The incoming government of Abelardo De La Espriella will face its first major challenge in Congress just days after the installation of the new legislature. While in the Chamber the nod from the president-elect was accepted and everything points to Nicolás Barguil (conservative) assuming the presidency during the first year, differences persist in the Senate regarding the Executive’s intention for Alfredo Deluque (Party of ‘la U’) to lead the corporation between 2026 and 2027, a period that traditionally proves key for the processing of the incoming government’s reforms.
The Cambio Radical party announced its support for Alfredo Deluque for the election of the Senate presidency
The differences arose within the government coalition itself. The Centro Democrático maintains its position that the Senate presidency in the first year belongs to them as they are the largest caucus among the parties aligned with the president-elect, Abelardo De La Espriella. However, the incoming administration insists on backing Deluque.
The Guajiro senator has the support of the Conservative Party, Cambio Radical, the Party of ‘la U’, Salvación Nacional and other sectors close to De La Espriella, which would indicate that he would have the majorities within the emerging official coalition to secure the Senate presidency. However, the Uribista party does not give in and maintains the aspiration of Honorio Henríquez. It even proposed that the final decision be made in the plenary and that the election be decided by open vote.
In that scenario, the independent and opposition parties would gain prominence and could tip the balance, especially the Historic Pact, which will have 26 seats, about a quarter of the Senate. Although Petrismo has been one of the main antagonists of Uribismo, its votes could end up influencing the De La Espriella government to start its mandate with a Senate president different from the one it promotes.
Precisely on that scenario spoke Rodrigo Lara, designated Minister of the Interior, at the start of the third day of meetings among the delegates responsible for defining the presidencies of Congress and the distribution of constitutional and legal commissions. The meetings were held at the Grand Hyatt Hotel, in western Bogotá. “I resist thinking that the version is true in the sense that the Centro Democrático will go to an open vote. I do not dare to think that because that inevitably, unavoidably, implies an alliance with the Petro government and the Historic Pact. There can be no other calculation and no other rationality. If a party goes to an open vote, it is because it has to seek votes, and the available votes are those of the Petro government.”
Álvaro Uribe questioned the possible arrival of Alfredo Deluque to the Senate presidency: ‘He received benefits from the Petro Government’
The statements anticipated the tone that would mark the rest of the day. In the morning there was a meeting between the delegates of the Centro Democrático and the Party of ‘la U’ to try to resolve the differences. Sources familiar with the meeting told EL TIEMPO that the dialogue was tense and did not allow any agreement to be reached.
In the afternoon, the discussion expanded to the rest of the parties. However, the atmosphere remained tense and, at the close of this edition, there was no consensus on who will preside over the Senate during the first year. The debate even moved to social media, where the Uribismo made public its first differences with the incoming government.
Leaders of the Centro Democrático recalled that Deluque was close to former president Juan Manuel Santos and that, as president of the Chamber, he facilitated the processing of projects related to the peace agreement with the former FARC. They also questioned his favorable votes on emblematic initiatives of the Petro government, such as the tax reform and the ‘total peace’ law.
This is Nicolás Barguil, the conservative who would be president of the Chamber of Representatives during the first year of the next government
In the Chamber, on the other hand, the discussion about the composition of the board seems to have been settled since the second meeting, when it was agreed that the first year would correspond to the Conservative, who has as favorite the representative Nicolás Barguil, close to the president-elect De La Espriella. Yesterday’s day was also tense and there were moments of high tension, although the differences were concentrated in the distribution of the constitutional and legal commissions.
The outlook is not yet completely clear. A last-minute change in the Senate negotiation could alter the agreements reached in the Chamber. In addition, some sectors consider that Barguil was close to President Gustavo Petro due to some of the support he gave during the previous four-year term. However, there are no investigations against him in the party for disobeying the directives’ instructions and he always complied when the leadership asked not to support the reforms. Added to this is that Cambio Radical maintains the aspiration of Julio César Triana to contest the presidency.
JUAN SEBASTIÁN LOMBO DELGADO
POLITICAL EDITORIAL