Senator and pre-candidate for President of Paraguay, Lilian Samaniego, stated she is convinced she will become the first woman to govern the country. In statements to radio station 1020 AM, the lawmaker justified her confidence based on her six years of experience leading the Asociación Nacional Republicana (ANR), the Colorado Party, a period during which she claims to have steered the party through one of its greatest internal crises.
"When I say I am prepared to govern, it is because I managed the crisis of the largest party in Latin America to date, which is the ANR," said Samaniego. She contrasted her management, which she described as inclusive and open to all Colorado factions, with the party's current situation, which, according to her, operates under a logic of exclusion. "As they say today, if you are not from Honor Colorado, you are an enemy," she criticized.
While Samaniego positions her pre-candidacy for 2028, internal party movements are discussing the political future of former President Horacio Cartes. The President of Congress, Senator Basilio 'Bachi' Núñez, announced he will propose that Cartes lead the list of Senate candidates for the Honor Colorado movement in the 2028 elections.
Senator Natalicio Chase, leader of the Honor Colorado bloc in the Senate, stated there is no internal opposition to the idea, which he classified as a "moral recognition." The justification, according to him, is to rectify an injustice committed in 2018, when Cartes, already elected as a senator, was prevented from being sworn in and taking office due to a debate over his status as a lifetime senator as a former president.
Chase dismissed that the proposal is linked to any regulation of the lifetime senator status and affirmed that, legally, Cartes can hold the Senate seat concurrently with the presidency of the ANR's Governing Board. When questioned about the relevance of the candidacy, Chase challenged: "Tell me a man of greater relevance than him. If you give me that name, I will concede that it is not worth him being here."