• A part of Fico’s supporters declared their support to Hernández and expanded the right-wing candidate’s digital support group;
• A part of the group associated with Fajardo criticized the attacks against Petro in the last debate and supported the left-wing candidate;
• Opposition to Hernández represents more than 51% of the profiles and 57% of the interactions; Expansion of Fajardo’s supporters may increase the group’s digital strength;
• In Brazil, Lula focused on supporting Petro, while the right wing tried to associate the left with drug trafficking.

The first round of the presidential elections in Colombia shook the social networks last weekend. Between Saturday (28) at midnight and Monday (30) at noon, approximately 2.77 million posts in Spanish about the election were identified on Twitter, according to a survey by the Department of Public Policy Analysis at Fundação Getulio Vargas (FGV DAPP). The debate had five major hashtag, with three favoring the left-wing candidate, Gustavo Petro: #Colombiaconpetro (“Colombia with Petro”) was used in 61.1 thousand tweets, #yovotopetropresidente (“I vote Petro for president) in 54.4 thousand, and #petropresidenteenprimera (“Petro president in the first round”) in 42.8 thousand. Two additional hashtags circulating in the period were #eleccionescolombia (elections in Colombia) and #colombiadecide (Colombia decides), in 94.1 thousand and 42.1 thousand posts, respectively.

Evolution of the debate in Spanish on Twitter about the Colombian elections
Period: May 28 at midnight until May 30 at noon, 2022

Source: Twitter | Elaborated by: FGV DAPP

Map of interactions in the debate in Spanish on Twitter about the Colombian elections
Period: May 28 at midnight until May 30 at noon, 2022

Source: Twitter | Elaborated by: FGV DAPP

Pro-Petro – 39.25% of profiles | 51.60% of interactions
The group formed by supporters of the candidate Gustavo Petro posted messages supporting his candidacy, highlighting the novelty of an “alternative” ticket going to the second round in the country and Petro’s proposal for change (“cambio”), which was his campaign slogan. Supporters also mentioned the importance of convincing those who are afraid of Petro and criticized Rodolfo Hernández for his political support.

Pro-Fico and Hernández ‒ 28.44% of profiles | 31.96% of interactions
This group is centered around right-wing and center-right politicians, conservative businessmen and journalists supporting either Rodolfo Hernández or Federico Gutiérrez. While some profiles trust Hernández as being able to overcome an alleged “socialist dictatorship” in the country, other profiles share Federico’s enthusiasm and optimism regarding the affection of the Colombian people and the possible consequences of the election. Directing sharp criticisms against the opponent Petro, most of the group agrees that the left-wing candidate represents an old-fashioned and bankrupt model, and are hopeful that there are high chances chances of Petro being defeated at the polls by the Anti-Corruption League.

Anti-Hernández ‒ 11.88% of profiles | 5.58% of interactions
Group comprised of people opposed to the candidate Rodolfo Hernández. In the major tweets in this cluster, users expressed surprise and indignation with the result of the vote and declared support for the candidate Gustavo Petro. The group accused Hernández of being sexist, homophobic and lacking the capacity to govern the country.

Influencers and communicators ‒ 6.33% of profiles | 3.29% of interactions
Group formed by media outlets, journalists and communicators from different political fields. This group forms a very heterogeneous set of political views. The tweets with the most interactions included a report on Hernández’s admiration for Hitler and a post claiming that drug trafficking has prevented the auditing of the vote.

Pro-Fajardo ‒ 6.15% of profiles | 5.40% of interactions
Group formed mostly by supporters of the candidate Sergio Fajardo. Among the main tweets in this cluster, there were mentions of support for Gustavo Petro in the second round, aiming to avoid the victory of Rodolfo Hernández, who was sometimes called “criollo Trump”. The last presidential debate was also at the center of the topics discussed in this group, with criticism of Fico Gutiérrez and Sergio Fajardo, who attacked Gustavo Petro.

Major tweets from each community in the debate in Spanish on Twitter about the Colombian elections
Period: May 28 at midnight until May 30 at noon, 2022

Source: Twitter | Elaborated by: FGV DAPP

The debate in Brazil

Major tweets in the Brazilian Twitter about the Colombian elections
Period: May 28 at midnight until May 30 at noon, 2022

Source: Twitter | Elaborated by: FGV DAPP

In Brazil, the debate about the Colombian elections generated 33,500 tweets. The highlights in the debate were profiles of journalists and media outlets, politicians and influencers related to politics. Gustavo Petro’s supporters highlighted the tweets of former president Lula, journalist Reinaldo Azevedo and Guilherme Boulos, associated the victory of the Colombian candidate to the strengthening of democracy in the country. In turn, right-wing influencers and supporters of President Bolsonaro, such as Leandro Ruschel, Filipe G. Martins and Kim D. Paim, recalled Petro’s guerrilla past and called him a far-right terrorist. Petro’s opponents in Brazil have also used Lula’s support and his relationship with Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro to associated the Colombian candidate’s image with a potential dictatorship. The candidate Rodolfo Hernández also appeared in the debate in two different ways. The right wing called him a businessman, and the left wing gave him adjectives such as neo-fascist and extreme right. The media highlighted the novelty of a left-wing candidate making it to the second round of the Colombian elections and compared Hernández to Bolsonaro and Trump.