Colombia outsider candidate Hernandez may weaken leftist Petro's rebel status

Colombian centre-right presidential candidate Rodolfo Hernandez of Anti-Corruption Rulers' League Party shows a ballo as he casts his vote at a polling station during the first round of the presidential election in Bucaramanga, Colombia May 29, 2022. REUTERS/Stringer

FUSAGASUGA, Colombia (Reuters) - Colombian leftist Gustavo Petro leads the race for the country's presidency ahead of a second round of voting, having inspired his supporters to imagine a more equitable, greener country, they say.

But promises of radical change from the former M-19 rebel may now resonate less with those who want a break from Colombia's traditional political machinery: Petro's surprise rival in the June 19 run-off will be Rodolfo Hernandez - a septuagenarian who has run a populist campaign as an independent, anti-establishment maverick.