Miguel Uribe (Image: Facebook)
Colombia’s far-right Centro Democratico party is in turmoil following the conviction of the former president Alvaro Uribe and the assassination of the presidential pre-candidate Miguel Uribe (not related).
The party started having problems back in 2018 when the Supreme Court ordered an investigation into Alvaro Uribe, surrounding his bribery and fraud in criminal proceedings.
Centro Democratico struggling with Uribe trial
To avoid the Supreme Court, Colombia’s highest criminal court, from looking into his case, Uribe left Congress and forfeited his congressional immunity rights in August 2020.
The case was thus sent to a lower court, with the Prosecutor General’s Office being tasked with criminal investigation duties, instead of the Supreme Court.
This maneuver bought Uribe five years to stay relevant in politics, preserve the party’s perceived legitimacy, defend its interests in national politics, and plan ahead for the following elections in 2026.
The former president introduced Miguel Uribe to the party as its Senate chief in 2022, using his de facto control over the party, despite there being aspiring veteran candidates from within the party.
I agreed with the young Miguel Uribe Turbay that he would assume the position of head of the Senate ticket. I did so by virtue of a statutory power, which I rarely exercise, because I prefer discussion and the search for consensus within the party,
Alvaro Uribe Velez
Since then, Miguel Uribe has taken over the role as figurehead of the party.
A leaderless right: Deciding the party’s future
Miguel Uribe was shot during a political rally on June 7th, which deepened the crisis in the party and forced the candidates to halt their campaigning activities.
“There are no guarantees for campaigning,” said Senator Maria Fernanda Cabal, one of the primary candidates.
During the suspension of the campaigns, the party had to decide what to do next.
On July 23rd, the remaining four primary candidates met up with the former president on his estate outside of Medellin to decide on the party’s preliminary course of action.
According to the newspaper El Espectador, the primary candidates agreed to resume campaigning–and if Miguel Uribe survived the wounds, they would forfeit their own presidential ambitions and rally behind the Senate chief as the Democratic Center’s sole presidential candidate.
Meanwhile, the party would push a narrative focusing on the “innocence” of the former president, arguing that the case against him was not a legal one, but a political one.
Cabal, for example, has described the trial as “the result of systematic political persecution.”
Five days later, on July 28th, Uribe was convicted of fraud and bribery.
Miguel Uribe succumbed to his wounds and passed away on August 11th, two months after the assassination.
The conviction of the former president dealt another major blow to the party. The death of Miguel Uribe within two weeks also shattered the Centro Democratico’s efforts to gain a hold of the situation.
Campaigns were halted again.
The pre-candidates and the convicted former president will convene on October 26 to decide on what to do in the 2026 elections.
