Colombia Tries a Transformative Left Turn

Abstract

In 2022, Colombia elected its first leftist president in decades, Gustavo Petro. For decades, Colombian politics had been characterized by strong center-right parties, the hard-right populism of ex-president Álvaro Uribe, and regional family dynasties. Under Petro’s predecessor, however, each of these structures weakened and Colombia entered an accelerated period of change. Petro won on the promise of shepherding Colombia through a dual transition: from endemic violence to “total peace,” and from reliance on fossil fuels to green development. But even with a pro-government majority in Congress, mounting debt and inflation constrained his ability to deliver.