Political Career
After the demobilization of the M-19 guerrilla movement, former members of the group (including Petro) formed a political party called Alianza Democrática M-19 which won a significant number of seats in the Chamber of Representatives of Colombia in 1991, representing the Cundinamarca Department.
In 2002 Petro was elected to the Chamber of Representatives of Colombia representing Bogotá, this time as a member of the Vía Alterna political movement he founded with former guerrilla colleague Antonio Navarro Wolff and other former M-19 guerrilla members. During this period he was named "Best Congressman", both by his own Congress colleagues and the press.
As a member of Vía Alterna, Petro created an electoral coalition with the Frente Social y Político to form the Independent Democratic Pole, which in 2005 fused with the Alternativa Democrática to form the Alternative Democratic Pole, joining a large number of leftist political figures.
In 2006 Petro was reelected Senator of Colombia, mobilizing the second highest voter turnout in the country. During this year he also exposed the Parapolitics scandal, accusing members and followers of the government of mingling with paramilitary groups in order to "reclaim" Colombia.
Read more about this topic: Gustavo Petro
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