Vote counting begins in Colombian primaries and congressional elections

(Bloomberg) — Vote counting has begun in the Colombian primaries that will define three candidates — one from each bloc: conservative, leftist and centrist — who will face hard-line favorites, Iván Cepeda and Abelardo de la Espriella, in the May presidential election. Voters will also choose members of the Senate and Chamber of Deputies.

In the conservative coalition’s primary, senator Paloma Valencia is the favorite among nine candidates. She advocates strengthening the army and police to launch a military offensive against cocaine trafficking gangs and also wants to eliminate the tax on large fortunes in the country.

A wide margin of victory and strong voter turnout could give Valencia momentum heading into the May 31 vote, where she will face Cepeda, an ally of left-wing President Gustavo Petro, who is leading in the polls, and de la Espriella, a lawyer who is close behind. None of the favorites are participating in the primaries.

On the left, Petro’s allies are also holding primaries, with polls pointing to former Medellín mayor Daniel Quintero and former Senate leader Roy Barreras as the main candidates. Meanwhile, centrist voters are expected to nominate former Bogotá mayor Claudia López, who has proposed job creation subsidies and corporate tax cuts.

Cepeda defended the redistribution of wealth and the granting of land to poor farmers. Polls show him and de la Espriella with a wide lead over all the other candidates. However, the winners of the primaries will have the opportunity to win the support of the thirteen candidates who will be eliminated.

There will likely be a second round of presidential elections on June 21.

The next president will have to deal with a fiscal deficit that is spooking investors, while record cocaine production has financed the expansion of illegal armed groups that have spread terror across vast rural areas. A Cepeda victory would likely trigger a wave of selling due to fears that its plans to increase social spending and transition away from oil and coal could entail greater debt, according to Juan David Ballén, director of economics and markets at Aval Asset Management.

“Some investors fear that challenges such as fiscal pressures, the perception of legal and regulatory instability and factors that could affect confidence in private investment will persist,” said Ballén. “It is also unclear who will be part of his economic team.”

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Colombia goes to the polls to choose Congress and presidential candidates

The new Congress must govern with Gustavo Petro’s successor, without the possibility of re-election

Congressional elections

Colombians will also elect 103 senators and 186 deputies to the Chamber of Deputies. Polls indicate that Petro’s coalition, the Historic Pact, will win the largest number of seats in the Senate, followed by Paloma Valencia’s party, the Democratic Center.

The Liberal Party, Conservative Party and U Party are expected to win a significant bloc of seats, but have not yet formally declared support for any presidential candidate. No party is expected to gain a majority in either house of Parliament, meaning the next president will need to try to form a governing coalition.

The polls were open from 8am to 4pm, with results expected on Sunday night.