At Stake in this Election:       

• The Office of the President of the Republic of Colombia

Government Structure:

• Chief of State: President Iván DUQUE Márquez (since 7 August 2018)
• Head of Government: President Iván DUQUE Márquez (since 7 August 2018)
• Assembly: The Congress of the Republic of Colombia (Congreso de la República de Colombia) is a bicameral legislature consisting of the Chamber of Representatives (Cámara de Representantes), which will contain 188 seats following this election, and the Senate (Senado), which contains 108 seats.

Electoral System:

• The President of Colombia is elected to serve one four-year term* using a two-round majoritarian system, in which a runoff election is held between the top two candidates should no one receive a majority during the first iteration of voting.[1]
• The Chamber of Representatives (Cámara de Representantes) will consist of 188 seats, of which 161 “ordinary” seats will be contested by political parties from within 33 multi-member districts.** These seats will be allocated using list proportional representation, with remaining seats being allocated on the basis of greatest remainders. [2]^,[3]
• The Senate (Senado) will consist of 108 seats, of which 102 will be directly elected.*** Elections for 100 of these seats will occur in a single national constituency, while the remaining two seats will be decided in a special national constituency limited to indigenous communities. Both constituencies will use list proportional representation, with remaining seats being allocated on the basis of greatest remainders.[4]

*Following a 2015 electoral reform, successful presidential candidates are limited to serving one term.

**An additional five seats are reserved for members of the People’s Alternative Revolutionary Force (FARC) exclusively for the 2018 and 2022 elections as a result of the 2016 Colombian peace process. One seat is reserved for the runner-up vice-presidential candidate. Another two seats are reserved for the Afro-descendant communities, one seat is reserved for the Special Indigenous Circumscription, one seat is reserved Colombians residing abroad, and finally – pending regulation – one seat may be reserved for a Raizal candidate from San Andrés, Providencia and Santa Catalina. Finally, sixteen seats of the Special Transitory Circumscriptions of Peace will also be elected for the first time. [5]^,[6]

***An additional five seats are reserved for FARC representatives (see above), with an additional non-FARC seat reserved for the runner-up presidential candidate.[7]

Last Election:

• The first round of voting for the presidential elections occurred on 29 May 2022.
• The most recent elections were held for both chambers of the Congress of the Republic of Colombia (Congreso de la República de Colombia) on 13 March 2022.
• The last presidential elections occurred on 27 May 2018 and 17 June 2018.

Main Candidates in this Election:[8]^,[9]

• Candidate: Gustavo PETRO
  • Party: Historic Pact for Colombia (PHxC) / Pacto Histórico por Colombia
• Candidate: Rodolfo HERNÁNDEZ
  • Party: League of Anti-Corruption Governors (LIGA) / Liga de Gobernantes Anticorrupción

Population and Registered Voters:

• Population: 50,335650 (July 2021 est.)[10]
• Registered Voters: 39,002,239 (April 2022)[11]

Gender Data:

• Female Population: 24,829,387 (July 2021 est.)[12]
• Is Colombia a signatory to CEDAW: Yes (17 July 1980)[13]
• Has Colombia ratified CEDAW: Yes (19 January 1982)[14]
• Gender Quota: Yes. At least 30% of candidates of each gender must be included on electoral lists containing five or more candidates.****[15]
• Female candidates in this election: None
• Number of Female Legislators: 52 out of 187 legislators in the Chamber of Representatives (Cámara de Representantes) and 33 out of 108 legislators in the Senate (Senado).[16]
• Human Development Index (HDI) Position: Rank 83 at 0.767 (2020)[17]
• Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: Very low[18]

****In 2021, an electoral reform passed requiring gender parity on candidate lists. Pending further review by the Constitutional Court of Colombia, the new gender parity requirements will be operational for the next legislative electoral contest.[19]

Disability Data:

• Is Colombia a signatory to CRPD: Yes (30 March 2007)[20]
• Has Colombia ratified CRPD: Yes (10 May 2011)[21]
• Population with a disability: 7,010,509 (2022 est.)[22]