Colombian Presidential Candidate Miguel Uribe Londoño Enters Race Amid Escalating Violence
Miguel Uribe Londoño, father of the assassinated presidential candidate Miguel Uribe, has announced his own candidacy for Colombia’s presidency, positioning himself as a champion for victims as violence in the country intensifies, reports 24brussels.
Uribe Londoño, 72, made his declaration on Tuesday outside the congressional building in Bogotá, the same location where his son had gained national attention as a senator. With his late son’s campaign logo as a backdrop, he vowed to address Colombia’s escalating insecurity and to pursue social cohesion.
“Together we can build a secure Colombia where people will not fear going out into the streets, and where business owners will not have to make extortion payments to gangs,” Uribe Londoño stated. He emphasized the importance of creating “a democratic Colombia, where the government does not foment divisions between the rich and the poor, whites or Blacks, or those who are on the left or on the right.”
Hoy anuncio mi candidatura presidencial porque creo en un destino distinto para esta gran Nación. Convoco a una gran Unidad Nacional e invito a cada hombre y a cada mujer de este país a caminar ese destino conmigo y con Dios. ¡Unidos y solo unidos lograremos salvar a Colombia! pic.twitter.com/18oBlYsRcG
— Miguel Uribe (@migueluribel) August 26, 2025
Previously serving as a city council member in Bogotá during the late 1980s and as a Conservative Party senator in the early 1990s, Uribe Londoño was not a prominent national political figure prior to his son’s assassination. His public persona shifted dramatically following his son’s funeral, where he delivered a speech addressing the deteriorating state of the nation under President Gustavo Petro’s administration.
Uribe Londoño is competing as one of five candidates from the right-wing Democratic Center party, which is closely linked to former President Álvaro Uribe, who is currently facing corruption allegations. The party plans to select its final nominee using opinion polls later this year.
Political analyst Sergio Guzmán noted that Uribe Londoño’s candidacy could revitalize the Democratic Center, which has struggled to present a formidable candidate. He pointed out that Uribe Londoño’s personal history, including the murder of his wife in the 1990s, resonates with the collective anguish of many victims, particularly conservatives in Colombia.
His entry into the race comes amid heightened violence across Colombia, as armed groups and drug gangs exploit power vacuums left by the FARC after the 2016 peace agreement. Last week, a car bomb by a FARC dissident group resulted in the deaths of seven individuals in Cali, while a helicopter conducting anti-narcotics operations in Antioquia was shot down, killing 13 police officers.
President Petro has pursued negotiations and ceasefires with remaining insurgent groups; however, critics assert that these attempts have encouraged rather than diminished armed group activity.
“I am not the only father who has lost that which he loved the most,” Uribe Londoño said on Tuesday. “But I would like to be the voice of the latest father, who has had to accept the cruel destiny that they want to impose on us with violence and terror.”
By entering the presidential race, Uribe Londoño brings a compelling mix of personal tragedy and political relevance to a conservative front that seeks clarity and direction, as Colombia grapples with a resurgence of violence and shaky peace initiatives.
