Paraguayan Vice President Pedro Alliana became president of the country after the Senate impeached Santiago Peña. Alliana will serve out the term until August 2028 – the date on which Peña’s regular term was due to end.
The change in power came against the backdrop of the country’s worst political and financial crisis in years. The cause was the collapse of digital lender “Ueno”, which left millions of customers unable to access their funds. Peña lost the support of senior figures in the ruling conservative Colorado Party after political responsibility for the crisis was placed on him. Reuters reported that Peña had been a business partner in the group that owned “Ueno” until March 2025.
A politician from the Colorado Party establishment
Alliana is 52 and is among the most influential figures in the Colorado Party, which has ruled Paraguay for most of the past eight decades. For eight years, he was chairman of the organization and built his political career alongside that of former President Horacio Cartes.
Before becoming vice president in 2023, Alliana spent a decade in the Chamber of Deputies, where he represented the southern department of Ñeembucú. He was born there and, at the beginning of his political career, also served as governor of the department.
Before the crisis, Alliana had hoped to run for president in the 2028 elections. He remained loyal to Peña until the beginning of the week, when he announced that he was temporarily suspending his campaign for the party’s internal primary elections, scheduled for December.
“I want to become President of the Republic. I think I have the necessary capacity, knowledge and ideas,” Alliana told reporters.He also said that he did not want to take responsibility for the mistakes of other politicians. The statement was seen as a sign of distancing himself from Peña at a time when pressure on the then-president was mounting.
What policies are expected
Alliana supports maintaining close relations between Paraguay and the United States. He also defends the country’s diplomatic ties with Taiwan – a position Paraguay shares with 11 other countries. The new president also takes a staunchly pro-Israel stance.
Mariano Machado, an analyst for North and South America at the consultancy Verisk Maplecroft, described Alliana’s presidency as a sign of continuity with the existing policy, dependence on Cartes and a weak mandate. According to him, the orthodox approach to macroeconomics will likely remain in place, but there will be stronger pressure for spending linked to party patronage ahead of the 2028 elections.
The crisis surrounding “Ueno” has already led to street protests in the capital Asunción and the resignation of the governor of the Central Bank of Paraguay, Carlos Carvallo. Banking supervision and responsibility for the lender’s collapse will be among the first tests facing the new head of state.
Sources: bta.bg, investing.com, apnews.com