Colombia
About parliament
Basic information such as the official name of parliament and details of its structure and leadership. Also includes the current breakdown of MPs by sex and age, and provisions for quotas and reserved seats.
Parliament name
Congreso (Congress)
Chamber name
Cámara de Representantes (House of Representatives)
Structure & Status of parliament
This field is to indicate lower/upper in the back end.
Lower chamber
Parliamentary term (years)
4
IPU membership
Affiliation periods
from 1931 to 1935
from 1973 to 1977
from 1979
IPU Geopolitical Group/s
IPU Geopolitical Groups: African Group, Arab Group, Asia-Pacific Group, Eurasia Group, Group of Latin America and the Caribbean (GRULAC), Twelve Plus Group.
Group of Latin America and the Caribbean (GRULAC)
Speaker
Official title
The Speaker may for example be known as the Presiding Officer, President, Chairman/Chairperson, etc.
Speaker of the House of Representatives
Speaker
Germán
Alcides Blanco Álvarez
(Male)
Year of birth
1967
Term
20.07.2020 to 20.07.2021
Secretary General
Official title
This post is most commonly called Secretary General or Clerk. It may also be called Secretary, Head/Chief of the Secretariat, Director General, etc.
Secretary General
Secretary General
Jorge
Humberto Mantilla Serrano
(Male)
Notes
Additional information about the Secretary General, in particular regarding their term.
Elected on 20 July 2014, re-elected on 20 July 2016, on 20 July 2018 and on 20 July 2020.
Members
Statutory number of members
Statutory number of members, as defined in the constitution or other fundamental law.
Principal mode of designation of members
Directly elected
Compare data of this field.
Directly elected members
Directly elected by citizens.
166
Other members
For example, ex-officio members of parliament, such as Cabinet members, members of the royal family, Attorney General, Speaker if appointed from outside parliament.
6
Note on the statutory number of members
Others:
- 5 members of the FARC;
- The runner-up running mate in the presidential elections.
The 2016 Peace Agreement guarantees the FARC five seats in each Chamber of Congress for the next two legislatures (2018-2022 and 2022-2026). Moreover, a new rule guarantees the presidential runner-up a seat in the Senate, while his or her running mate is guaranteed a seat in the House of Representatives for the 2018-2022 legislature. With these new measures, the number of senators has increased from 102 to 108, while that of representatives has increased from 166 to 172.
- 5 members of the FARC;
- The runner-up running mate in the presidential elections.
The 2016 Peace Agreement guarantees the FARC five seats in each Chamber of Congress for the next two legislatures (2018-2022 and 2022-2026). Moreover, a new rule guarantees the presidential runner-up a seat in the Senate, while his or her running mate is guaranteed a seat in the House of Representatives for the 2018-2022 legislature. With these new measures, the number of senators has increased from 102 to 108, while that of representatives has increased from 166 to 172.
Current number of members
Number of members who currently hold seats in parliament. May be lower or higher than the statutory number of members.
Men
The number of male parliamentarians who currently hold seats in parliament.
138
Women
The number of female parliamentarians who currently hold seats in parliament.
Percentage of women
Calculated by dividing the current number of women by the current number of members.
Statutory number of members per country
As defined in the constitution or other fundamental laws. Combines the number of parliamentarians in both chambers in bicameral parliaments.
Population (in thousands)
Source: United Nations, World Population Prospects.
Inhabitants per parliamentarian
Calculated by dividing the population by the statutory number of parliamentarians.
Age
Data on the age of parliamentarians is collected at start of the legislature, following the most recent elections. This data is not updated during the legislature.
Number of members, by age
| 18 - 20 | 21 - 30 | 31 - 40 | 41 - 45 | 46 - 50 | 51 - 60 | 61 - 70 | 71 - 80 | 81 - 90 | 91 and over | Totals per gender | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Totals per age interval | 0 | 12 | 42 | 23 | 29 | 39 | 18 | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
| Total <= 45: 77 | Total >= 46: 88 | ||||||||||
| Male | 0 | 9 | 35 | 19 | 22 | 31 | 16 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 134 |
| Female | 0 | 3 | 7 | 4 | 7 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 31 |
Members for whom data is available
Reserved seats and quotas
There are reserved seats in parliament for certain groups
Reserved seats are a means to ensure the parliamentary representation of certain groups in society.
Number of reserved seats, by group
Indigenous peoples
1
Minorities
2
Notes
2
Electoral quota for women
Quotas to promote the representation of women in parliament.
Notes
For lists submitted for election of 5 or more seats, at least 30% of candidates of each gender must be included. Political parties decide themselves whether their lists shall be open or closed. Candidate lists that do not comply with the legal requirements, including the gender quota requirement, shall be rejected.
Legal source
Legal text that stipulates the quota, such as the Constitution or electoral law.
Constitution, art. 176; Electoral Law 1475 of 2011, Article 28 (1), Article 32.
Electoral quota for youth
Quotas to promote the representation of youth in parliament.
Links to additional information
Parliamentary website
Link(s) to parliamentary web site in English, French and/or local languages.
Rules of procedure/Standing Orders
Link(s) to Rules of procedure on the parliamentary web site in English, French and/or local language.
List of members
Link(s) to list of members on the parliamentary web site.
Constitution
Official links to the Constitution in English, French and/or original language is provided. Links to unofficial translations where no other source is available.