![]() RUEDA: On Election Day, these groups voted for Petro and Marquez in large margins. SERGIO GUZMAN: By picking her, he also forced the other campaigns to think, really, about not only the diversity aspect, but the inclusion aspect, because the ticket with Francia Marquez became a much more representative ticket of what the country is, of how the country looks. It helped Petro to increase his voting tally among women and in Afro-Colombian regions. Political analyst Sergio Guzman says this was a savvy campaign move. RUEDA: But the politician was impressed and picked her as his running mate. PRESIDENT GUSTAVO PETRO: (Non-English language spoken). Last year, with almost no funding, she launched an independent presidential campaign but lost to Petro in a primary. "It's a big step towards making changes that will enable us to live better, like having access to clean water, to quality education, securing our rights to our lands." Marquez's path to the vice presidency was hard-fought. RUEDA: "For us, it's a great achievement to have her there," she says. SUSAN CARABALI: (Non-English language spoken). For Afro-Colombian activists, like Susan Carabali (ph), Marquez's election vindicates decades of struggles. RUEDA: The vice president will most likely be heading a new government department called the Ministry of Equality, working to develop economic and social programs for women, indigenous people and Afro-Colombian groups. SANCHEZ: She also represents a Colombia that has been under threat and has had to live in the midst of armed conflict for years and survive within all of those complexities, which is a lot of areas within Colombia. RUEDA: Gimena Sanchez is the Andes director for the Washington Office on Latin America. GIMENA SANCHEZ: She somebody who's coming from, I guess, the uneducated, the illiterate or people who - where education is just not an option for them. But eventually, that activism meant she was forced to leave her village, like so many other victims of Colombia's armed conflict. From an early age, she was an outspoken environmental activist. She was a single mother at the age of 16 and had to clean homes to support her daughter. RUEDA: "This is the government for people with calluses on their hands," she said, "the government for the nobodies of Colombia." The 40-year-old comes from La Toma, a tiny village in the west of Colombia surrounded by mountains. RUEDA: This time, she was making history as Colombia's first Black vice president. And on election night, she did it again in a packed arena in front of thousands of supporters. MANUEL RUEDA, BYLINE: Francia Marquez electrified voters throughout Columbia's campaign season with her frank and often poetic speeches. ![]() From Bogota, Reporter Manuel Rueda brings us this profile of Marquez.įRANCIA MARQUEZ: (Non-English language spoken). ![]() His running mate, Francia Marquez, also broke barriers by becoming Colombia's first Black vice president. ![]() Colombian voters made history in June, electing the nation's first leftist president, Gustavo Petro. ![]()
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