COLOMBIA · POLITICS
Key Facts
- Who Day Vásquez is the ex-wife of Nicolás Petro, son of former president Gustavo Petro.
- What Colombian radio reports say she has been in contact with US authorities about 2022 campaign money.
- Status No US agency, Vásquez or Gustavo Petro has confirmed the reports, which use conditional wording.
- Prediction markets Polymarket, a US prediction platform, gives a 9% chance that Gustavo Petro is charged in the US by 31 December (6 November, 2:38 p.m. ET).
- Power Index Colombia ranks 6th of 14 in The Rio Times Latin America Power Index, with 51.1 points (November 2026 edition).
Colombian radio stations reported on Thursday 5 and Friday 6 November 2026 that Day Vásquez, a key prosecution witness in Colombia, has been in contact with US authorities about money that may have reached the 2022 presidential campaign of Gustavo Petro. The reports use conditional wording, and no US agency has confirmed them.
For US readers, the story matters because a US case involving a former Colombian president would test ties between Washington and Bogotá, a close security and trade partner. Our guide to Colombia’s key players explains who is who.
What Is Reported
One radio report, citing high-level sources, said Vásquez had contacts with US authorities to give details of 2022 campaign meetings where illicit money was allegedly agreed. A second report, quoting a journalist rather than named sources, said she would be handing US entities the evidence she holds on money and contributions in that campaign.
Both reports use words such as “would” and “reportedly”. They do not say which US agencies were involved, what the evidence is, or whether a US investigation exists.
Who Is Day Vásquez
Vásquez is the former wife of Nicolás Petro, who is the son of Gustavo Petro, Colombia’s president from 2022 to August 2026. She became a public figure in 2023 after saying that her then husband had received cash during his father’s campaign.
Prosecutors gave her a “principio de oportunidad”, a deal that spares a cooperating witness from prosecution for her own role in the case against Nicolás Petro; a judge approved it in 2024 and a higher court kept it in force in September 2026. She has said before that Gustavo Petro did not know about the money.
What She Said in June
On 3 June 2026 Vásquez asked several Colombian bodies, including the House of Representatives’ Commission of Accusations, the panel that investigates presidents, to hear her. She also said then that she would speak to US authorities.
That earlier statement is why the new reports are plausible, but it is not confirmation. She has not publicly said that she has handed anything to a US agency.
What Colombian Prosecutors Have Done
Colombia’s Attorney General’s Office has charged Ricardo Roa, the 2022 campaign manager, with exceeding the campaign’s legal spending limits, which is an allegation he has not accepted. He told the court he is innocent.
Colombia’s National Electoral Council, which oversees campaign finance, has also fined the campaign’s manager and two parties for exceeding spending limits and taking prohibited contributions. No court has found that money of criminal origin entered the 2022 campaign.
What Prediction Markets Say
On Polymarket, a prediction platform where users bet real money, traders gave 9.0% to Gustavo Petro being charged in the United States by 31 December, as of 2:38 p.m. ET on 6 November. About US$12,000 has been traded on this market, so the price is a rough signal only.
Why we show this: prediction markets turn real-money bets into a live probability that moves within minutes of the news, which is why investors, campaigns and newsrooms in the United States now follow them closely. We show them next to polls and official results, never instead of them.
What It Means for You
If you invest in Colombia, this is a political-risk story rather than a market mover today. A US case against a former president would be unusual and could affect relations between the two governments.
Travellers face no direct effect. US companies in Colombia should watch the Colombian court cases and any step by US authorities.
What Is Not Known
It is not known whether any US agency has received material, in what form, or whether it would be used in a case. Vásquez, her lawyer and Gustavo Petro had not publicly confirmed or denied the reports by 6 November.
Nothing in the reports shows that Gustavo Petro knew of illicit money, and he has not been charged in Colombia or in the United States.
More: Colombia news in English, every day from The Rio Times.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Is Reported About Day Vásquez and the US?
Colombian radio says she has been in contact with US authorities about 2022 campaign money. The reports are unconfirmed.
Who Is Day Vásquez?
She is the former wife of Nicolás Petro, the son of former president Gustavo Petro. She is a witness for prosecutors in the case against her ex-husband.
Has Gustavo Petro Been Charged?
No. He has not been charged in Colombia or in the United States.
Do Prediction Markets Expect a US Case?
Polymarket, a US prediction platform, gave 9.0% to a US charge against Gustavo Petro by 31 December as of 6 November. That is a bet, not a forecast by officials.
Sources: Colombian radio reports of 5 and 6 November 2026; Attorney General’s Office of Colombia, charges against Ricardo Roa (2026); Polymarket market data, 6 November 2026.
Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief · Editorial standards · Report an error