Colombia Presidential Election: First round of voting opens Sunday

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Colombia's presidential election will decide the future of peace with Marxist rebels and the nation's economic model, as candidates from across the political spectrum compete with promises of jobs, safer streets, and a crackdown on corruption. CGTN's Michelle Begue reports from Bogota.

Gustavo Petro- Bogota's former mayor- is a leading candidate in the 2018 presidential elections. Most view him as a left-winged candidate because of his proposals, but in an interview with CGTN, Petro says he wants to be seen as the "progressive" candidate calling for a "Colombia humana" or humane Colombia - as his slogan states.

GUSTAVO PETRO COLOMBIAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE "Colombia needs social reforms that will permit harmonious living, and a profound democracy, that is the formula needed to end decades of violence and provide peace for this country."

Petro says his primary proposal is to concentrate on combating climate change by diversifying the country's energy from oil - Colombia's top export- to renewable and clean energy.

He says relying on the volatile price of oil is not sustainable in the long-term.

GUSTAVO PETRO COLOMBIAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE "The oil crisis showed that we clearly cannot reduce poverty with a system based on the price of primary resources. The clearest example of that failure is Venezuela."

MICHELLE BEGUE BOGOTA "While Petro has criticized the Venezuelan government, his detractors portray him as a sympathizer of guerillas and the Nicolas Maduro presidency. Petro is also a former member of the demobilized guerrilla group called M-19."

Petro says Colombia should move away from what he calls "ineffective" drug policies lead by the United States. Instead, he calls on economic development to "move the population away" from the illicit trade.

GUSTAVO PETRO COLOMBIAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE "An anti-drug policy for me is to take the population from traffickers, it is also democratic agrarian reform for the cultivators of cocoa, and finally taking away the consumers."

Supporters turn out at rallies - which the campaign claims are completely organic and unpaid for- has been high. The question is will this lead to votes on election day. And if he wins, he would make history in this conservative country, becoming the first left- leaning president in Colombia's history.

Michelle Begue, CGTN, Bogota, Colombia.