Registrar's Office sets the calendar for the October 2027 territorial elections

The National Civil Registry established, through Resolution number 12338 of 2026, all the preclusive stages of the territorial authority elections to be held on October 31, 2027. The calendar begins to run on October 31, 2026, and ends with the general scrutinies on November 2, 2027. The act, signed by the national registrar Hernán Penagos Giraldo, was published in the Official Gazette, edition 53,672 of October 28, 2026, pages 90 to 92.

The first article of the resolution orders the establishment of the calendar of “preclusive stages and activities” for the election of governors, mayors, deputies, councilors, and ediles or members of the local administrative boards. The Registry acts based on article 266 of the Political Constitution, numeral 2 of article 26 of Decree Law 2241 of 1986 (Electoral Code), numeral 11 of article 5 of Decree Law 1010 of 2000, and article 1 of Statutory Law 163 of 1994, which places the elections on the last Sunday of October each year. The text also specifies that the dates are set based on Statutory Law 1475 of 2011, Law 6 of 1990, Law 163 of 1994, and several resolutions of the National Electoral Council, including Resolution number 920 of 2011 and Resolution number 09458 of 2025.

The starting point: October 31, 2026

On that day, exactly one year before the vote, the first deadlines of the process are activated:

• The registration of nominating committees for candidacies supported by significant groups of citizens, social movements, and blank vote promotion committees begins, along with the period for collecting citizen support.
• The registration of citizens to vote due to a change in place of domicile or residence begins, in accordance with article 49 of Statutory Law 1475 of 2011.

The calendar continues with staggered milestones: on April 30, 2027, six months before the election, the deadline to install polling stations in the districts created to date expires. On June 30, 2027, four months before, the incorporation of first-time IDs into the electoral census is suspended to prepare the lists of voters, and the registration period for candidates and candidate lists opens.

Propaganda, census, and electoral witnesses

On July 31, 2027, three months before the elections, electoral propaganda in public spaces is enabled, and the deadline for the collection and submission of signatures for candidates and lists supported by significant groups of citizens, social movements, and blank vote promotion committees expires. The stages for consolidating candidacies are concentrated in August:

• August 2, 2027: the business day following the close of registration, the period to modify candidates and lists due to resignation or non-acceptance opens.
• August 6, 2027: the modification period expires, five business days after the closing.
• August 31, 2027: the Electoral Census is published and the nomination of electoral witnesses before the National Electoral Council begins, two months before the election.

Jurors, scrutineers, and voting day

The final stretch is tied to control deadlines regarding the organization of the suffrage:

• October 15, 2027: deadline for the Superior Tribunal of the Judicial District, mayors’ offices, and governor’s offices to designate scrutiny commissions and key-holders, ten business days prior.
• October 16, 2027: deadline for the draw and publication of the lists of voting jurors, fifteen calendar days prior.
• October 20, 2027: deadline for the registration of new candidacies in case of death or permanent physical incapacity.
• October 24, 2027: nomination of electoral witnesses closes at 11:59 p.m. on the Sunday prior to the contest.
• October 29, 2027: free spaces in media using the electromagnetic spectrum end, and the immunity of the scrutiny commissions, their secretaries, and key-holders begins.

On October 31, 2027, members of the district, municipal, and auxiliary scrutiny commissions must be at the scrutiny headquarters from 3:30 p.m.; scrutiny at that level begins at 4:00 p.m. and extends until midnight. On November 1, they continue from 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., and on November 2, 2027, general scrutinies begin, during the same hours.

Impact

With this resolution, parties, movements, pre-candidates, and citizens are bound to a schedule of preclusive stages that does not allow for rescheduling: any aspirant who does not register their committee, collect their supports, or register their candidacy on the fixed dates is out of the 2027 contest. For the logistical operators —Registrar’s Office, tribunals, mayors’ offices, and governor’s offices— the document also sets the deadlines for the designation of jurors and scrutineers, links upon which the validity of the results depends.

Source: Official Gazette, edition 53,672, October 28, 2026, Miscellaneous section — National Civil Registry, pp. 90-92 (official reference: Resolution number 12338 of 2026).