On 8 March2026, Colombia held congressional elections, the first major vote of the year ahead of the presidential election at the end of May 2026, with a second round in June if necessary. In the Senate, the left-wing party of President Gustavo Petro, the Pacto Historico (Historic Pact), emerged as the largest political force, winning 25 of the 103 seats. The second-largest party was the Centro Democratico (Democratic Centre), the party founded by a former president, Álvaro Uribe Velez, which secured 17 seats. Both parties obtained a larger number of votes than in the previous election,1 but with no majority.
In the Camara (House of Representatives), the Democratic Centre won the largest share of seats, taking 32 of 183, followed closely by the Liberal Party with 31 seats and the Historic Pact with 29. Overall, the results produced a fragmented Congress, leaving no single party in control. As a result, broad alliances will need to be formed under the next President.
The new Senate layout. Photo courtesy of the registraduría.
Of the 182 members of the House of Representatives, 162 are elected by proportional representation. There are also the following seat allocations: two members are elected by the Afro-Colombian community, one by the Indigenous community and one by Colombian expatriates. In accordance with the 2016 Peace Accord, 16 seats are for the Development Programs with a Territorial Approach (PDET) through the Special Transitory Peace Constituencies (CITREP). Until this year there were 10 seats guaranteed (for two rounds of elections 2018-2022 and 2022–2026) to the FARC political party, the Comunes. This agreement was made in the 2016 Peace Accord to allow the FARC to transition from combatants to political actors. The Comunes did not win any seats in the 2026 Congressional elections.
Inter-party consultations
On the same day (8 March), Colombia held an inter-party consultation, after which 13 candidates were formally registered to run in the presidential elections on 31 May 2026.
The main contenders are Iván Cepeda for the Historic Pact, for the left. For the right are Paloma Valencia for the Democratic Centre, and Abelardo de la Espriella for Salvación Nacional (National Salvation). Although Cepeda appears to be leading in the polls, the outcome remains uncertain, as the two main contenders from the right also have strong support.
Last week, the leading candidates announced their vice-presidential running mates. Alongside Cepeda will be Aída Quicué, underlining an alliance between the progressive coalition and the Indigenous movement. Cepeda recognised her longstanding leadership in the Regional Indigenous Council of Cauca (CRIC) and the National Indigenous Organisation of Colombia. Quilcué, a senator elected in 2022 and a prominent Nasa Indigenous leader, has spent decades advocating for Indigenous rights and territorial protection. While the appointment has been widely seen as reinforcing Cepeda’s political posture, some argue that it may do little to broaden his electoral base, unlike his rivals’ choices, which appear aimed at attracting more centrist voters.
Paloma Valencia selected Juan Daniel Oviedo, former director of the National Administrative Department of Statistics (DANE). Oviedo had secured the second most votes during the inter-party consultations and was widely seen as the centrist candidate, who differ from Valencia on key issues, including the JEP and gender issues. Valencia wants to modify JEP’s mandate to make a provision for the armed forces to have access to an appeal’s legal recourse, but Oviedo believes it is best to leave the mandate as it is and continue supporting it financially. Valencia has also argued that a “gender ideology” emerged during the peace negotiations, whilst Oviedo, an openly gay politician, argues there is no such ideology. Oviedo is well-known in Bogota, and the Democratic Centre hopes of securing more votes in the capital.
De la Espriella announced as his vice-president Jose Manual Restrepo, an economist who was until now the rector of the University of Engineering in Antioquia (EIA), in Medellin, and who had been appointed Minister of Trade and Minister of Finance under Ivan Duque’s presidential term. He is considered a more centralist candidate, a technocrat, not far from politics, and one of his selling points to the centre-right is that he will instil trust to foreign investors and guarantee economic stability.