Citizens go to vote in Cali, Colombia, on Sunday as polling stations opened across the country for Senate and House of Representatives elections for the 2026–2030 term. Photo by Ernesto Guzman/EPA
Colombia’s ruling leftist coalition, the Historic Pact, emerged as the largest force in the Senate after legislative elections Sunday, strengthening President Gustavo Petro’s political base, but leaving a fragmented Congress with no single-party majority.
The Historic Pact won 22.88% of the vote for the 103-seat Senate, increasing its representation to 25 senators from 20 and adding more than 1 million votes compared with the 2022 elections, Caracol Radio reported.
In the 183-seat House of Representatives, the coalition secured 42 seats.
Despite the gains, the results confirm a divided legislature in which no political force holds an outright majority. Petro called the outcome a “resounding victory,” but acknowledged that fragmentation will require the next president to govern through coalitions, Infobae reported.
The conservative Democratic Center party, founded by former President Álvaro Uribe, placed second with 15.61% of the Senate vote. The party increased its representation to 17 senators from 13, but failed to secure a Senate seat for Uribe, who served as president from 2002 to 2010.
Although voter abstention declined slightly, turnout remained below 50% of the more than 41 million registered voters eligible to cast ballots.
Voters also participated in interparty primary elections to select three candidates who will compete in Colombia’s presidential election scheduled for May 31. The mechanism allows citizens to choose a single candidate from within the same political bloc.
Sen. Paloma Valencia won her primary and will represent the right in the presidential race, El Colombiano reported.
While the list of presidential contenders became clearer after the vote, the final number of candidates could change depending on formal registrations by independent movements.
Between 10 and 16 candidates are expected to appear on the first-round ballot. Colombia’s National Civil Registry will publish the official list and ballot design in the coming weeks after legal deadlines for candidate registration and modifications expire, El Tiempo reported.
Current polling places Sen. Iván Cepeda of the Historic Pact at about 35% support, reflecting his coalition’s status as the largest bloc in Congress.
Among opposition figures, Paloma Valencia of the Democratic Center and Abelardo de la Espriella of the National Salvation movement are polling near 34%, setting up what analysts describe as a tight race that could advance to a runoff scheduled for June 21.
