Colombia Presidential Election: Far-right candidate Abelardo de la Espriella wins razor-thin runoff
Colombia's presidential runoff concluded with far-right candidate Abelardo de la Espriella narrowly defeating left-wing Iván Cepeda, securing about 49.6% of the vote.
Colombians went to the polls on Sunday for the second round of the presidential election, pitting far-right millionaire Abelardo de la Espriella against left-wing Senator Iván Cepeda. De la Espriella, a political newcomer endorsed by US President Donald Trump, won with 12,914,381 votes against Cepeda's 12,663,687, with 99.6% of ballots counted. The result gives De la Espriella 49.6% of the vote and Cepeda 48.6%, one of the closest margins in Colombian history.
Voter turnout was among the highest ever recorded. Polls closed at 4:00 p.m. local time (19:00 GMT), with over 40 million registered voters in Colombia and an additional 1.42 million Colombians abroad eligible to vote across 67 countries.
After casting his ballot in Barranquilla, De la Espriella predicted he would defeat the "regime" of outgoing President Gustavo Petro, repeating aggressive campaign slogans. Cepeda, who voted in Bogotá, called for "democratic behavior" and urged Colombians to build a shared future.
In the first round on May 26, which saw 57.88% turnout, De la Espriella (Defensores de la Patria party) received 10.3 million votes (43.78%), while Cepeda (Pacto Histórico) got 9.7 million (40.98%).
