Luis Eduardo Garzón (nicknamed "Lucho") (born February 11, 1951 in
Bogotá
Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city of Colombia, and one of the larges ...
) is the former Mayor of
Bogotá
Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city of Colombia, and one of the larges ...
(2004–2007), a
left-wing
Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in soci ...
Colombia
Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...
n political activist and a former union leader. He is a former member of the
Alternative Democratic Pole
The Alternative Democratic Pole (Spanish: ''Polo Democrático Alternativo'' or PDA) is a left-wing political party in Colombia.
It was founded as a political alliance of the Independent Democratic Pole (PDI) and the Democratic Alternative (AD) ...
(PDA). In 2009 Garzón joined forces with former Mayors
Enrique Peñalosa
Enrique Peñalosa Londoño (born 30 September 1954) is a Colombian politician. He was mayor of Bogotá from 1998 until 2001 and elected again in 2015 for the 2016–2019 term. He was prominently featured in the Panama Papers for use of off-sho ...
and
Antanas Mockus
Aurelijus Rūtenis Antanas Mockus Šivickas (; born 25 March 1952) is a Colombian mathematician, philosopher, and politician. He has a master's degree in philosophy from the National University of Colombia, and a Honoris Causa PhD from the U ...
to re-found the
Green Party
A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as social justice, environmentalism and nonviolence.
Greens believe that these issues are inherently related to one another as a foundation ...
, an eco-oriented political movement.
Political career
Presidential Candidate
Considered by some analysts as an idiosyncratic and charismatic speaker, "Lucho" Garzón has been one of the most visible critics of President
Álvaro Uribe
Álvaro Uribe Vélez (born 4 July 1952) is a Colombian politician who served as the 31st President of Colombia from 7 August 2002 to 7 August 2010.
Uribe started his political career in his home department of Antioquia. He held offices in t ...
's government, running against him on a shoe-string budget in the 2002 presidential race and finally making third place with 680,245 votes (6.16% of the voter turnout).
Garzón has expressed his interest in running once again for the Colombian presidential office in the future, after his first failed attempt.
A run in the 2006 elections was ruled out as Garzón would have had to resign his post early in 2005 to be considered eligible and at the time of this writing,
Antonio Navarro had already been chosen as the
Independent Democratic Pole
The Independent Democratic Pole (''Polo Democrático Independiente'') or (PDI), was a left-wing social democratic political party in Colombia.
Origins
Originally formed as a left-wing congressional coalition, the party itself was officially found ...
's (PDI) official pre-candidate but
Carlos Gaviria
Carlos may refer to:
Places
;Canada
* Carlos, Alberta, a locality
;United States
* Carlos, Indiana, an unincorporated community
* Carlos, Maryland, a place in Allegany County
* Carlos, Minnesota, a small city
* Carlos, West Virginia
;Elsewhere ...
became the PDA official candidate.
Mayor of Bogotá
Garzón defeated Juan Lozano, the candidate favored by president Uribe and also by influential media groups as ''
El Tiempo'' in Bogotá, in the mayoral elections in October 2003. Garzón's low budget campaign received a major boost when his candidacy was endorsed by the more leftwing sectors of the
Liberal party
The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left.
__TOC__ Active liberal parties
This is a li ...
, in particular those close to then senator
Piedad Córdoba
Piedad Esneda Córdoba Ruiz (born 25 January 1955) is a Colombian lawyer and politician who served as Senator of Colombia from 1994 to 2010. A Liberal Party politician, she also served as Member of the Chamber of Representatives of Colombia for ...
.
During his tenure as mayor, Garzón was popular amongst the people of Bogotá as reflected in polls, in spite of confronting such difficult issues as the use of public space, the teething problems faced by the
TransMilenio
TransMilenio is a bus rapid transit (BRT) system that serves Bogotá, the capital of Colombia, and Soacha. The system opened to the public in December 2000, covering Avenida Caracas, Caracas Avenue and 80 street. Other lines were added gradually ...
mass-transport system, and how to deal with ex-combatants from Colombia's armed conflict who had been settled in Bogotá as part of a central government rehabilitation program (eventually, Garzón and Uribe jointly decided to change some aspects of the program, after a bomb exploded near one of the shelters for former irregular fighters).
In the meantime, despite several disagreements, Garzón has managed to achieve a degree of cohabitation with the central government, cooperating on several local issues without compromising his own principles. For supporters and opponents alike, one of the most striking feature of Lucho's administration so far has been its emphasis on social programs such as ''Bogotá sin hambre'' ("Bogotá without hunger") and ''Bogotá sin indiferencia'' ("Bogotá without indifference"), and in general his general efforts to improve the living conditions of the inhabitants of Bogotá's most deprived areas, as well as increasing their involvement in decision making at the level of local government.
Towards the end of 2005, Garzón has had a recent conflict with his own party, the PDA, in Bogotá's city council due to his support for a proposed increase in the city's "valorization tax", in order to finance existing and future infrastructure and development projects. Most PDA and
Radical Change
Radical Change ( es, Cambio Radical; stylized with a backwards "R") is a conservative liberal political party in Colombia.
After the elections on 12 March 2006, the party became one of the most important in the new Congress, receiving 20 seats ...
councilmen oppose this measure as contrary to Garzón's "no new taxes" campaign pledge, while Garzón himself and councilmen affiliated with former mayor
Enrique Peñalosa
Enrique Peñalosa Londoño (born 30 September 1954) is a Colombian politician. He was mayor of Bogotá from 1998 until 2001 and elected again in 2015 for the 2016–2019 term. He was prominently featured in the Panama Papers for use of off-sho ...
consider it necessary. The tax was approved during a September 29 city council vote, by a margin of four votes (24 against 20).
External links
Rumbo a las elecciones
{{DEFAULTSORT:Garzon, Luis Eduardo
1951 births
Living people
Mayors of Bogotá
Free University of Colombia alumni
Green Alliance (Colombia) politicians
Independent Democratic Pole politicians
Politicians from Bogotá