Verónica Alcocer talks to CNN about her life next to Gustavo Petro 11:12
(CNN Spanish) --
Verónica Alcocer could become the first lady of Colombia if Gustavo Petro beats Rodolfo Hernández.
But her agenda, a few weeks before the second round, seems to transcend her husband: she affirms that she is embarking on a personal project "trying to build a name" that has taken her to travel the country for months.
Alcocer was born in Sincelejo, in the department of Sucre in the north of the country, in a right-wing coastal family with a good economic position.
She, who recently turned 46, and met Gustavo Petro, 62, at the beginning of the year 2000 when he traveled to Sincelejo to give a lecture at the Caribbean University Corporation.
Alcocer was studying Law there, which after several attempts she never completed.
In an interview with Blu Radio, he says that at first there was practically no exchange of words between them: he arrived, threw a compliment and went on his way.
At the conference she was struck by her intelligence.
The rest is history.
As Alcocer had been raised in a conservative family, the biggest challenge for the couple seemed to be her father, Jorge Emilio Alcocer, a great admirer of conservative politician Álvaro Gómez, according to his daughter.
However, despite Petro's guerrilla past in the M-19, everything went very well.
Verónica Alcocer with Gustavo Petro on May 29, 2022 (Credit: JUAN BARRETO/AFP via Getty Images)
That same year they got married.
She had a son, Nicolás, and together they had two other daughters: Sofía and Antonella.
Petro also had several children from his previous partners.
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They have been together for more than 20 years, years in which she, according to her, has dedicated herself mainly to caring for the family (in 2019 there was talk of her possible candidacy for mayor of Sincelejo, but in the end she did not advance).
Until now.
The "personal project of Verónica Alcocer García"
Local media mark the change in Alcocer in 2018, when Petro was competing for the presidency against Iván Duque, regarding what can be seen in this instance.
Why is it now put "on stage"?
he was recently asked in an interview by Caracol.
And his answer was: "It's time."
She affirms that she has already fulfilled "the work of bringing her children forward" and has embarked on what she calls the "personal project of Victoria Alcocer" in which she tries, as she told Caracol, to "build a name" with activity and Own thinking.
These can be "parallel" to those of Petro in the campaign, but independent.
"My little girls, the two big ones, are at university. And Antonella (the little one) is super independent and responsible. So I don't have to be one hundred percent at home. Now comes another opportunity. If I helped my children, why Why can't I help the rest of the world? Here the thing is to serve. And if God and life decide that Gustavo is not going to be president, I'm not going to stop helping," he said in an interview with
El Tiempo
, in which Two words appear to which he seems to recur constantly: serve and God.
This desire has led her to spend more than six months touring the country.
Verónica Alcocer accompanies Gustavo Petro after voting in the elections on May 27, 2018. (Credit: Raúl Arboleda/ AFP/ Getty Images)
Tell stories of Colombia
"I am passionate about telling the stories of Colombia!" Says the biography of his social networks.
Her first Instagram post from him is from January of this year and since then she has shared more than 120 photos and videos.
And in many cases these are not spontaneous snapshots but quite the opposite: well-edited pieces in which she combines her own words with those of those she visits and stories, lots of stories.
Women are the main protagonists of their messages on networks, which combine life stories, their tours of different corners of the country, talks with entrepreneurs and the promotion of local traditions and entrepreneurship.
It is an account that also has a lot of music and dance.
Who is not often found among the images is Petro.
There, and in her "personal project", she is the protagonist.
And she even cultivates her own hashtag: #YoSoyTuAmiga.
There are media that have described her as "unpretentious" and her networks give an account of that: she has, according to the dictionary, "great ease and ease in speaking or in actions."
From Teresa of Calcutta to Michelle Obama
Who does Veronica Alcocer admire?
The names that come up in interviews may give a clue to the type of leadership she would like to exercise if she becomes first lady.
In the field of wives of presidents, Alcocer told
El Tiempo
that his references were Michelle Obama for her closeness and simplicity, while in Colombia he highlighted Ana Milena Muñoz, wife of former president César Gaviria (1990-1994), for her link to the culture area.
Outside the spectrum of first ladies, two names come up in an interview with
El País
: Princess Diana and Mother Teresa of Calcutta.
This second is not surprising, since Alcocer puts his faith in God and in Christian values at the center of the message.
What would she be like as a first lady?
Alcocer told
El Tiempo
that the "agenda" of his work is marked by "the needs of the people."
He considers that the role of the first lady has been seen as "extremely distant" and insists and promises contact and closeness if her husband triumphs over Hernández, something that cannot be foreseen due to the progress of the polls at the moment.
MEET THE CANDIDATES:
Gustavo Petro
Rodolfo Hernandez
Colombian Elections