The electoral fight on the U party lists in Sucre involving the controversial Yahir Acuña / In Secret

There's a dispute over the organization of the House of Representatives' (U) party's slate in Sucre, a stronghold of the controversial Yahír Acuña. His ex-wife is Representative Milene Jarava, who is seeking to repeat her seat in 2026. However, Acuña handed over the preparation of the list of candidates to his current partner, Sofía Méndez. The latter has opposed Jarava's return to Congress and wants to deny her appearance on the March 2026 ballots. The problem reached Bogotá, where the party's national leadership warned that the representative has the right to reappear on the ballots. However, they stated that they do not want to get involved in the fight and asked Sucre politicians to resolve differences and reach agreements.

The Liberal, Conservative, "La U," Radical Change, and New Liberalism parties are talking about running as a coalition in the presidential elections with a single candidate. They have been in these talks for several months. They even hope to announce a final agreement in the coming days. Although they initially rejected making overtures to the Democratic Center and figures like Vicky Dávila, the attack on Miguel Uribe changed their minds. Members of these groups claim they have sought out each other with Uribe supporters. They affirm that the goal is to create a force strong enough to win in the first round and avoid having to go to a runoff with the leftist candidate.

This July 20th marks the beginning of the final legislative year. On that day, Interior Minister Armando Benedetti will revisit one of his flagship projects as a senator: the adult consumption of cannabis. He will present a bill to legalize the production, sale, and distribution of marijuana under state control. The proposal had recently been spearheaded by Representative Juan Carlos Lozada, but now it will be Gustavo Petro's own government that will take charge of the bill at the end of his term, when government proposals typically fail to prosper. One of the criticisms leveled at the government in previous legislative sessions was its failure to address the issue. Will Congress's position change with a bill authored by the executive branch?

Since leaving the Supreme Court, former justice Luis Antonio Hernández has turned to litigation. One of his most publicly known clients is former Medellín mayor Daniel Quintero, whom the Prosecutor's Office has charged with two crimes for which the jurist is tasked with defending. However, his most recent client is the convicted Carlos Mattos, who has had several outstanding legal issues, but in Hernández's case, he is taking over the case for his controversial release from La Picota prison three years ago, where he was serving a prison sentence. The indictment has not been filed, and one of the arguments is that the former justice is reviewing the case.

Senator Aida Avella, of the UP (United Left Party of the People's Party), participated in the forum on "Framework Price Agreements in State-Owned Industrial and Commercial Enterprises," organized by the Comptroller's Office. In her speech, she harshly rebuked the presidents of companies with state participation, such as Ecopetrol, questioning their million-dollar salaries. "Here, there can't be state-owned industrial and commercial enterprises (...) that earn four or five times what the President of the Republic earns," said the senator, who questioned the large bonuses and allowances these officials receive. She recalled that she introduced a law to curb this situation.

Otty Patiño returned from sick leave on July 2, and although he was expected to attend the preparatory meeting for the presentation of the quarterly report of the UN Verification Mission in Colombia, he did not. In his place was María Paz Lara, his right-hand woman, the all-powerful figure in the peace office who had been in charge in Patiño's absence. His repeated absence was surprising, as there had been expectations for his return to his duties, particularly those related to the implementation of the peace agreement.

For several weeks, the Registry's Office and the Telecommunications Regulatory Commission have been working on launching a campaign to combat disinformation in elections. And they already have their slogan: "From love to hate, there is fake news." The national registrar, Hernán Penagos, has emphasized behind closed doors the need to provide citizens with accurate information on everything related to electoral processes. His plan is to also involve the Complutense University of Madrid and an old acquaintance of his: lawyer Catalina Botero.

Simón Gaviria is once again assuming a leading role in the Liberal Party. He served as its director from 2011 to 2017. He then left the party to join the Santos administration as head of the National Planning Department (DNP) and went abroad to study at Harvard. Since his return, he has been involved in several matters within the party led by his father, former President César Gaviria. Within the party, he is seen as the person most responsible for the Liberals' dialogue on presidential and legislative issues.

Upon his return to Colombia, John McNamara, the U.S. Chargé d'Affaires in Colombia, attended the F-AIR in Rionegro, Antioquia. The Aguadeño hat he wore at the event was a real eye-catcher. His team doesn't know where he got it, but they recalled that he wore a vueltiao hat at a previous event with President Petro.