Colombians Endorse Third Uribe Candidacy

The vast majority of people in Colombia would accept a decision by Álvaro Uribe to run for a third consecutive term in office, according to a poll by Gallup published in El Tiempo. 74 per cent of respondents would agree with Uribe becoming a candidate in the 2010 election, while only 22 per cent disagree. Uribe has been Colombia’s president since August 2002. In the May 2006 election, he won a new four-year term with 62.2 per cent of all cast ballots. He was able to run again after pro-Uribe lawmakers in the House of Representatives and the Constitutional Court officially sanctioned a plan to allow immediate presidential re-election. After issuing its ruling, the court warned that the clause was not valid for the unlimited re-election of the head of state. Uribe would require a new constitutional amendment to run again. Uribe... [read full story]