In a brief message on his social media, Rodolfo Hernández, who was a candidate for the Colombian presidency on behalf of the League of Anti-Corruption Governors party, accepted his defeat in the race against his opponent Gustavo Petro, who this Sunday became the virtual president.
"Colombians, today the majority of citizens who voted did so by choosing the other candidate. As I have repeatedly expressed, I accept the result as it should be if we want our institutions to be strong," he explained.
In a message lasting just over a minute, Hernández expressed his hope that the decision taken by the citizens is the best and correct one for Colombia.
"I sincerely hope that this decision taken by the citizens will be beneficial for everyone and that Colombia will move towards the change that prevailed in the first round of voting."
He also wished the best to the now virtual president, Gustavo Petro.
"I wish Dr. Gustavo Petro a good leadership of the country, that he is faithful to his speech against corruption and that he does not disappoint those who trusted him."
Finally, he thanked the Colombian people for having accepted his proposal, even though it was not the winning one.
And with 99.79 percent of the tables counted after the election day this Sunday, June 9, the Gustavo Petro-Francia Márquez formula obtained 50.48 percent of the votes of the electorate in its favor ‒11 million 274 thousand 343‒, while the duo generated by Rodolfo Hernández and Marelen Castillo only registered 47.26 percent ‒10 million 554 thousand 561‒ of the votes.
Photo: Ivan Castaneira. Global Exchange – Peninsula 360 Press
The voting tables in Colombia have closed and the counting of ballots has begun to determine who will be the next president of the country. Citizens have expressed their right through ballots that reflect an exercise that has not been easy for various communities, in light of this, the collective VotoPacífico has presented a presidential election assessment of Sunday's election day.
The recount of data, the group of lawyers stated, reflects the most important events that affected the electoral process this Sunday, the accumulation of irregularities reported by citizens and the violations of human rights that have occurred during this day in the Pacific region and other places in the country.
In Cali, they explained, there were several irregularities in different areas of the city, starting with ballots marked in white ‒Colegio Navia Varón, voting table number 13, Colegio fe y alegría, table 15‒; and vote buying at Colegio de la Mutis, Terrón Colorado neighborhood, by officials or people close to the Registry, identified with green shirts, who simulated checking ballots, but instead offered $50,000 per vote.
Another situation regarding vote buying occurred at the Olaya Herrera School - booth 002 - in the city of Cali, where there was also aggression against citizens who act as electoral witnesses for the Historic Pact, the count indicated.
On June 18, in the city of Pasto, two people were arrested with approximately one billion pesos that were allegedly going to be used for the direct purchase of votes in favor of the candidate Rodolfo Hernández in the Pacific region, however, an official report from the authorities is still awaited.
At the INTERPO voting point, an educational institution in the Bellavista neighborhood of Buenaventura and in the municipality of Magüi Payán, Nariño, the marking of the blank vote box was reported on several electoral cards, as well as in the city of Popayán, Cauca, at the Melvin Johnson school, table number 2.
In Jamundí, Valle, there was little public transportation service in the city, making it difficult for people to get to their polling stations; while in the municipality of Ancuya, Nariño, table 9, marked ballots were handed out, more frequently when the person who voted was elderly.
He added that the Electoral Observation Mission (MOE) reported that the Mosoco polling station in Paéz, Cauca, was also delayed in opening due to the closure of the road caused by the landslide that left eight people dead.
Human Rights
Since 7:30 a.m., in the Campo Hermoso inspection, Caquetá, it was reported that the National Army repressed the community in general where crossfire occurred in the territory.
They highlighted that this Sunday, two supporters of the Historic Pact coalition were murdered in the San Martín neighborhood of the municipality of Guapí, Cauca, who were accredited as electoral witnesses in Gustavo Petro's campaign.
Meanwhile, members of the Historic Pact campaign team in the municipality of Colón/Génova, Nariño, were attacked and arbitrarily detained by the police, they added.
Also on this election day, they reported that human rights defender Ersain de Jesús Ramirez was murdered by hitmen in the municipality of Patía el Bordó, Cauca.
Thus, they said, two massacres were perpetrated in the municipality of Guapi with nine people killed in 24 hours, among them a mother of seven children, as well as Roberto Carlos Rivas, president of the communal action board and electoral witness of the Historic Pact.
As a result of the situation in Guapi, they explained, the mayor of the municipality, by decree 42 of 2022, ordered a curfew throughout the territory from 5:00 p.m. this Sunday until 5:00 a.m. on Monday, June 20.
In addition to the above, the National Army, in support of the electoral process in the village of Vetas, a rural area of the municipality of Tibú, Norte de Santander, was affected by the detonation of an explosive device allegedly installed by the ELN, resulting in six soldiers being injured.
«Compared to the first round of elections, today many more incidents, irregularities and human rights violations were reported in the Pacific region, leaving a balance that continues to worry and alert the current VotoPacifico lawyers' campaign.»
Photo: Alex Sierra Global Exchange – Peninsula 360 Press
With 50,571 TP3T and a total of 10,984,247 votes, the candidate for the Historic Pact coalition, Gustavo Petro, is the virtual winner of the Historic Pact Coalition in what has been a close race.
Alongside his vice-presidential running mate Francia Márquez, Gustavo Petro has announced a favorable result for the coalition they represent.
Since they have announced that they have a number of votes in their favor after the second round of voting in Colombia this Sunday, June 19.
Meanwhile, the percentage of 47,16% of votes and a total of 10,242,764 votes of results of the League of Anti-Corruption Governors whose candidate is Rodolfo Hernández and the candidate for vice president Marelen Castillo present a % of the vote count, all with official numbers from the Registry.
This note was produced with the support of a group of journalists covering the first round elections in Colombia, sponsored by the organization Global Exchange in collaboration with Peninsula 360 Press.
There is a tense atmosphere in the Mayor's Office of Bogotá in the second round of the presidential elections. Photo: Ingrid Sánchez- Global Exchange – Península 360 Press
Amid a tense atmosphere, the presidential elections in the Mayor's Office of Bogotá are taking place with great expectations from voters who register and cast their votes during this Sunday of elections in Colombia, where the population will decide who will be their next president.
According to Ingrid Sánchez, for Global Exchange and Peninsula 360 Press, the vast majority of voters, who are showing great enthusiasm around the voting booths, declare that they eagerly await the results in favor of the Historic Pact formula.
However, the perception of electoral sentiment among some voters in the area differs, as for some the heated atmosphere is a stage for fraud to take place, while for others everything is going smoothly.
Voters support Gustavo Petro for Mayor of Bogotá. Video: Ingrid Sánchez. Global Exchange – Peninsula 360 Press
The majority of the population that has gone out to vote is doing so with the hope that the election results will favor Gustavo Petro, in whom they place their hopes that he will "end hunger and insecurity in the region" because they claim that, otherwise, if Rodolfo Hernández, the presidential candidate with the League of Anti-Corruption Governors, were to win, social inequality would reign.
This article was produced with the support of a group of journalists covering the first round of elections in Colombia, sponsored by the Global Exchange organization in collaboration with Península 360 Press.
Presidential candidates in Colombia, Gustavo Petro, candidate of the Historic Pact, and Rodolfo Hernandez, for the League of Anti-Corruption Governors, cast their vote this Sunday, June 19, each in their respective polling stations.
In the framework of the elections that are being held this Sunday, the economist and senator Gustavo Petro, who is competing in the electoral contest to be the next head of state of Colombia, registered and cast his vote in the town of Puente Aranda, Bogotá, accompanied by his wife Verónica Alcocer and daughters.
The candidate showed his vote to the audience with an "X" over the photo of him and Francia Márquez, his presidential candidate.
He then called on the population to go out and vote en masse, and especially encouraged young people and women, because he said, "they are the factor that is expected to change the history of Colombia."
For his part, the engineer and former mayor of Bucaramanga, presidential candidate Rodolfo Hernández, went to cast his vote in the capital of Santander, in the number one position of the Santander College.
At the site and accompanied by his wife Socorro Oliveros, he deposited his vote at the voting table and then showed his ballot with the "X" over his photo and that of his presidential candidate Marelen Castillo.
The presidential candidate was accompanied by supporters who supported him at the time of the vote.
Javier Sarabia Pedroza, who is part of the “Electoral Witnesses” dedicated to monitoring the elections independently. Photo: Manuel Ortiz. Global Exchange – Península 360 Press
The Colombian Caribbean, one of the regions with the highest presence of armed groups linked to drug trafficking, human trafficking and extortion, is preparing with independent electoral witnesses for the presidential elections this Sunday, June 19.
Maestro Javier Sarabia Pedroza, director of the Son de Negro Dance of San Cayetano, is part of the self-appointed "Electoral Witnesses" dedicated to monitoring the elections independently, mostly farmers and fishermen who will be watching the 12 voting tables installed in the area.
Sarabia Pedroza said that she hopes that the current elections will take place peacefully and without fraud, since they are "the hope for us as an Afro group" because for a long time they were not taken into account for representation.
"We are an Afro-farming people, we live off agriculture and fishing. Here we have not had a good contribution from the governments. We hope that this incoming government will really address the problem of the Afro groups, especially in this area, which has been largely forgotten by the central administration," he said.
This note was produced with the support of a group of journalists covering the second round elections in Colombia, sponsored by the organization Global Exchange in collaboration with Peninsula 360 Press.
Duvan Caro and Manuel Ortiz, reporters from the Global Exchange team – Peninsula 360 Press.
Afro-Colombian communities face and overcome difficulties in exercising their right to vote in the second round of presidential elections taking place this Sunday in Colombia, where candidates Gustavo Petro and Rodolfo Hernández are vying for the presidency.
From San Juan Nepomuceno in Montes de María, Manuel Ortiz and Duván Caro, reporters who are part of a group of journalists covering the second round elections in Colombia, sponsored by the organization Global Exchange In collaboration with Peninsula 360 Press, they highlighted that the obstacles facing communities, mostly black, have not stopped in the Colombian Caribbean.
"Yesterday we toured some of the communities in Montes de María, most of them Afro-Colombian peasant communities, and we encountered some obstacles that people will have to face today when voting," said Duvan.
From there, he said, they were able to confirm that there are many Afro-peasant and ethnic communities that have to overcome difficulties this Sunday to exercise their right to vote freely.
One of these obstacles, he explained, is the armed presence of illegal actors outside the law, precisely the same ones who about a month ago led or decreed an armed strike in the area.
Other communities in the Magdalena River area say they are having difficulty voting due to the floods that are currently affecting their communities.
These reporters have undertaken to tour the area to verify and assist these communities in exercising their right to vote.
This community, they said, was one of those that was confined during the recent armed strike.
«San Juan Nepomuceno is one of the municipalities that was affected by the confinement decreed by this illegal armed actor called «Las Sauce or Clan del Golfo», a region that experienced approximately a week of complete silence and abandonment by government institutions.»
It should be noted that the mayor of the municipality was temporarily replaced for undue participation in politics just 15 days ago, and the Colombian National Electoral Council returned him to his post.
Suárez de Cauca, ciudad natal de Francia Márquez, candidata a la vicepresidencia de Colombia por parte de la coalición «Pacto Histórico», espera una gran afluencia de votantes este domingo 19 de junio, fecha en que se define el próximo gobierno colombiano que estará al cargo, al menos, 4 años.
Y es que, desde las 8:00 horas, horario de apertura de las urnas, pobladores de la región se han desplazado desde lugares remotos, con más de cuatro horas de camino para votar.
En medio de un ambiente lleno de expectativa por parte de votantes que nunca habían participado en alguna elección por, según sus palabras, «falta de representación», ahora lo harán bajo la fórmula Petro-Márquez.
Francia, who is of Afro-Colombian origin, is expected to arrive in the town where she was born to exercise her vote.
De acuerdo con Laura Carlsen, reportera en la zona que forma parte de un grupo de periodistas que cubre las elecciones de segunda vuelta en Colombia, patrocinados por la organización Global Exchange en colaboración con Península 360 Press, destacó el entusiasmo del pueblo por acudir a las urnas y ejercer su derecho, el cual se ha volcado por Francia.
Laura Carlsen, reportera del equipo de Global Exchange – Península 360 Press.
«Mucha gente, algunos vienen de las veredas en las montañas alrededor de esta población caminando o bajando más de cuatro horas para votar», destacó.
A su vez, apuntó que, a pesar de los costos financieros y de otro tipo que tiene que enfrentar la gente para llegar hasta las urnas, hay una gran euforia y emoción por verse finalmente representados en las boletas y buscar con ello un cambio real para las comunidades negras que tanto han sufrido bajo otros gobiernos.
«Se nota que están motivados y se espera una gran votación precisamente para la fórmula Petro-Márquez en estas elecciones. Muchas personas que hemos entrevistado, sobre todo en la población afro-colombiana, ha expresado que es la primera vez en la historia que se sienten representadas por un candidato o una candidata en este caso a la presidencia o vicepresidencia», dijo.
En estas elecciones históricas, precisó Carlsen, Francia Márquez no sólo representa la figura de una mujer afro-colombiana, sino también tiene una trayectoria de lucha con que se identifica mucha de la gente que va a votar este domingo contra los megaproyectos, el desplazamiento, la violencia y el hambre que se vive en la región.
Municipio de Guapi, Colombia. Foto: Ivan Castaneira. Global Exchange – Península 360 Press
La falta de garantías para ejercer el voto en la Región Pacífica de Colombia, en especial en el Litoral Pacífico, así como la vulneración de los derechos humanos y la alta presencia de grupos armados en la región, entre otros factores, hacen más grande el riesgo de un posible fraude electoral este 19 de junio.
De acuerdo con un informe elaborado por la Campaña de Abogados y Abogadas por unas Elecciones Libres en el Pacífico –Pacific Vote-, lo anterior también se evidencia en la composición de múltiples factores y dinámicas, como la alta presencia y control por parte de diversos grupos armados, como el ELN, El Clan del Golfo, grupos residuales de las FARC y Los Pelusos.
Además, el territorio presenta números alarmantes de violaciones de derechos humanos, altos índices de Necesidades Básicas Insatisfechas (NBI), así como un riesgo alto y extremo de pobreza monetaria en casi la totalidad de los 62 municipios del Litoral Pacífico, lo que aumenta la vulnerabilidad para que los habitantes de esta región puedan ser cautivos del clientelismo, las maquinarias electorales y la compra de votos.
Timbiquí, Colombia. Foto: Ivan Castaneira. Global Exchange – Península 360 Press
En ese sentido, la Campaña de Abogados(as) dijo encontrarse en alerta sobre las múltiples denuncias que se han recibido de cara a la segunda vuelta presidencial. «Desde el 29 de mayo (primera vuelta) a la fecha, se ha evidenciado un alto número de violación de derechos humanos en 20 días, situación que pone en riesgo la integridad de la población civil en el Pacífico y el ejercicio efectivo del derecho al voto».
Además, Voto Pacífico señaló que en el presente año han sido asesinados 88 líderes y defensores de los derechos humanos en el país, mientras que desde la primera vuelta presidencial han sido asesinados nueve, de los cuales cinco pertenecen a la región Pacífica, dos al departamento del Cauca y tres en el Valle.
«A lo anterior, se debe sumar la alerta y situación crítica que se presenta en el norte del departamento del Cauca, con graves denuncias sobre vulneración de derechos humanos, debido al creciente número de actos violentos en contra de la población indígena, afrocolombiana y campesina, creando una atmósfera de terror e inseguridad permanente a toda la zona».
Todo ello, añadió, se ha «materializado en un feminicidio en el corregimiento de Mondomo y un doble homicidio en la misma zona limítrofe, entre los municipios de Santander de Quilichao y Buenos Aires, vereda Las Lajas del resguardo de La Concepción, el día 12 de junio y finalmente, el asesinato de un menor de 15 años con signos de tortura, en el resguardo de Las Delicias».
Así, indicó que dichas violaciones de derechos humanos en el Pacífico, agravan el panorama de cara a las elecciones y como Campaña, exhortan al Estado colombiano para que pueda garantizar su protección de manera imperativa en dicha región, no solo para el ejercicio del derecho constitucional al voto, sino para la dignidad plena de todos los habitantes del país.
Citizen complaints
La Campaña de Abogados(as) señaló que el rol de la ciudadanía ha sido trascendental para las presentes elecciones, pues desde el primer momento han efectuado una participación activa, que ha permitido alimentar los documentos e informes que son de conocimiento público.
Entre estas denuncias destaca la recibida el 15 de junio del presente año, donde los consejos comunitarios del municipio de Nóvita, Chocó, denunciaron que el ELN impuso restricción de movilidad y libre circulación a toda la población civil después de las 18:00 horas, a raíz de varios enfrentamientos entre grupos armados ilegales cerca del corregimiento del Tambito.
Desde ese día también han sido retenidos más de 40 jóvenes en la ciudad de Cali, que forman parte de procesos sociales que surgieron a raíz de las movilizaciones del paro nacional del 2020; mientras que el líder social Omar Delgado fue liberado, luego de ser secuestrado el domingo 12 de junio en la ciudad de Buenaventura.
Electoral Risk
A un día para las elecciones, la Campaña también se pronunció con preocupación al conocer que nuevamente fue negada la verificación al software electoral de la Registraduría Nacional, en cabeza del registrador Alexander Vega.
«Esto no permite que se otorguen las garantías necesarias a todo el electorado, adicionalmente, persisten los riesgos electorales de los cuales se había manifestado la MOE en elecciones pasadas».
Entre los riesgos destacaron que alrededor de 290 municipios del país que se encuentran en riesgo alto y extremo de fraude electoral o limitación al ejercicio del sufragio.
De lo anterior, 84 municipios se encuentran en riesgo extremo de sufrir violencia en contra de la población civil ‒grupos armados ilegales GAI‒, de los cuales 42 se encuentran en la Región Pacífica: 16 en Cauca, 14 en Nariño, 9 en Chocó y 3 en Valle.
En tanto que 206 municipios se encuentran en alto riesgo y 38 de ellos pertenecen al pacífico: 12 en el Valle, 11 en Nariño, 10 en Chocó y 5 en Cauca.
Todo esto «vulnera el derecho al voto de las comunidades en todo el Pacífico, en especial en el Litoral ‒62 municipios‒, una muestra de la democracia racializada y desigual en Colombia». Lo anterior, señaló, materializa la falta de garantías que aquejan al Pacífico colombiano, somatizando el miedo a la población civil de cara a los próximos comicios electorales.
Municipio de Guapi, Colombia. Foto: Ivan Castaneira. Global Exchange – Península 360 Press
En contraste, para la primera vuelta presidencial, la situación no era distinta y todo ello se evidenció en el alto nivel de abstencionismo, en todo el Litoral Pacífico llegó al 55.65 por ciento y los territorios con mayor índice en cada departamento del Pacífico fueron Bagadó, Chocó ‒71 por ciento‒, Buenaventura en el Valle ‒60 por ciento‒, López de Micay en el Cauca ‒66.57 por ciento‒ y Santa Bárbara de Iscuandé en Nariño ‒72.08 por ciento‒.
«Esta Campaña, mantiene y mantendrá la vigilancia y veeduría no solamente sobre el posible fraude electoral, sino la protección y defensa de los derechos humanos en el Pacífico y la subregión del Litoral. La defensa de la vida y la democracia, resulta un imperativo de la presente Campaña junto a todos los abogados y abogadas que hacen parte del proceso y que desean un cambio efectivo en esta nación».
This note was produced with the support of a group of journalists covering the second round elections in Colombia, sponsored by the organization Global Exchange in collaboration with Peninsula 360 Press.
Photo: Ivan Castaneira. Global Exchange – Peninsula 360 Press
By Irma Gallo, with information from Iván Castaneira
Just hours before the second round of elections in Colombia, the Colombian Pacific region, where the Gustavo Petro-Francia Márquez ticket of the Historic Pact won the majority of votes in the first round, is facing violence and intimidation by armed groups and the government to frighten them and dissuade them from voting freely and peacefully.
Ali Bantu Ashanti is the Coordinator of Pacific Vote, an initiative to defend free elections in the Pacific region of Colombia. This region is made up of 62 municipalities, with a population of approximately 1,537,000 inhabitants, the majority of whom are Afro-descendants. Historically, it has a low political-electoral participation and is marked by vote-buying, corruption and violence.
Ali Bantu Ashanti, Pacific Vote Coordinator Photo: Ivan Castaneira. Global Exchange – Peninsula 360 Press
In an interview with Iván Castaneira, Ali Bantu Ashanti expressed his concern about the current situation in the Pacific:
“There is fear and uncertainty. People are worried throughout the Pacific region. Right now I am in the municipality of Guapi, touring this region with the lawyers of Voto Pacífico who decided to join us to monitor, to denounce electoral fraud, vote buying and the human rights violations that we are experiencing in this beautiful and powerful region of the country that is unfortunately mired in violence.”
“In the municipality of Bagadó yesterday, for example, there were strong clashes between the national army and the ELN group, directly violating the right of people to participate freely in Chocó. More than 49 thousand people are currently living in overcrowded conditions,” he continued.
“And what can be said about the two people who were murdered in a hospital in the municipality of Guapi or the indigenous social leader who was murdered in Cauca and many other leaders who have been murdered in the department of Valle.”
Photo: Ivan Castaneira. Global Exchange – Peninsula 360 Press
The leader called on the national and international community “to keep watch, to conduct surveillance, so that ultimately peaceful elections are held in Colombia and that people can go to the polls without fear, without fear of being killed because they vote for one candidate or another.”
He also denounced the concern that exists for the 40 young people imprisoned by the police in the context of the so-called Democracy Plan. “We are very concerned about what is happening to these young people who mobilized in what was called the social uprising.”
For Bantú Ashanti and the Voto Pacífico organization, the repression of young people is retaliation by the Duque government, “which does not want free and transparent elections to be held.” He is also convinced that the National Registrar is not providing guarantees for people to trust the National Registry: “it has flatly refused to comply with the ruling of the Council of State that requires it to conduct an audit in an independent and impartial manner.”
This note was produced with the support of a group of journalists covering the second round elections in Colombia, sponsored by the organization Global Exchange in collaboration with Peninsula 360 Press.
