Enrique Penalosa, centre, mayoral candidate for Bogota, celebrates after winning local elections in Bogota, Colombia, yesterday.

AFP/Bogota


Colombians largely spurned far-right and far-left candidates as they elected hundreds of local officials who will have a crucial role in implementing any peace agreement reached with leftist Farc rebels.
They were the South American country’s first regional elections since the government of President Juan Manuel Santos opened peace talks in Havana with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia nearly three years ago.
Santos hopes to sign a peace agreement by March, to end Latin America’s oldest guerrilla war.
“The local and regional authorities who we are going to elect will have a huge responsibility,” Santos said, encouraging Colombians to vote.
“If we manage to end the armed conflict in the coming months, they will be held responsible for putting into practice the measures that will allow us a successful transition towards peace.”
Colombians elected 32 provincial governors and legislative bodies, more than 1,100 mayors and municipal councils, and other local leadership posts.
The country’s most closely watched contest was for the job of mayor of the capital, Bogota - a city of some 8mn.
Centre-right candidate Enrique Penalosa, a former Bogota mayor and ex-presidential candidate, carried the day with 33% of the vote. He will replace outgoing leftist politician Gustavo Petro, a former rebel with the now defunct M-19 guerrilla group.
His tenure has been widely criticised for insecurity and chaotic public transportation in the capital.
“Our government is going to be in name of all citizens, with no exceptions,” Penalosa promised. “It’s time to get our self-esteem back.”