Iván Duque Márquez (; born 1 August 1976) is a Colombian politician and lawyer who served as the
president of Colombia
The president of Colombia (President of the Republic) is the head of state and head of government of Colombia. The president heads the executive branch of the Government of Colombia, national government and is the commander-in-chief of the Mil ...
from 2018 to 2022. He was elected as the candidate from the
Democratic Centre Party in the
2018 Colombian presidential election
Presidential elections were held in Colombia on 27 May 2018. As no candidate received a majority of the vote, the second round of voting was held on 17 June. Incumbent president Juan Manuel Santos was ineligible to seek a third term. Iván Duqu ...
. Backed by his mentor, former president and powerful senator
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 Department, Antioquia. H ...
, he was elected despite having been relatively unknown a year before the election. He ran on a platform that included opposing
Juan Manuel Santos
Juan Manuel Santos Calderón (; born 10 August 1951) is a Colombian politician who was the President of Colombia from 2010 to 2018. He was the sole recipient of the 2016 Nobel Peace Prize.
An economist by training and a journalist by trade, S ...
'
peace agreement
A peace treaty is an agreement between two or more hostile parties, usually countries or governments, which formally ends a state of war between the parties. It is different from an armistice, which is an agreement to stop hostilities; a surr ...
with the
FARC
The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People's Army (, FARC–EP or FARC) was a Marxist–Leninist guerrilla group involved in the continuing Colombian conflict starting in 1964. The FARC-EP was officially founded in 1966 from peasan ...
guerrilla group. After Duque's term came to an end, he was succeeded by
Gustavo Petro
Gustavo Francisco Petro Urrego (; born 19 April 1960) is a Colombian politician who is the 34th and current president of Colombia since 2022. Upon inauguration, he became the Pink tide, first left-wing president in the History of Colombia, recen ...
on 7 August 2022, after Petro won the runoff round in the
2022 Colombian presidential election
Presidential elections were held in Colombia on 29 May 2022, with a Two-round system, runoff on 19 June 2022 as no candidate obtained at least 50% in the first round of voting. Iván Duque, who was elected president in 2018 Colombian presidenti ...
.
Despite personally opposing the peace agreement with the
FARC
The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People's Army (, FARC–EP or FARC) was a Marxist–Leninist guerrilla group involved in the continuing Colombian conflict starting in 1964. The FARC-EP was officially founded in 1966 from peasan ...
, Duque did not cancel it when in office. During the
Venezuelan refugee crisis
The Venezuelan refugee crisis, the List of largest refugee crises, largest recorded refugee crisis in the Americas,
*
*
*
*
refers to the emigration of millions of Venezuelans from their native country during the presidencies of Hugo C ...
, Duque had an open door policy toward
Venezuelans
Venezuelans ( Spanish: ''venezolanos'') are the citizens identified with the country of Venezuela. This connection may be through citizenship, descent or cultural. For most Venezuelans, many or all of these connections exist and are the source ...
, allowing them to settle in the country and allowing around 1.7 million refugees to gain protected status in Venezuela. Another major issue that spanned part of his term was the
COVID-19 pandemic in Colombia
The COVID-19 pandemic in Colombia was a part of the pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 () caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (). The virus was confirmed to have reached Colombia on 6 March 2020.
Up to January 2022 ...
. His rule was marked by protests, the
2019–2020 Colombian protests
The 2019–2020 Colombian protests were a collection of protests that began on 21 November 2019. Hundreds of thousands of Colombians demonstrated for various reasons. Some protested against income inequality, corruption, police brutality and var ...
caused by those who opposed corruption and income inequality, as well as the
2021 Colombian protests against a proposed tax measure. His approval rating had declined, being as low as 30% in his last year in office.
Life and career
Duque was born in
Bogotá
Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish Imperial period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city, capital and largest city ...
to a wealthy political family originally from the Colombian town of
Gómez Plata,
Antioquia Antioquia is the Spanish form of Antioch.
Antioquia may also refer to:
* Antioquia Department
Antioquia () is one of the 32 departments of Colombia, located in the central northwestern part of Colombia with a narrow section that borders th ...
. He is the son of Juliana Márquez Tono (born 1950), a political scientist and Iván Duque Escobar (1937–2016), a powerful local political leader who was Governor of
Antioquia Antioquia is the Spanish form of Antioch.
Antioquia may also refer to:
* Antioquia Department
Antioquia () is one of the 32 departments of Colombia, located in the central northwestern part of Colombia with a narrow section that borders th ...
, auditor in the United Nations,
Minister of Mines and Energy, and head of the National Registry of Civil Status in the Government of
Andrés Pastrana
Andres or Andrés may refer to:
*Andres, Illinois, an unincorporated community in Will County, Illinois, US
*Andres, Pas-de-Calais, a commune in Pas-de-Calais, France
*Andres (name)
*Hurricane Andres
* "Andres" (song), a 1994 song by L7
See also ...
. Duque's siblings are Andrés and María Paula Duque.
Duque attended Colegio Rochester but obtained his high-school diploma from Colegio Winston-Salem in Bogota. He graduated in 2000 with a law degree from Sergio Arboleda University in Bogotá. He holds a
LLM
A large language model (LLM) is a language model trained with Self-supervised learning, self-supervised machine learning on a vast amount of text, designed for natural language processing tasks, especially Natural language generation, language g ...
in
International economic law International economic law is a dynamic and evolving field of international law that governs the regulation and conduct of states, international organizations, and private entities in the global economic landscape. This field encompasses a diverse r ...
from
American University
The American University (AU or American) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Its main campus spans 90-acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, in the Spri ...
and a Masters in Public Policy Management from
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private university, private Jesuit research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic higher education, Ca ...
, Washington D.C.
He began his professional career in 1999 as a consultant in
CAF – Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean
CAF - Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean, formerly the Andean Development Corporation (or Corporación Andina de Fomento), is a Caracas based development bank whose mission is to promote sustainable development and regional integr ...
and later served as an advisor at the Colombian Ministry of Finance and Public Credit during the government of
Andrés Pastrana
Andres or Andrés may refer to:
*Andres, Illinois, an unincorporated community in Will County, Illinois, US
*Andres, Pas-de-Calais, a commune in Pas-de-Calais, France
*Andres (name)
*Hurricane Andres
* "Andres" (song), a 1994 song by L7
See also ...
(1998–2002).
Subsequently, he was appointed by
Juan Manuel Santos
Juan Manuel Santos Calderón (; born 10 August 1951) is a Colombian politician who was the President of Colombia from 2010 to 2018. He was the sole recipient of the 2016 Nobel Peace Prize.
An economist by training and a journalist by trade, S ...
, future president and then-
Minister of Finance
A ministry of finance is a ministry or other government agency in charge of government finance, fiscal policy, and financial regulation. It is headed by a finance minister, an executive or cabinet position .
A ministry of finance's portfolio ...
, as one of Colombia's representatives at the
Inter-American Development Bank
The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB or IADB) is an international development finance institution headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States of America. It serves as one of the leading sources of development financing for the countri ...
(IDB), a post he held between 2001 and 2013. There he served as chief of the Division of Culture, Solidarity, and Creativity.
Duque also served as international advisor of former President
Álvaro Uribe Vélez Álvaro or Álvar (, , ) is a Spanish language, Spanish, Galician language, Galician and Portuguese language, Portuguese male given name and surname of Germanic Visigothic origin.
The patronymic surname derived from this name is Álvarez (surname), ...
. Between 2010 and 2011, he was a consultant at the United Nations (UN) in the Panel of Inquiry appointed by the Secretary-General for the Incident of the
Gaza Flotilla
Gaza flotilla or Gaza Flotilla may refer to:
* Gaza Freedom Flotilla, 2010 aid flotilla from Cyprus to Palestine
** List of participants of the Gaza flotilla
** Gaza flotilla raid
Ships of Gaza flotilla raid, Six civilian ships of the Ga ...
that occurred on 31 May 2010, between Israel and Turkey, known as Mavi Marmara.
Political background
Duque returned to Colombia to become a candidate for the Senate in the legislative elections of 2014, for the
Partido Centro Democrático (Democratic Center Party) which split away from the ruling governing party after
Juan Manuel Santos
Juan Manuel Santos Calderón (; born 10 August 1951) is a Colombian politician who was the President of Colombia from 2010 to 2018. He was the sole recipient of the 2016 Nobel Peace Prize.
An economist by training and a journalist by trade, S ...
opened peace negotiations with the
FARC
The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People's Army (, FARC–EP or FARC) was a Marxist–Leninist guerrilla group involved in the continuing Colombian conflict starting in 1964. The FARC-EP was officially founded in 1966 from peasan ...
. This new party campaigned against the new peace agreement and the Santos Government, and was led by right wing former president Uribe.
Uribe created his own political party and presented himself and a list of hand-picked political allies as candidates for the office of Congressman in a closed list, which meant that people could not vote for an individual congressman but had to vote for the party as a whole in both the upper and lower chamber elections. Duque was included in the number seven spot of the closed off list for the Senate and thus was elected senator.
During his time as a senator, he was the author of four laws:
* Law 1822 of 4 January 2017, increasing the maternity leave from 14 to 18 weeks, so mothers could spend more time with their newborn children, a benefit that was also extended to adoptive mothers.
* Law 1831 of 2 May 2017, for the availability of defibrillators in public facilities and places of high public influx, to save lives, since heart attacks are the leading cause of death in Colombia.
* Law 1809 of 29 September 2016, for the use of advanced severance payments for educational insurance, so that more families can send their children to the university.
* Law 1834 of 23 May 2017, the "Orange Law" for the promotion, development and protection of the creative and cultural industries.
2018 presidential election
On 10 December 2017, Duque was nominated by his party as its candidate for President of Colombia. He won the nomination through a system of surveys conducted by the party, with a 29.47% favorability compared to the other two candidates: Carlos Holmes Trujillo who obtained 20.15%, and
Rafael Nieto with 20.06%. In January 2018, it was announced that the center-right coalition would participate in the Grand Primary for Colombia – an interparty consultation – with Duque as its candidate confronting
Marta Lucía Ramírez
Marta Lucía Ramírez Blanco (born 4 July 1954) is a Colombian lawyer and politician who served as 12th Vice President of Colombia from 2018 to 2022. She also served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Colombia. In 2018, Ramírez became the f ...
(civil-center right movement) and Alejandro Ordóñez (right wing civil movement). On 11 March 2018, Duque won the primary with more than 4 million votes. Ramírez was second, with just over 1.5 million votes, and Ordóñez came third with 385,000 votes. During his speech, Duque thanked the support of Colombians at the polls and announced Marta Lucía Ramírez as his running mate in the elections.
On 27 May 2018, Duque earned the most votes in the first round of the
presidential election
A presidential election is the election of any head of state whose official title is President.
Elections by country
Albania
The president of Albania is elected by the Assembly of Albania who are elected by the Albanian public.
Chile
The p ...
with over 39% of the vote. Duque was elected President of Colombia on 17 June 2018 after defeating
Gustavo Petro
Gustavo Francisco Petro Urrego (; born 19 April 1960) is a Colombian politician who is the 34th and current president of Colombia since 2022. Upon inauguration, he became the Pink tide, first left-wing president in the History of Colombia, recen ...
54% to 42% in the second round.
Presidency (2018–2022)
Duque was sworn in on 7 August 2018 at Bogotá's
Bolívar Square. Duque's government prioritized legality and entrepreneurship, among other areas.
In 2020, after the drug lord "Ñeñe" Hernandez was murdered in Brazil, some audios of him conspiring to give money to Duque's party in order to buy votes for his election were published in what is known as the "
Ñeñepolítica".
Duque's term concluded on 7 August 2022 and he was succeeded by Gustavo Petro.
Domestic policy
Opposed to the peace agreement signed in 2016 with the FARC guerrilla group, Duque, nevertheless stated at the time of his election that he had no intention of "smashing it to bits". As president, he tried to eliminate certain points of the agreement. His government sought to weaken the
Special Jurisdiction for Peace
The Special Jurisdiction for Peace (in Spanish: Jurisdicción Especial para la Paz, JEP), also known as Special Justice for Peace, is the Colombian transitional justice mechanism through which FARC members, members of the Public Force and third pa ...
and cut the budget of the Truth Commission and the Unit for the Search for Disappeared Persons by 30%. The government also promoted generals involved in
extrajudicial executions
An extrajudicial killing (also known as an extrajudicial execution or an extralegal killing) is the deliberate killing of a person without the lawful authority granted by a judicial proceeding. It typically refers to government authorities, ...
(see :
"False positives" scandal), appoints controversial figures to key positions and halts negotiations with the other guerrilla group, the
National Liberation Army (ELN).
Through its National Development Plan 2018–2022, the Colombian government planned to revive the country's
gold
Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...
and
copper
Copper is a chemical element; it has symbol Cu (from Latin ) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkish-orang ...
markets. In addition, 161 new
oil drilling
An oil well is a drillhole boring (earth), boring in Earth that is designed to bring petroleum oil hydrocarbons to the surface. Usually some natural gas is released as associated petroleum gas along with the oil. A well that is designed to produ ...
sites were planned for 2022, four times more than the 46 existing in 2018.
Hydraulic fracturing
Fracking (also known as hydraulic fracturing, fracing, hydrofracturing, or hydrofracking) is a well stimulation technique involving the fracturing of Formation (geology), formations in bedrock by a pressurized liquid. The process involves the ...
was legalised in 2019. The plan was widely criticised by environmentalists, who considered it dangerous for the environment and the climate, and offering the country's non-renewable resources to foreign
multinationals. The share of extraction profits paid to the state has dropped to 0.4% for gold and silver, and 3.27% for
open-cast coal mines. The plan also threatened indigenous communities, whose territories and resources were under threat. In mid-2019 the Pan-American Highway was blocked for several weeks by the mobilisation of thousands of indigenous people in the department of
Cauca.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Colombian government created the "Prevention and Action" television programme, in which Duque communicated with citizens through a national network, with the Colombian public and private media, broadcasting every day at 6pm. The program enjoyed great popularity initially, since it was shown as an effective means to timely communicate the news about the measures used to contain the spread COVID-19. His approval rating increased at the start of the pandemic, as a result. However, the program was extended over time and lost popularity, as there were no constant news about the pandemic; the program mutated to a space where Duque talked to the public, however the program continued during the start of the
2021 protests
1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sp ...
, Duque continued to present the television program, which generated strong criticism. By May 2021, as protests continue and the unemployment was out of control, the programme ended.
In 2020, the defence minister
Carlos Holmes Trujillo
Carlos Holmes Trujillo García (23 September 1951 – 26 January 2021) was a Colombian dynasty politician, diplomat, scholar, and attorney who served as minister of defense, foreign affairs, interior, and education. He also served as the mayor ...
died of COVID-19, and was replaced by
Diego Molano. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, GDP in Colombia decreased by 6.8% in 2020, the worst drop in the country's GDP in history.
Public safety
Insecurity in Colombia has increased during Iván Duque's presidency. In four years there have been more than 260 massacres that have left more than 1,100 people dead. Violence against social leaders in the territories has increased substantially. As of 4 June 2022, 930 social leaders had been assassinated. In addition, 245 former FARC combatants who took advantage of the Peace Accords have been assassinated during the Duque government.
War on drugs
Duque made the
war on drugs a central issue of his presidency and called his country "a partner for all of the Western Hemisphere in the fight against drugs." Despite his efforts, however,
cocaine
Cocaine is a tropane alkaloid and central nervous system stimulant, derived primarily from the leaves of two South American coca plants, ''Erythroxylum coca'' and ''Erythroxylum novogranatense, E. novogranatense'', which are cultivated a ...
production reached record highs during his presidency. With a potential output of 1,400 metric tons in 2022 according to the
UN, Colombia remained the world's leading producer of the drug.
Protests
The
2019–2020 Colombian protests
The 2019–2020 Colombian protests were a collection of protests that began on 21 November 2019. Hundreds of thousands of Colombians demonstrated for various reasons. Some protested against income inequality, corruption, police brutality and var ...
were a collection of protests that have occurred since 21 November 2019.
Hundreds of thousands of
Colombians
Colombians () are people identified with the country of Colombia. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Colombians, several (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their bein ...
demonstrated to support the
Colombian peace process
The Colombian peace process refers to the negotiations between the Government of Colombia under President Juan Manuel Santos and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC–EP) aimed at ending the decades-long Colombian conflict. Th ...
and against the Duque
government
A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state.
In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...
.
Demonstrators criticise also the government's desire to make the labour market more flexible, to reduce the public pension fund in favour of private entities and to raise the retirement age . The unions also protested against the tax reform aimed at reducing the taxes paid by companies and against the planned privatisation of public companies such as the oil company
Ecopetrol
Ecopetrol, formerly known as Empresa Colombiana de Petróleo S.A. () is the largest and primary petroleum company in Colombia. As a result of its continuous growth, Ecopetrol forms part of the Fortune Global 500 and was ranked 346. In the 2020 ...
and the electricity company Cenit. The army was deployed in the main cities of the country and a curfew was introduced. The unpopularity rate of Iván Duque reached almost 70%.
The
2021 Colombian protests began on 28 April 2021 against increased taxes proposed by the Duque government amid the pandemic.
Venezuelan refugee crisis
The Presidency of Ivan Duque has continued the policies of his predecessor
Juan Manuel Santos
Juan Manuel Santos Calderón (; born 10 August 1951) is a Colombian politician who was the President of Colombia from 2010 to 2018. He was the sole recipient of the 2016 Nobel Peace Prize.
An economist by training and a journalist by trade, S ...
in regards to immigration and the
Venezuelan refugee crisis
The Venezuelan refugee crisis, the List of largest refugee crises, largest recorded refugee crisis in the Americas,
*
*
*
*
refers to the emigration of millions of Venezuelans from their native country during the presidencies of Hugo C ...
. Ivan Duque's government has been a vocal supporter for the refugees at the United Nations and has provided aid, schooling and health care for many, and has been a vocal critic of other South American countries closing of doors to Venezuelan refugees.
In 2018, Duque dedicated 0.5% of government spending to supporting refugees accounting for about 20% of Colombia's budget short fall, despite opposition. In response to this criticism on a televised address Duque stated: "For those who want to make from xenophobia a political path, we adopt the path of brotherhood, for those who want to outcast or discriminate against migrants, we stand up today ... to say that we are going to take them in and we are going to support them during difficult times."
Duque's policies regarding this issue have received repeated praise from international humanitarian organizations for its efforts to legalize, formalize and offer assistance to refugees, and the Atlantic has noted that it has set the bar welcoming refugees. A representative from the
International Rescue Committee
The International Rescue Committee (IRC) is a global humanitarian aid, relief, and development nongovernmental organization. Founded in 1933 as the International Relief Association, at the request of Albert Einstein, and changing its name in 1 ...
has noted that: "
he has
He or HE may refer to:
Language
* He (letter), the fifth letter of the Semitic abjads
* He (pronoun), a pronoun in Modern English
* He (kana), one of the Japanese kana (へ in hiragana and ヘ in katakana)
* Ge (Cyrillic), a Cyrillic letter cal ...
never seen a government trying this hard to register people and leave the borders open. Unfortunately," she added "the scale of this crisis, and the speed at which it changes, is more than Colombia can handle." His decision to provide temporary protected legal status to nearly 1.7 million Venezuelan migrants drew praise from leaders around the world.
Foreign policy
Duque pursued very close relations with the
Trump administration Presidency of Donald Trump may refer to:
* First presidency of Donald Trump, the United States presidential administration from 2017 to 2021
* Second presidency of Donald Trump, the United States presidential administration since 2025
See also
* ...
in the
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
and supported its projects in Colombia and Latin America.
In return, Colombia benefited from U.S. military support and increased foreign aid funds.
Duque described the Venezuelan government of
Nicolás Maduro
Nicolás Maduro Moros (; born 23 November 1962) is a Venezuelan politician and former union leader serving as the 53rd president of Venezuela since 2013. Previously, he was the 24th Vice President of Venezuela, vice president from 2012 to 20 ...
as dictatorial and supported the Trump administration's efforts for
regime change
Regime change is the partly forcible or coercive replacement of one government regime with another. Regime change may replace all or part of the state's most critical leadership system, administrative apparatus, or bureaucracy. Regime change may ...
, recognizing
Juan Guaido
''Juan'' is a given name, the Spanish and Manx versions of ''John''. The name is of Hebrew origin and has the meaning "God has been gracious." It is very common in Spain and in other Spanish-speaking countries around the world and in the Philippi ...
as
interim president
An acting president is a person who temporarily fills the role of a country's president when the incumbent president is unavailable (such as by illness or visiting abroad) or when the post is vacant (such as for death, resignation or removal ...
and encouraging the country's military to back the Guaido government.
Duque's government welcomed the removal of Bolivian President
Evo Morales
Juan Evo Morales Ayma (; born 26 October 1959) is a Bolivian politician, trade union organizer, and former cocalero activist who served as the 65th president of Bolivia from 2006 to 2019. Widely regarded as the country's first president to come ...
during the
2019 Bolivian political crisis
The 2019 Bolivian political crisis was a period of intense political upheaval and unrest in Bolivia that followed the disputed 2019 Bolivian general election, in which incumbent President Evo Morales was initially declared the winner. Morale ...
, and was accused of interference in the Ecuadorian elections of 2021 by accusing the left-wing candidate
Andrés Arauz
Andrés Arauz Galarza (born 6 February 1985) is an Ecuadorian politician and economist who ran for Vice President of Ecuador in the 2023 election. Arauz served as Minister of Knowledge and Human Talent in the Rafael Correa administration from ...
of being financed by the Colombian guerrilla group
ELN.
Despite his party supporting
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
during the
2020 US presidential election
Presidential elections were held in the United States on November 3, 2020. The Democratic ticket of former vice president Joe Biden and California junior senator Kamala Harris defeated the incumbent Republican president Donald Trump and vi ...
, Duque maintained very good relations under the presidency of
Joe Biden
Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...
. The
Biden administration
Joe Biden's tenure as the List of presidents of the United States, 46th president of the United States began with Inauguration of Joe Biden, his inauguration on January 20, 2021, and ended on January 20, 2025. Biden, a member of the Democr ...
showed signs of favoring right-wing candidates in the
Colombian presidential election of 2022: senior US diplomats spoke to the press about alleged Russian, Cuban and Venezuelan interference in the election in favor of leftist candidate
Gustavo Petro
Gustavo Francisco Petro Urrego (; born 19 April 1960) is a Colombian politician who is the 34th and current president of Colombia since 2022. Upon inauguration, he became the Pink tide, first left-wing president in the History of Colombia, recen ...
, while US officials avoided meeting Petro before the election while meeting other candidates.
Duque condemned the
2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...
and considered the invasion a violation of international law and the United Nations charter.
Criminal investigation
Following the publication of alleged evidence in March 2018 that Duque's political party conspired with the
drug trafficking organization of Marquitos Figueroa to commit fraud in the
presidential election
A presidential election is the election of any head of state whose official title is President.
Elections by country
Albania
The president of Albania is elected by the Assembly of Albania who are elected by the Albanian public.
Chile
The p ...
, Congress's Accusations Committee and the National Electoral Council opened an investigation into his alleged role in the fraud. The Supreme Court opened a criminal investigation into his political sponsor, right-wing former 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 Department, Antioquia. H ...
, who is already being investigated for alleged witness fraud and bribery.
After the presidency
Two days after the end of his presidency, he was named a "distinguished fellow" at the influential
Woodrow Wilson Center
The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars (WWICS) or Wilson Center is a Washington, D.C.–based think tank dedicated to research and policy discussions on global issues. Established by an act of Congress in 1968, it serves as both ...
in Washington, D.C., a U.S. government-funded ''think tank'' with a monthly salary of $10,000.
He supported far-right candidate
Javier Milei
Javier Gerardo Milei (born 22 October 1970) is an Argentine politician and economist who has served as President of Argentina since 2023. Milei also served as a national deputy representing the City of Buenos Aires for the party La Libertad ...
, who was elected, in the
2023 Argentine general election
General elections were held in Argentina on 22 October 2023 to elect the President of Argentina, president, Vice President of Argentina, vice president, members of the National Congress of Argentina, National Congress, and the governors of mos ...
.
He is now an amateur DJ and according to the djloversclub instagram account. It has been rumored that the former President will be making his professional debut at the annual Miami Music week in 2026 in Miami, Florida.
Published books
Iván Duque is the author of the books ''Monetary Sins'' (2007), ''Machiavelli in Colombia'' (2010), ''Orange Effect'' (2015), ''IndignAcción'' (IndignAction) (2017), ''The Future is at the Center (2018)'' ''Archaeology of My Father'' (2018), ''Humanism Matters'' (2019), ''The Road to Zero'' (2021) and is co-author of the book ''The Orange Economy: An Infinite Opportunity'' (2013).
Duque has also been an Op-Ed contributor to several newspapers: ''
El Colombiano
''El Colombiano'' () is the leading newspaper in Antioquia Department in Colombia whose headquarters are located in Medellín.
The first edition of this newspaper was published on February 6, 1912, which only had one page, 13 advertisements, but ...
'', from Medellín; ''Portafolio'' and ''
El Tiempo'' from Casa Editorial El Tiempo in Bogotá; and ''
El País
(; ) is a Spanish-language daily newspaper in Spain. is based in the capital city of Madrid and it is owned by the Spanish media conglomerate PRISA.
It is the second-most circulated daily newspaper in Spain . is the most read newspaper in ...
'' in Spain.
Personal life
Duque is
Roman Catholic
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
. He is married to
María Juliana Ruiz Sandoval
Maria may refer to:
People
* Mary, mother of Jesus
* Maria (given name), a popular given name in many languages
Place names Extraterrestrial
*170 Maria, a Main belt S-type asteroid discovered in 1877
*Lunar maria (plural of ''mare''), large, da ...
, with whom he has three children: Luciana, Matías, and Eloísa.
Awards
*2022:
**
Woodrow Wilson Award
Woodrow Wilson Awards are given out in multiple countries each year by the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars of the Smithsonian Institution to individuals in both the public sphere and business who have shown an outstanding commit ...
for Global Public Service, by the
Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars (WWICS) or Wilson Center is a Washington, D.C.–based think tank
A think tank, or public policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topi ...
of the
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums, Education center, education and Research institute, research centers, created by the Federal government of the United States, U.S. government "for the increase a ...
.
** Planetary Leadership Award, by the
National Geographic Society
The National Geographic Society, headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States, is one of the largest nonprofit scientific and educational organizations in the world.
Founded in 1888, its interests include geography, archaeology, natural sc ...
.
*2023:
**Inaugural
Cornell University
Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...
Emerging Markets Institute Distinguished Fellow
Honours
National honours
* Grand Collar of the
Order of Boyacá
The Order of Boyacá () is the highest peacetime decoration of Colombia. The order is awarded for exceptional service to distinguished Colombian military officers and civilians as well as foreign citizens of friendly nations. Established in 1922, ...
.
* Collar of the
Order of San Carlos
The Order of San Carlos is a state order granted by Colombia. The order was founded 16 August 1954 to honor Colombian citizens and foreign civilians and military officers who have made outstanding contributions to the nation of Colombia, especiall ...
.
* Grand Cross Extraordinary of the National Order of Merit.
*Order of Merit Colonel Guillermo Fergusson.
Foreign honours
*
**

Grand Collar of the
Order of the Southern Cross
The National Order of the Southern Cross () is a Brazilian Orders, decorations, and medals of Brazil, order of chivalry founded by List of monarchs of Brazil, Emperor Pedro I of Brazil, Pedro I on 1 December 1822. The order aimed to commemorate ...
(2021).
*
** Grand Cross with Gold Breast Star,
Order of Merit of Duarte, Sánchez and Mella
The Order of Merit of Duarte, Sánchez and Mella (''Orden al Mérito de Duarte, Sánchez y Mella'') is the principal order of the Dominican Republic. It was established on 24 February 1931 as the ''Juan Pablo Duarte Order of Merit'' (''Orden al M ...
(2022).
*
**

Grand Collar of the
Order of the Sun of Peru
The Order of the Sun of Peru (Spanish: ''Orden El Sol del Perú''), formerly known as the Order of the Sun, is the highest award bestowed by the nation of Peru to commend notable civil and military merit. The award is the oldest civilian award in ...
(2019).
** Medal of Honor of the Congress of the Republic of Peru (2019).
*
**

Grand Collar of the
Order of Prince Henry
The Order of Prince Henry () is a Portuguese order of knighthood created on 2 June 1960, to commemorate the quincentenary of the death of the Portuguese ''infante'' Prince Henry the Navigator, one of the main initiators of the Age of Discovery. M ...
(2022).
*
**

Collar of the
Order of Isabella the Catholic
The Royal Order of Isabella the Catholic (; Abbreviation, Abbr.: OYC) is a knighthood and one of the three preeminent Order of merit, orders of merit bestowed by the Kingdom of Spain, alongside the Order of Charles III (established in 1771) and ...
(2021).
*
**
Grand Order of Mugunghwa
The Grand Order of Mugunghwa () is the highest national order awarded by South Korea. It is awarded to the President of South Korea, and it may be awarded to their spouse, heads or former heads of state of South Korean allies, and their spouse ...
(2021).
References
External links
Official websiteBiography by CIDOB(in Spanish)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Duque, Ivan
1976 births
Living people
Ivan
Ivan () is a Slavic male given name, connected with the variant of the Greek name (English: John) from Hebrew meaning 'God is gracious'. It is associated worldwide with Slavic countries. The earliest person known to bear the name was the B ...
Lawyers from Bogotá
Politicians from Bogotá
Presidents of Colombia
Members of the Senate of Colombia
Right-wing populism in South America
Colombian anti-communists
Colombian Roman Catholics
Harvard University alumni
American University alumni
McCourt School of Public Policy alumni
Collars of the Order of Isabella the Catholic
Order of Merit of Duarte, Sánchez and Mella
20th-century Colombian economists
21st-century Colombian politicians