BOGOTÁ, Colombia — President Alvaro Uribe, whose government has forged a close alliance with the U.S. to fight Marxist guerrillas and drug traffickers, stepped closer to extending his presidency when Colombia’s Senate voted late Wednesday in favor of an effort to allow him to run for re-election.
Just a month ago, Colombia’s influential newsmagazine, Semana, declared Uribe’s chances of going for a third term “dead.” Even some of his supporters had said there was not enough time before the May election for the country’s highest court to approve a constitutional amendment permitting him to run for re-election and for authorities to convene a referendum that would ask Colombians whether they approved of a third term.
But Thursday, the Senate voted 56-2 to stage a referendum. The president’s opponents, who say the re-election effort violates the constitution, boycotted the vote, though its leaders acknowledged not having the votes to stop the bill.
