![Federico Gutierrez, right, and Gustavo Petro take part in a presidential debate in Bogota, Colombia, May 23, 2022 (AP photo by Fernando Vergara).](https://www.worldpoliticsreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/l_colombia-elections-05272022-1.jpg?w=519&h=259&crop=1)
Colombians will go to the polls Sunday for the first round of a presidential election that represents a turning point in the country’s politics on several levels. The front-runner in the race, Gustavo Petro, would be the most progressive Colombian president since the 1930s should he win. A former leftist guerrilla, Petro has promised to expand the country’s social safety net, including improved access to health care and education, and reconfigure its economy by moving away from dependence on mining and hydrocarbons. His running mate, Francia Marquez, is one of five Afro-Colombian vice presidential candidates; prior to this year, no […]