MIAMI — A 48-year-old conservative senator aiming to replace Gustavo Petro may have a chance to be the first woman to serve as president in Colombia.

COLOMBIA-ELECCIONES Colombian Sen. Paloma Valencia, an NYU graduate, votes on Sunday in Bogotá, Colombia. (AP/Iván Valencia) (Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved) (Ivan Valencia/AP)

Paloma Valencia, the center-right candidate, had a landslide victory during the crowded primaries on Sunday, International Women’s Day.

Valencia, an attorney with an MFA from New York University, is the granddaughter of the late former Colombian President Guillermo León Valencia.

“With total security, we are going to put an end to complacency with criminals and restore the rule of law in every corner of Colombia,” Valencia wrote on Monday afternoon in Spanish on X.

Colombia Election Supporters of Sen. Paloma Valencia of the Democratic Center gather after she won the nomination of an opposition coalition for the upcoming presidential election in Bogota, Colombia, Sunday, March 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Ivan Valencia) (Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved) (Ivan Valencia/AP)

Iván Cepeda, a senator and communist philosopher and activist, skipped the primaries as the established top left-wing candidate. He announced Colombian Sen. Aida Quilcué, an indigenous leader from Cauca, was his running mate.

With more than 4.4 million votes, the left-leaning coalition that brought Petro to the presidency won 25 out of 103 Senate seats. The leftist coalition will also have 40 out of 183 House seats.

With more than 3 million votes, the right-wing political party founded by former President Álvaro Uribe in 2013 won 17 Senate seats. The right-wing party will also have 28 House seats.

Colombia Election Former Colombian President Alvaro Uribe, right, talks to electoral official before voting during legislative elections in Rionegro, Colombia, Sunday, March 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Miguel Angel Lopez) (Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved) (Miguel Angel Lopez/AP)

Supporters of Juan Daniel Oviedo, an economist and technocrat who is openly gay and headed Colombia’s statistics agency during Iván Duque’s presidency, called for him to be Valencia’s running mate after he finished second as an independent in the primary.

Valencia, who has Uribe’s support, also wants to restructure Plan Colombia with the United States to focus on cocaine trafficking.

Valencia’s late great aunt, Josefina Valencia, was an icon in the fight for Colombian women’s right to vote in the 1950s, and she was the first woman in Colombia to serve as governor of Cauca and as education minister. She also served as a diplomat in the United Nations.

The presidential election’s first round is on May 31. Without a clear winner, the runoff election is on June 21. The newly elected lawmakers, who have four-year terms ahead of them, will be sworn in on July 20. The presidential inauguration is Aug. 7.

Council of the Americas’ graphic on primaries

Paloma Valencia aims to become 1st woman to be elected to the presidency in Colombia

Congressional election results show no legislative majority; Cepeda announces indigenous leader as his running mate

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Andrea Torres