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Democratic Centre (Colombia)

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Democratic Centre
Centro Democrático
LeaderÁlvaro Uribe
PresidentGabriel Jaime Vallejo
Founded20 January 2013 (20 January 2013) (as a political movement)
15 July 2014 (15 July 2014) (as a political party)[1]
Split fromColombian Liberal Party
Social Party of National Unity
HeadquartersCalle 66 No. 7 – 59, Quinta Camacho, Bogotá
Youth wingJuventudes Centro Democrático
IdeologySocial conservatism[2]
Economic liberalism[3][4]
Right-wing populism[5]
Political positionRight-wing[6][7][8] to far-right[9]
Regional affiliationUnion of Latin American Parties[10]
International affiliationCentrist Democrat International[11]
Colors  Blue
SloganMano firme, corazón grande (Strong hand, big heart)
Chamber of Representatives
15 / 188
Senate
13 / 108
Governors
4 / 32
Mayors
154 / 1,102
Website
www.centrodemocratico.com

Democratic Centre (identified electorally as Democratic Centre – Strong Hand, Big Heart; Spanish: Centro Democrático – Mano firme, corazón grande) is a conservative[12] political party in Colombia founded in 2013 by Álvaro Uribe, former President of Colombia, former Vice President Francisco Santos Calderón and former Minister of Finance and Public Credit Óscar Iván Zuluaga.[13] It is a self-described party of the centre, although in opinion groups it is often considered right-wing.[14]

The party is currently in opposition to the left-wing presidency of Gustavo Petro.[15]

History

[edit]

The party was founded in 2014. A key factor in this were the Government negotiations with FARC, the Popular sovereignty force in the Colombian armed conflict against policies of Political economy.[16]

Although created as a decidedly right-wing party, its members now come from a wide range of political backgrounds, including former politicians of the right-wing Conservative Party, the center-right Social Party of National Unity, and from the left-wing Alternative Democratic Pole, such as Senator Everth Bustamante.[17]

The party is a strong advocate of economic liberalism. It intends to lower corporate taxation and further liberalise the economy in order to attract international investors, particularly to promote the exploitation of natural resources. On international policy issues, the party is pro-American.

During the 2020 United States elections, Democratic Centre promoted Republican Party candidates in the United States, especially in Florida, sharing their support for President of the United States Donald Trump.[18] The party's involvement with promoting political candidates in a foreign election drew controversy among some observers.[18]

With President Duque's unpopularity rate reaching 70%, the government was faced with the largest demonstrations in the country's history from 2019 onwards. The demonstrators intend to denounce the government's plans to make the labour market more flexible, to weaken the public pension fund in favour of private entities, and to raise the retirement age. The unions are also protesting against the tax reform, which aims to reduce the taxes paid by companies, and against the privatisations under way.[19] Another massive protest movement took place in 2021.

The party was considered a regional partner of European Conservatives and Reformists Party until 2022.

Electoral history

[edit]

In the 2014 congressional elections, the Democratic Centre won 20 seats in the Senate and 19 seats in the Chamber of Representatives.

In the 2014 presidential election, the Democratic Centre chose Óscar Iván Zuluaga, the Senator and Finance Minister during the Uribe Administration, as its presidential nominee. Zuluaga won the first round, but subsequently lost the second round to incumbent President Santos.[20]

Despite the second round loss, the electoral performance in both congressional and presidential elections provided the Democratic Centre with a platform to establish itself as the major opposition party in Colombia. The party has since taken steps to improve its political infrastructure given that it lagged in funding and party organisation compared to more traditional political parties.

Presidential elections

[edit]
Election Year Candidate Running mate First Round Second Round Result
Votes Percentage Votes Percentage
2014 Óscar Iván Zuluaga Carlos Holmes Trujillo 3,759,971 29.25 (#1) 6,905,001 45.00 (#2) Lost
2018 Iván Duque Márquez Marta Lucía Ramírez 7,569,693 39.14 (#1) 10,373,080 53.98 (#1) Won

Legislative elections

[edit]
Election Year House of Representatives Senate
Votes Percentage Seats Votes Percentage Seats
2014 1,355,358 11.57 (#4)
19 / 166
 2,045,564 17.52 (#2)
19 / 102
2018 2,471,596 16.53 (#2)
35 / 166
 2,513,320 17.36 (#1)
19 / 102
2022 1,610,666 9.86 (#5)
16 / 188
 1,917,153 11.42 (#5)
13 / 108

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Carolina Ortiz Narváez (July 18, 2014). "Centro Democrático, oficalmente un partido". Las 2 Orillas.
  2. ^ "Álvaro Uribe Vélez. Plan Nacional de Desarrollo 2002-2006: "Hacia un Estado Comunitario"" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 March 2013. Retrieved April 1, 2014.
  3. ^ "Estatutos del Partido Centro Democrático 2017". Centro Democrático. May 25, 2017.
  4. ^ "Declaración Política". Centro Democrático. January 20, 2013.
  5. ^ "Populismos y polarizaciones ante la segunda vuelta de las presidenciales colombianas | Nueva det Sociedad". 9 June 2018.
  6. ^ Gutiérrez Sanín, Francisco (February 21, 2020). "Una vista de Álvaro Uribe Vélez, ¿Demócrata, radical, extremista o todas las anteriores?". Article (in Spanish). 1 (1). Universidad Nacional de Colombia: 207–225. Retrieved February 12, 2023.
  7. ^ Vargas Llosa, Álvaro (August 7, 2006). "Cuídese de los carnívoros". Article (in Spanish). El Instituto Independiente. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
  8. ^ Ávila, Ariel (September 5, 2017). "La derecha en Colombia y la campaña presidencial". Article (in Spanish). Diario El País. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
  9. ^ Alsema, Adriaan (May 20, 2019). "The story of Maria Fernanda Cabal, the Colombian senator who took on the New York Times". article. Colombia Reports. Retrieved February 17, 2023.
  10. ^ "Partidos Miembros". Archived from the original on 2022-03-31. Retrieved 2020-07-06.
  11. ^ "Parties".
  12. ^ "Colombia cools on Venezuelan refugees". The Economist. 30 April 2020. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
  13. ^ Declaración Política
  14. ^ "La derecha es la nueva fuerza política del país". 6 July 2014. Retrieved September 20, 2016.
  15. ^ "Oficialmente, el partido Centro Democrático se declaró en oposición al gobierno de Petro". Infobae (in European Spanish). 19 July 2022.
  16. ^ "Reacciones sobre creación del movimiento Puro Centro Democrático : Noticias UNO, La Red Independiente". Noticias Uno. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved March 8, 2014.
  17. ^ "Rupturas dentro del Polo Democrático". Archived from the original on 19 November 2018. Retrieved 8 March 2014.
  18. ^ a b Zilbermints, Regina (2021-05-06). "Colombia's protests are threat, test for US". The Hill. Archived from the original on 2021-05-06. Retrieved 2021-05-08.
  19. ^ "Colombia se suma al ciclo de protestas en la región - Semanario Brecha".
  20. ^ Symmes Cobb, Julia; Miroff, Nick (15 June 2014). "Santos wins reelection in Colombia". Washington Post.
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