This document describes the structure, content, and construction process of the data repository entitled “A historical characterization of political parties in Colombia: 1958-2022”. In it, all political parties, movements, and coalitions have competed in elections for mayors, municipal councilors, assembly deputies, governors, lower house representatives, senators, and presidents in Colombia for which there are records are classified into five dimensions: their ideology, the identity groups they represent, their traditionality, their degree of nationalization, and longevity. We also provide a collection of primary and secondary sources that contain additional information on the political groupings studied.