Timeline
Born on 19 April in Ciénaga de Oro, Córdoba, Colombia.
Joined the 19th of April Movement (M-19) around age 17.
Arrested by the army for illegal arms possession and sentenced to 18 months in prison.
Elected to the Chamber of Representatives after M-19's demobilization.
Elected to the Colombian Senate, mobilizing the second highest voter turnout.
Elected Mayor of Bogotá.
Elected 35th President of Colombia.
Succeeded as president by Abelardo de la Espriella, after being constitutionally barred from seeking a second term.
Biography
Gustavo Francisco Petro Urrego (born 19 April 1960) served as the 35th president of Colombia from 2022 to 2026, becoming the first, and so far only, left-wing president in the recent history of Colombia. He founded and leads the political party Historic Pact (PH). Petro's early life included joining the M-19 guerrilla group at 17, leading to his arrest and imprisonment in 1985. After M-19's demobilization, he transitioned into mainstream politics, serving as a councilman, in the Chamber of Representatives, and as a Senator. He was also Mayor of Bogotá from 2011. As president, he pursued a progressive domestic agenda, including increasing the minimum wage and redistributing land, and restored diplomatic relations with Venezuela.
Early Life & Background
Born on 19 April 1960 in Ciénaga de Oro, Córdoba, Colombia, Gustavo Petro is the son of Gustavo Petro Sierra and Clara Nubia Urrego. He is predominantly of mestizo Colombian descent, with Italian ancestry through both his paternal great-grandfather and maternal grandmother, granting him dual Colombian and Italian citizenship. Raised in the Catholic faith, he has stated a vision of God from liberation theology. His family migrated to Zipaquirá during the 1970s. Around age 17, convinced by the guerrilla struggle, he joined the 19th of April Movement (M-19), using the pseudonym Aureliano. He was arrested in 1985 for illegal arms possession and imprisoned for 18 months, during which his ideology shifted away from armed resistance.
Education
Gustavo Petro graduated in 1982 with a bachelor's degree in economics from the Universidad Externado de Colombia. He began graduate studies at the Escuela Superior de Administración Pública (ESAP) and a master's degree in economics at the Universidad Javeriana, but never graduated from the latter. He also started graduate studies in Economy and Human Rights at the Université catholique de Louvain in Belgium and doctoral studies in public administration at the University of Salamanca in Spain. An investigation in 2016 concluded that three academic degrees listed by Petro were not obtained, which he confirmed, explaining he completed coursework but not the final requirements like theses.
Political & Professional Career
After the M-19's demobilization, Gustavo Petro became a councilman in Zipaquirá from 1984 to 1986. He was elected to the Chamber of Representatives in 1991 as a member of the M-19 Democratic Alliance, and again in 2002 with the Vía Alterna movement. In 2006, he was elected to the Colombian Senate as a member of the Alternative Democratic Pole, mobilizing the second highest voter turnout. During his time in the Senate, he exposed the parapolitics scandal and vehemently opposed the government of Álvaro Uribe. He resigned his Senate seat in 2009 to run for president in 2010, finishing fourth. Due to ideological disagreements, he founded Humane Colombia and was elected Mayor of Bogotá in 2011. He ran for president again in 2018, losing the second round, but won the 2022 presidential election, serving until 2026. Constitutionally barred from a second term, he endorsed Iván Cepeda for the 2026 election.
Key Achievements & Legacy
Became the first, and so far only, left-wing president in the recent history of Colombia., Increased the minimum wage and strengthened the legal framework for labor protections during his presidency., Redistributed land to peasants and increased social spending as president., Poverty and unemployment declined during his presidency., Restored diplomatic relations with Venezuela.