{"id":50315,"date":"2025-06-27T01:05:45","date_gmt":"2025-06-27T05:05:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/world\/colombian-court-halts-investigation-into-presidential-campaign-funds\/27\/06\/2025\/"},"modified":"2025-06-27T01:05:45","modified_gmt":"2025-06-27T05:05:45","slug":"colombian-court-halts-investigation-into-presidential-campaign-funds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/world\/colombian-court-halts-investigation-into-presidential-campaign-funds\/27\/06\/2025\/","title":{"rendered":"Colombian court halts investigation into presidential campaign funds"},"content":{"rendered":"

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BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) \u2014 Colombia\u2019s Constitutional Court on Thursday stopped an electoral body from investigating accusations of illicit campaign financing and unreported spending by President Gustavo Petro<\/a>, delivering a legal victory to the beleaguered left-wing leader.<\/p>\n

The court ruled that only Congress can investigate alleged irregularities in the financing of Petro’s 2022 campaign. Petro has denied any financial impropriety.<\/p>\n

The ruling scraps a probe<\/a> by the National Electoral Council into whether Petro’s campaign exceeded fundraising limits by about $1.2 million and whether it accepted funds from labor organizations, which is banned by Colombian law.<\/p>\n

The council is an administrative body that supervises the electoral process and oversees campaign financing. It can also impose administrative sanctions, such as hefty fines against campaign staffers.<\/p>\n

The court ordered the electoral council to refer its investigation to Colombia\u2019s House of Representatives.<\/p>\n

It’s unclear whether lawmakers will advance the case. Although Petro often clashes with Congress, lawmakers have never removed a Colombian president from office, even in the face of intense public pressure when investigators in 1996 demonstrated then-President Ernesto Samper’s ties to drug cartel financing.<\/p>\n

Petro fiercely criticized the electoral council as politically motivated, opening another front in his battles against the country\u2019s courts, which have overturned some of his key decrees and appointments.<\/p>\n

The officials on the electoral council planned to examine campaign contributions by unions of public school teachers and oil workers, among others, citing a dozen financial transactions Petro’s campaign had allegedly failed to report.<\/p>\n

On Thursday, Petro applauded the court’s decision.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell done to the Constitutional Court,\u201d he posted on social media platform X.<\/p>\n

This was just the latest in a swirl of scandals over the financing of Petro’s campaign.<\/p>\n

The Attorney General\u2019s office has also been investigating Petro\u2019s son Nicol\u00e1s over allegations that the campaign took funds from criminal sources, including a notorious former drug trafficker.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — Colombia’s Constitutional Court on Thursday stopped an electoral body from investigating accusations of illicit campaign financing and unreported