is an important test,” said Patricia Munoz, a professor of political science at the Pontifical Xavierian University in Bogota.
It was the first presidential election since the signing of the peace agreement ending Latin America’s longest-running conflict and was as much about the accord as it was deeply entrenched issues such as corruption and inequality.
Petro galvanized young voters and drew millions to public plazas with his fiery speeches vowing to improve the lives of poor, disenfranchised Colombians.
And though he failed to catch Duque, his more than 8 million votes marked the biggest ballot box success for a leftist presidential contender in a country where leftist politicos were stigmatized over fears of potential ties to guerrilla causes.