De la Espriella wins Colombia runoff in preliminary count
The far-right lawyer’s narrow lead points to a sharp policy turn after Gustavo Petro’s leftist presidency, though his rival is contesting results.
By James Whitfield · Staff Writer
3 min read
Far-right millionaire Abelardo de la Espriella has won Colombia’s presidential runoff, according to preliminary results reported by the national registrar. The narrow result matters because it could shift Colombia’s policy on security, the economy and foreign relations after four years under leftist President Gustavo Petro.
De la Espriella, 47, defeated left-wing Senator Ivan Cepeda, who was backed by Petro, according to the preliminary tally. The national registrar’s count of nearly all ballots gave de la Espriella 49.66 percent of the vote, ahead of Cepeda at 48.7 percent, a margin of about 250,000 votes.
More than 26.3 million people voted out of 41.4 million eligible voters, according to the registrar’s figures. In the first round on May 31, de la Espriella led Cepeda by 43 percent to 40 percent.
Cepeda challenges part of the count
Cepeda told supporters in Bogota that his campaign would wait for a final ballot-by-ballot review. He said his team was challenging results from about 33,000 polling stations, close to a quarter of the country’s 122,000 stations.
Colombian law requires a final verified count overseen by notaries and judges. Al Jazeera reported that process was nearly finished late Sunday, but it was not yet clear whether the final results matched the preliminary tally.
Cepeda said he remained open to dialogue and agreements that protect what he called Colombia’s recent social gains. His campaign had promised to continue Petro’s agenda, including pension payments for poor Colombians, labor changes backed by unions, a pause on new oil projects and peace talks with armed groups.
A hard turn on security and foreign policy
De la Espriella, a lawyer and businessman with no previous political experience, has blamed Petro for Colombia’s economic and security problems, including violence linked to armed groups. He has promised to end talks with rebels and criminal organizations and launch 90 days of military operations against armed groups.
He has also pledged to expand oil and gas production, cut taxes and reduce the size of the state by up to 40 percent. At the same time, he has said he would keep Petro’s 23 percent minimum-wage increase and other popular social measures.
On foreign policy, de la Espriella has promised to restore relations with Israel and move Colombia’s embassy to Jerusalem. Petro cut ties with Israel over the war in Gaza, banned coal exports to Israel and joined South Africa’s genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice.
Annette Idler, an associate professor in global security at the University of Oxford’s Blavatnik School of Government, told Al Jazeera that the result showed a sharp ideological reversal only four years after Colombia elected its first leftist president. She also said the close margin showed a country split almost evenly.
Governing may prove difficult
De la Espriella is due to take office on August 7 if the result is confirmed. Al Jazeera reported that the tight race could force him to soften parts of his program to win support in a divided Congress, where Cepeda’s Historic Pact has more seats than any other party in both chambers but no majority.
He will also inherit high public debt, at about 60 percent of gross domestic product. Analysts and ratings agencies cited by Al Jazeera said weak revenue and high spending could make it hard for Colombia to meet a fiscal deficit target of 5.3 percent of GDP this year.
Relations with the United States are expected to warm. US President Donald Trump, who endorsed de la Espriella, congratulated him on Truth Social, while Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington wanted to work with the incoming administration on security, migration and economic ties.
This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.