Petro – a lifelong fighter against inequality – won the country’s presidential race on Sunday by a slim margin with over 50% of the votes, beating 77-year-old entrepreneur Rodolfo Hernandez.
In another historic first, Petro’s vice-president will be Francia Márquez, the first Afro-Colombian to hold executive powers. Márquez is a prize-winning defender of human and environmental rights.
PES President Sergei Stanishev said:
“I congratulate Gustavo Petro on his important victory. The people of Colombia have made their voices heard: this vote has sent a great shift through Colombia’s politics, like other similar successes for the left in South America.
“A fairer, more sustainable, and more just future lies ahead for Colombia. President-elect Petro can count on fellow socialists and democrats here in Europe for support to achieve that. I look forward to strengthening the progressive bonds between the EU and Colombia.”
