2026 general elections in Latin America: Colombia, Peru…

In 2025, presidential elections were held in Honduras, Bolivia, and Chile, and in each of these countries, the right wing won the elections:

• Honduras: Nasry Asfura

• Bolivia: Rodrigo Paz

• Chile : Jose Antonio Kast

In February, in Costa Rica, the conservative candidate Laura Fernandez won the first round of elections with 48.8% of the vote. She had been chosen to succeed outgoing President Rodrigo Chaves of the party Social Democratic Progress (PSD or PPSD, centre-right).  A second round will not be held since Fernandez obtained more than 40% of the votes.

With all these victories for the right wing in Latin America, here is what the political map of the region looks like at the end of January 2026:

Here is what I can tell you about the next general elections that will be celebrated in Latin America this year:

Peru - April 12, 2026

Thirty-six candidates are registered on the electoral rolls for the 2026 elections, a record number in the country's history! Peru has a lot of political parties and therefore many presidential candidates. Despite a 70% voter turnout in the last elections, Peruvians seem divided on which candidate they will choose to lead the country.

Among all these candidates, two stand out:

• Rafael Lopez Aliaga: He is the mayor of Lima and is from the far-right party Popular Force. Lopez Aliaga is a supporter of Donald Trump. Faced with the problems of delinquency and organized crime (which we will discuss later), Lopez Aliaga defends and promotes the Bukele technique, which he actually calls a miracle. His party was also behind the call for impeachment of President Dina Boluarte in 2025.

• Keiko Fujimori: Keiko is the daughter of former conservative president Alberto Fujimori who died in 2024. In the 2021 presidential elections, Keiko lost with 10.9% of the vote to Pedro Castillo (15.4% of the vote), who was subsequently impeached in December 2022.

Between the deep political crisis and the growing feeling of insecurity, the next Peruvian president has his work cut out for him:

The biggest challenge facing the next president will be overcoming the political crisis that has been experiencing the country for over 15 years. 

→ Read my article about the political crisis in Peru

→ Read my article on the impeachment of President Dina Boluarte

Crime and insecurity are the main concerns of Peruvians. According to the National Observatory for Strategic Planning between 2011 and 2024, the percentage of the population aged 15 and over who did not feel safe in the past twelve months increased from 82% in 2011 to 86% in 2024. However, over the same period, the proportion of the population aged 15 and over who were victims of a crime in an urban area decreased from 40.0% in 2011 to 27.1% in 2024.

In October 2025, the Peruvian Secretary of the Interior indicated that by 2030,"17% of the population will be victims of some kind of crime, while the homicide rate will reach 5.4%."

On the one hand, insecurity has several negative consequences on the economy: increased costs related to crime, higher judicial expenses, brain drain, decreased productivity…

On the other hand, insecurity in Peru is a structural and multifaceted problem. It is primarily linked to the political crisis: constant changes of president and government have prevented the implementation of a long-term strategy to combat crime. Institutions have been weakened by the political crisis and numerous cases of corruption. Furthermore, the police force lacks resources.

Colombia - May 31, 2026

According to data from La Silla Vacia, in January 2026, President Gustavo Petro's approval rating was 42%. The left-wing president, who faced intense criticism from the very beginning of his term, has seen his disapproval rating plummet to 51.6% in recent months. By comparison, this rating reached 60% in 2024.

*You can take a look at the methodology used by La Silla Vacía to calculate the approval/disapproval rating of Gustavo Petro on this link:https://www.lasillavacia.com/silla-nacional/ponderador-de-encuestas-de-petro-su-aprobacion-crece-en-ano-electoral/ 

Gustavo Petro's presidency was marked by a kind of “legislative blockade” that partially prevented the implementation of the reforms promised during his campaign. Many ministers were dismissed, and the government as well as the president were repeatedly accused of corruption.

Petro’s management of armed conflict and his Total Peace policy based on dialogue and negotiation with the different actors of the conflict (paramilitary groups, guerrillas…) have been strongly criticized by the opposition. Its results have been very limited, and the feeling of insecurity in the country remains high.

→ Read my article on Total Peace policy

Another very important topic of Petro's term: Colombia’s relationship with the United States.

While the United States and Colombia had good relationships under the Biden administration, the situation became somewhat more complicated with Donald Trump's return to the White House. Relationships between Trump and Petro have had ups and downs: the imposition of new tariffs; the deportation of Colombian migrants; disagreements over the situation in Venezuela; Trump's accusations that Petro was involved in drug trafficking activities in the region and threats of military intervention in Colombia.

Historically, Colombia has always been a U.S ally, and the traditional Colombian right wing has always been mindful to maintain good relations with the U.S. However, under this first left-wing government led by Gustavo Petro (Petro's election marked the first time in 200 years that Colombia was led by a left-wing president) relationships between the two countries have been tense. Throughout his term, Petro did not hesitate to express his disagreements with the American president.

In recent weeks, tensions have eased thanks to several diplomatic initiatives like the visit of the Colombian president to the White House in early February, during which the two heads of state were able to share their views on the fight against drug trafficking in the region. Four months before the elections, this visit was strategic and, above all, essential for reassuring Colombians and consolidating the left's electoral base.

On top of that, the Colombian left had other wins such as the 23% increase in the minimum wage. The minimal wage went from 1,423,500 pesos to 1,750,905 Colombian pesos.

Despite President Petro's rather low approval rating and complicated term, the Colombian left still has a solid electoral base completely capable of competing with the right wing, which is experiencing fragmentations:

1. The traditional Colombian right wing has been weakened by the conviction of the former president Alváro Uribe, accused of manipulating witnesses to imprison Senator Iván Cepeda who had accused him of corruption and financing paramilitary groups.

   
   

2. The emergence of outsiders disrupts the two-party political system in Colombia: the Italian-Colombian lawyer Abelardo de la Espriella is taking advantage of divisions within the traditional right wing and gaining in popularity.

The candidates include:

• Ivan Cepeda, the successor of President Petro

• The conservative journalist Vicky Davila

  
  

• Abelardo de la Espriella supported by the party Creemos, founded by the mayor of Medellín, Federico (Fico) Gutiérrez

  
  

• Paloma Valencia representing the uribista party (from former president Álvaro Uribe) Centro Democratico.  

The first round of the presidential elections in Brazil will be held on October 4, 2026, and these elections will be crucial. The last elections in 2022 revealed the country's deep political polarization. Eighty-year-old leftist President Lula da Silva will face Bolsonaro's party, but this time without its main representative, Javier Bolsonaro. He will most likely compete against Bolsonaro’s son, Flávio.

Sources:

“Observatorio Nacional de Prospectiva”. CEPLAN. Consultado el 4 de febrero de 2026. https://observatorio.ceplan.gob.pe.

“Ponderador de encuestas de Petro: su aprobación crece en año electoral”. La Silla Vacía, enero 14. 2026. https://www.lasillavacia.com/silla-nacional/ponderador-de-encuestas-de-petro-su-aprobacion-crece-en-ano-electoral/.

Presidencia de la República. s/f. “Salario vital: $2.000.000 a partir de enero de 2026”. Consultado el 4 de febrero de 2026. https://www.presidencia.gov.co/prensa/Paginas/Salario-vital-2-000-000-a-partir-de-enero-de-2026-251230.aspx.

Prieto, Jineth. 2025. “Guía para entender el juicio a Álvaro Uribe”. La Silla Vacía, julio 27. https://www.lasillavacia.com/silla-nacional/guia-para-entender-el-juicio-a-alvaro-uribe/.