Independent Rodrigo Guerrero easily secured a win for the mayor of Cali, Colombia’s third largest city, in Sunday’s local elections.
With 87.41% of the votes counted, the 73-year old Guerrero received 42.3% of the popular vote. The closest contender, Colombian Conservative candidate Milton Castrillon secured a mere 19.6%, followed by Polo Democratico candidate and former Olympic champion Maria Urrutia, with 15.1%.
The Guerrero campaign, backed by sections of the Conservative Party, the Green Party, the ASI, the current Cali Mayor’s Office, former President Alvaro Uribe and senior U Party and Cambio Radical figures, was heavily favored in the polls in the weeks leading up to the elections.
Guerrero, a public health expert and former mayor, will take over the Cali Mayor’s Office from the popular Jorge Ivan Ospina.