The Triumph of Gustavo Petro and the Left in Colombia Widely Viewed as a Watershed Moment for Latin America

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On June 19, 2022, Colombia elected Gustavo Petro of the leftist Pacto Histórico coalition as President of Colombia, defeating the right-wing populist Rodolfo Hernández of the Liga de Gobernantes Anticorrupción. The result of the second-round election was broadly interpreted as one more important signal heralding the resurgence of the Latin American left, following the election of leftist leaders in Argentina, Mexico, and Chile, and coming before the expected return of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva as president of Brazil. Pundits and editorialists examined Petro’s victory in the Colombian context as well as part of the new political wave sweeping through the region, driven in part by economic misery aggravated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

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