New Parline: the IPU’s Open Data Platform (beta)
Your one-stop-shop for information about national parliaments

Colombia

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House of Representatives

This is a bicameral parliament. Switch to theSenate
Political system Political systems: Presidential, Parliamentary, Presidential-Parliamentary, Monarchy, Communist, Transitional.
Presidential system
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Structure of parliament Structure of parliament: Unicameral, bicameral
Bicameral
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IPU membership Current membership status
Yes
See historical data for this field. Compare data of this field.

Data on women

empty

Basic information > About parliament

Speaker

Speaker
Carlos Cuenca (Male)
See historical data for this field.

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 and on 20 July 2018.

Members

Current number of members, by sex
Women The number of female parliamentarians who currently hold seats in parliament.
32
See historical data for this field.
Percentage of women Calculated by dividing the current number of women by the current number of members.
18.71% See historical data for this field.

Reserved seats and quotas

Electoral quota for women Quotas to promote the representation of women in parliament.
Yes
Compare data of this field.
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.
Elections > Election results

Candidates

Total number of candidates Total number of people who registered as candidates for election. Does not include people who stood as candidates to become "substitute members".
1,843
Number of female candidates Number of female candidates
637
Percentage of women candidates The percentage is calculated by dividing the number of women candidates by the total number of candidates.
34.56%
Number of candidates, by sex
Number of female candidates Number of female candidates
637
Percentage of women candidates The percentage is calculated by dividing the number of women candidates by the total number of candidates.
34.56%

Results

Members elected, by sex
Number of men elected
141
Number of women elected
25
Percentage of women elected The percentage is calculated by dividing the number of women elected in the election and the number of seats at stake at the election.
15.06%
Note on the Distribution of seats according to sex
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 will increase from 102 to 108, while that of representatives will increase from 166 to 172. According to preliminary election results available in April 2018, of the 166 members directly elected to the House in the 2018 elections 25 were women. In July, 32 women (including the runner-up’s running mate in the presidential elections) were sworn in to the House of Representatives which was comprised of 171 members and one unfilled seat.
Number of women after election or renewal, by mode of designation
Women Directly Elected
31
Women Other
1

New legislature

Total number of men after the election The total number of male parliamentarians in this parliament/chamber following the election or renewal, regardless of their modes of designation.
139
Total number of women after the election The total number of female parliamentarians in this parliament/chamber following the election or renewal, regardless of their modes of designation.
32
First Speaker of the new legislature
First Speaker of the new legislature First name of the Speaker of the new legislature following the election or renewal.
Alejandro Carlos Chacón (Male)
Political party
Liberal Party (PL)
Date of election
20.07.2018
Elections > Historical data on women

Women's suffrage

Women’s right to vote
Right to vote Year in which women obtained the right to vote
1954
National or local Suffrage: National or Local
National
Restricted or unrestricted suffrage Suffrage: Restricted or Universal
Universal
Notes Suffrage: Additional Notes on right of suffrage
The Constitutional National Assembly adopted Legislative Act No. 3 granting women full political right.
Women’s right to stand for election
Right to stand for election Year in which women obtained the right to stand for election
1954
National or local Stand for Election: National or Local
National
First woman in parliament
First woman in parliament Year in which first woman entered parliament
1954
Notes
1954: The first women to get elected to Parliament were in 1958 to the Lower House.
Parliamentary bodies > Caucuses

Women

Caucus name
Women's Group of the Congress of the Republic of Colombia
Date of creation
01.2006
Formal or informal
Formal
The caucus is open to male MPs
No
The caucus is cross-party
No
There are rules governing the functioning of the caucus
No
Issues dealt with by the caucus
- The Colombian Congressional Women's Caucus supported legislation and policies that address violence against women. Of particular importance is Law 1257 of 2008, which significantly increased sanctions and sentencing for violence and discrimination against women. The Caucus also supported the Equal Pay Act (1496 of 2011) and Law 1475 of 2012 on quotas for political-party and electoral lists which addressed the issue of women’s participation in elected office.
The caucus has a strategic plan or plan of action
No
The caucus has a communication plan
No