Horacio Cartes

Pedro Alliana and Horacio Cartes reaffirmed unity in the Colorado Party and prioritized the October 4 municipal elections, while the choice of its 2028 presidential ticket remains undecided.

Asunción mayoral candidate Soledad Núñez proposed firing municipal employees who do not perform their duties, abolishing the Municipal Traffic Police and fighting corruption, without specifying how those employees would be identified.

Governors from the 15 Colorado Party administrations in the G15, which received 1.6 trillion guaraníes between January and August, demanded evidence for Carlos Núñez’s accusations over Hambre Cero funds and criticized the vulgarity of his remarks. They defended the role of the departments as Honor Colorado leaders discuss the 2028 ticket and say the movement is united.

Warnings and indications—including the registration of his degree with the Ministry of Education and Sciences in just over four hours, his lack of command of legal language, and the mismatch between the creation of the university and the period of study he claimed—were ignored before Hernán Rivas joined the Jurado de Enjuiciamiento de Magistrados, while Celeste Amarilla warned of possible invalidation of the body’s decisions and perjury, and prosecutor Patricia Sánchez reported a threat attributed to him concerning her remaining in office, with no mention of a death threat.

Allies in Honor Colorado disagree over the 2028 presidential ticket and Santiago Peña’s political standing, as Beto Ovelar calls for unity and focus on municipal elections, Basilio Núñez defends Cartes’s leadership and Peña’s integration into the movement, César “Landy” Torres cites the support of 15 governors and 35 lawmakers, and Juan Carlos Galaverna proposes considering a “third way” guided by the collective interest.

Santiago Peña met in New York with businesspeople Santiago Jariton, María Bertha Peroni and Daniel Hiller, described as driving one of the most important entertainment and urban-development projects in Paraguay’s history, to present a complex on Asunción’s Costanera Norte with an arena, event center, hotel and shopping mall aimed at Paraguay and the region, with construction expected to begin in early 2027 and backing from the government and the Municipality of Asunción.

Ignacio Iramain attributed the ANR crisis to a power and business struggle between Cartes and Peña, while Raúl Benítez mocked the conflict as a fight among “hens” with a “somewhat senile” “rooster” and criticized Pedro Alliana for referring to “80 princes,” correcting the number to 43 deputies who, he said, flatter the government and vote in line on its bills.

The dispute over the 2028 vice-presidential nomination led Pedro Alliana to reject demands from Horacio Cartes and exposed tensions and new centers of power within Honor Colorado, which is postponing a decision until after the October 4 municipal elections.

Horacio Cartes named Juan Carlos Baruja as Pedro Alliana’s running mate for 2028, while the vice president postponed the decision until after the municipal elections; in the same political landscape, Colorado Añetete declared support for Camilo Pérez and Hugo Ramírez, and the government and doctors reached a preliminary pay agreement amid a strike.

Vice President Pedro Alliana backed cutting unnecessary spending in Paraguay’s 2027 budget to meet doctors’ and teachers’ demands, maintained his support for Santiago Peña’s government and said there was unity within the National Republican Association (ANR), also known as the Colorado Party.

Paraguay’s Senate approved requests for information from the Central Bank of Paraguay about Ueno Bank’s operations and expansion, amid questions about public deposits, possible conflicts of interest, and political rivalries involving the institution and Banco Basa.

Santiago Peña said there is no break with Horacio Cartes, attributed criticism to the municipal elections, defended clarifications over a request for information from the Central Bank involving Ueno Bank, and called for continued dialogue with doctors threatening a strike on September 21 and 22.

Pablo Callizo and Sebastián Garay were taken to a police station and released about two hours later after taking part in a teddy-bear protest outside Horacio Cartes’s home in Asunción. The episode drew criticism from opponents and sparked debate over the limits of police action during public demonstrations.

Paraguay’s Congress has begun reviewing the 2027 General National Budget, estimated at G. 166.3 trillion and listing health care among its priorities, while the Senate prepares requests for information from the Central Bank about Ueno Bank and lawmakers negotiate doctors’ salary demands.

Senator Gustavo Leite proposed reducing public spending by up to US$400 million a year, including an incentivized voluntary retirement program for up to 100,000 public employees, merging redundant agencies and freezing hiring. The figures and effects are Leite’s projections, and implementation still depends on financing, executive decisions and negotiations.

Paraguay's Senate approved National Evangelical Church Day for the last Sunday of October, without creating a public holiday or requiring the date to be added to the school calendar. IELPA and IERP challenge the name and historical rationale; the bill will still be reviewed by the Chamber of Deputies.

The Paraguayan Chamber approved in general a bill to increase corruption penalties to up to 25 years, but postponed the final analysis sine die, amid criticism about the contradiction between official discourse and parliamentary practice in combating this crime.

Former minister Arnoldo Wiens rejected judge Humberto Otazú to halt the criminal proceedings in the Metrobús case, in which he is accused of causing a loss of 15 billion guaranis to the state, while the Public Prosecutor's Office requested the dismissal of the case against his predecessor, Ramón Jiménez Gaona.

President Santiago Peña appointed Juan Manuel Maioli García, son of one of the owners of the company Parxin, as Paraguay's representative to the World Bank Group.

Paraguayan President Santiago Peña denied payment to foreign influencers in the country, highlighted the attraction of digital nomads and investments in infrastructure and security, but documents reveal the government allocated $1.5 million for campaigns with influencers until 2027, in addition to defending the Social Security Institute (IPS) and avoiding comment on Horacio Cartes' Senate candidacy.

The Paraguayan Prosecutor's Office formally accused former minister Arnoldo Wiens of causing a million-dollar loss to the state with the demolition of the Metrobús, while the politician and allies allege judicial persecution with electoral motivations.

The campaign of Asunción mayoral candidate Camilo Pérez, which celebrates its team unity, includes public officials such as a deputy minister and a former presidential social media operator in its WhatsApp group for the press, raising questions about the use of state resources.

While Senator Lilian Samaniego projects her candidacy for President of Paraguay for 2028, factions of the Colorado Party are proposing former President Horacio Cartes as a Senate candidate for the party.

Paraguay's Internal Defense Operations Command (CODI) has spent $68 million since 2013, facing criticism over its limited effectiveness against the armed group EPP, whose attacks continue despite the military force's expanded operations.