COLOMBIA : parliamentary elections Cámara de Representantes , 1994

COLOMBIA
Parliamentary Chamber: Cámara de Representantes

ELECTIONS HELD IN 1994

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Chamber:

Cámara de Representantes

Dates of elections / renewal (from/to):

13 March 1994

Purpose of elections:

Elections were held for all the seats in Parliament on the normal expiry of the members’ term of office*

Background and outcome of elections:

The 1994 congressional elections were held simultaneously with local polling within the country’s departments.
As in the past, the governing Liberal Party (PL) was chiefly challenged by the Social Conservative Party (PSC, formerly the Conservative Party). The electoral campaign was peppered by incidents of violence and disruption by both extreme right-wing paramilitary groups and left-wing guerrilla organisations, especially the Simon Bolivar National Guerrilla Co-ordinating Board (CNGSB). The multitude of candidatures (5333 altogether) and lists of these (251 for the Senate, 628 for the House) had the effect of relegating the contending parties and their platforms to secondary importance behind the personalities of those in the running. In truth, no outstanding issues could be singled out, with virtually all contestants advocating an end to domestic hostilities, improvement of the social situation and a fight against official corruption.
In contrast to the tense two months before the elections, polling day itself, supervised by thousands of security forces, was relatively calm. However, nearly 70% of the electorate abstained from voting a rate attributed to public disillusionment with country’s politics, the confusing complexity of the ballot papers and the fear of poll-related violence. Final results allowed the PL to retain its bicameral majority and the PSC to maintain its respectable runner-up position; on the other hand, the representation of left-wing parties such as the Democratic Alliance (ADM-19) was sharply reduced. The same day as the legislative elections, Mr. Ernesto Samper Pizano was selected as the PL candidate for the May/June presidential elections, which he ultimately won over Mr. Andrés Pastrana, the conservative-backed candidate. President-elect Samper took office on 7 August, succeeding fellow PL member César Gaviria Trujillo.

STATISTICS

Round no 1: Distribution of seats

Political Group Total

Liberal Party (PL) 94

Social Conservative Party (PSC) 56

Independents 13

Distribution of seats according to sex:

Men: 145

Women: 18

*Congress had previously been elected for a four-year term in March 1990. In July 1991, a new Constitution was approved and, by mutual agreement of all parties, the mandate of the legislature was revoked. As a consequence, general elections for a “small Parliament” with a transitional term were held in October 1991. The Congress chosen in March 1994 was due to sit as from July 1994.

<<< Return to the Historical Archive page of parliamentary election results for COLOMBIA <<<

Chamber:
	Cámara de Representantes
Dates of elections / renewal (from/to):
	13 March 1994
Purpose of elections:
	Elections were held for all the seats in Parliament on the normal expiry of the members’ term of office*
Background and outcome of elections:
	The 1994 congressional elections were held simultaneously with local polling within the country’s departments. As in the past, the governing Liberal Party (PL) was chiefly challenged by the Social Conservative Party (PSC, formerly the Conservative Party). The electoral campaign was peppered by incidents of violence and disruption by both extreme right-wing paramilitary groups and left-wing guerrilla organisations, especially the Simon Bolivar National Guerrilla Co-ordinating Board (CNGSB). The multitude of candidatures (5333 altogether) and lists of these (251 for the Senate, 628 for the House) had the effect of relegating the contending parties and their platforms to secondary importance behind the personalities of those in the running. In truth, no outstanding issues could be singled out, with virtually all contestants advocating an end to domestic hostilities, improvement of the social situation and a fight against official corruption. In contrast to the tense two months before the elections, polling day itself, supervised by thousands of security forces, was relatively calm. However, nearly 70% of the electorate abstained from voting a rate attributed to public disillusionment with country’s politics, the confusing complexity of the ballot papers and the fear of poll-related violence. Final results allowed the PL to retain its bicameral majority and the PSC to maintain its respectable runner-up position; on the other hand, the representation of left-wing parties such as the Democratic Alliance (ADM-19) was sharply reduced. The same day as the legislative elections, Mr. Ernesto Samper Pizano was selected as the PL candidate for the May/June presidential elections, which he ultimately won over Mr. Andrés Pastrana, the conservative-backed candidate. President-elect Samper took office on 7 August, succeeding fellow PL member César Gaviria Trujillo.

Round no 1: Distribution of seats
Political Group	Total
Liberal Party (PL)	94
Social Conservative Party (PSC)	56
Independents	13