Trump-endorsed de la Espriella declared winner of Colombia’s presidential runoff election
The conservative outsider won by about 251,000 votes after a recount, and more than 26 million people voted in the runoff, officials said.
- Electoral authorities confirmed Conservative Abelardo de la Espriella as Colombia's next leader following Sunday's runoff, as the millionaire political neophyte defeated progressive lawmaker Cepeda by more than 251,000 votes.
- More than 26 million people voted in the polarizing runoff, setting a historic record; over 426,000 voters selected a third, no-name option while about 29,000 cast blank ballots.
- Trump-Backed Espriella, who has never held office, announced Tuesday he is assembling his Cabinet; his victory reflects an indictment of outgoing President Gustavo Petro's government.
- Earlier Wednesday, Cepeda conceded the election and accepted a Senate seat reserved for the runner-up, while the campaign stated the president-elect's purpose is to "work for national unity."
- Espriella promised voters a heavy-handed approach to combating violent crime using strategies borrowed from Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele and plans to add Colombia to the Trump-dubbed "Shield of the Americas" coalition.
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180 Articles
Latin America: Why are voters turning to the right?
Last weekend, rightwing-extremist candidate Abelardo de la Espriella edged out left-wing opponent Ivan Cepeda to win Colombia's presidential election in a campaign in which the former focused heavily on the nation's security crisis. In Chile, another extreme-right candidate, Jose Antonio Kast, took the reins from a leftist government in March elections. Kast, who is pursuing cuts to education and welfare while handing out tax cuts to businesses,…
Bogotá, 25 Jun (EFE).- The National Electoral Council (CNE) handed over this Thursday to the ultra-right Abelardo de la Espriella his credentials as president-elect of Colombia after winning the second round of the elections last Sunday to leftist Ivan Cepeda. "Today we meet one of the most significant acts that our constitution has, Colombia and the CNE makes formal delivery of the credentials that accredit you, Dr. Abelardo and Dr. Juan Manuel…
Bogotá. After denouncing the “massive” buying of votes and the “undeserved” foreign intervention in last Sunday’s presidential elections in Colombia, Ivan Cepeda, candidate of the Historical Pact, acknowledged on Wednesday the results that gave the victory to ultra-right Abelardo de la Espriella.
The ultra-rightist Abelardo de la Espriella was proclaimed on Wednesday by the National Electoral Council (CNE) as Colombia’s elected president for the period 2026-2030 after the election, while leftist Iván Cepeda will exercise a vigilance role as the leader of the opposition in Congress. The electoral registrar, Jaime Hernando Suárez, read this afternoon the resolution declaring “elect of citizen Abelardo Gabriel de la Espriella Otero” as “pre…
The announcement of the electoral authority came a few hours after the candidate of the radical left, Ivan Cepeda, acknowledged his defeat.
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