Colombian president Gustavo Petro was elected in 2022 as an unprecedentedly leftist leader. Whether you like him or loathe him, Gustavo Petro has shown that leftist Colombian presidents are just like rightists in many ways, for good or bad. Photo courtesy of wikicommonsHis presidency has marked a significant shift in Colombian politics: the mere fact of someone like him being elected was unthinkable until relatively recently. What will Gustavo Petro do now? The idea of a leftist president is no longer impossible and it’s also clear that a leftist president doesn’t mean an immediate path to socialism, whether you think that good or bad.