Colombia: Presidential race overshadowed by rising violence
Key takeaways
- With bombings, assassinations and ceasefire announcements from armed groups, Colombia's presidential candidates are sharply divided over how to confront the worsening conflict.
- On Tuesday, the motorcade of ruling party Senator Alexander Lopez came under fire on a highway in the conflict-ridden southwestern region of the country.
- "They just tried to kidnap the senator," President Gustavo Petro said, pinning the blame on "a drug-trafficking armed group."
Why this matters: an international story with cross-border implications worth tracking.
With bombings, assassinations and ceasefire announcements from armed groups, Colombia's presidential candidates are sharply divided over how to confront the worsening conflict.
https://p.dw.com/p/5E4c EThe last days of President Gustavo Petro's term has seen a spate of attacks ahead of presidential elections [FILE: March 8, 2026]Image: Esteban Vege La-Rotta/Anadolu/picture alliance Advertisement Colombia is heading into a deeply polarized presidential election amid renewed armed conflict and rising violence ahead of the poll.
The election campaign ahead of the first-round voting on May 31 has become Colombia's deadliest in decades, marked by the assassination of a leading presidential candidate and a series of bomb attacks in the country's south.