Colombia has done it again. Another political outsider has stormed to the presidency, this time in the form of Rodolfo Hernández. The former mayor of Bucaramanga, a property developer with a penchant for TikTok, has defeated the establishment favourite.
The result is a seismic shift in Bogotá. And it has the White House watching. Trump’s people are already dialling in.
Sources in the State Department suggest a thaw is coming. Hernández has praised Trump’s tough stance on Venezuela. He wants closer ties.
He wants trade. British investors? They are on edge.
Colombia is a key market for UK infrastructure and mining. But political instability is a risk. The peso tumbled on the news.
London’s Colombia desk is working overtime. The real game is in oil. Ecopetrol shares dipped.
Hernández has hinted at renegotiating contracts. That spooks the City. But there is opportunity.
Hernández is a fiscal conservative. He wants to cut taxes. He wants to attract foreign capital.
The question is whether he can deliver. His coalition is fragile. Congress is hostile.
He has no party machine. This is a man who won on a platform of cleaning up corruption. He has promised to imprison his opponents.
That is not a recipe for stable governance. The Foreign Office is cautiously optimistic. They see a chance to reset relations.
But they are wary of Hernández’s unpredictable style. He has compared himself to Trump. He has called the Pope a liar.
This is not a conventional leader. The US-Colombia relationship is crucial for the region. Trump wants a partner in the drug war.
Hernández wants US investment. The chemistry could work. But first, Hernández must survive the transition.
There are rumours of a military plot. His opponents are circling. This story has legs.
Eleanor Rigby, Political Bureau Chief.
