DEL SILENCIO A LA INCLUSIÓN: ANÁLISIS CUALITATIVO-COMPARATIVO DEL ENFOQUE DE GÉNERO EN LOS PROGRAMAS PRESIDENCIALES DE COLOMBIA (2018–2022)

Abstract

The article conducts a qualitative-comparative analysis of the presence of gender categories in the government programs of Colombian presidential candidates in the 2018 and 2022 elections. In the wake of the political debate generated by the 2016 plebiscite and its connection to the peace negotiations with the FARC, gender assumed a central role in the discourse, transforming how it was addressed in the public sphere. Using a qualitative methodology grounded in the design of similarities and differences, eleven presidential programs were examined through thematic coding, with a focus on gender, diversity, the LGBTIQ+ community, and sexual and reproductive rights. The results show a discursive evolution between the two periods. In 2018, the focus was limited to a liberal vision centered on women's rights, political parity, and labor equity. In 2022, some programs moved toward more inclusive proposals, incorporating intersectional perspectives that recognize sexual and gender diversity. However, a liberal logic of assigning rights based on group membership persists, with little attention to sexual dissent. Deliberate discursive omissions were also identified, especially in conservative candidacies that avoided gendered language and championed the traditional family model. This study contributes to political analysis from a gender studies perspective through a methodological approach that allows for the tracking of both inclusions and strategic silences in electoral discourse.