Colombia heads to runoff between right-wing lawyer and left-wing senator
Colombia’s presidential race will be decided in a second round on June 21 after right-wing lawyer Abelardo de la Espriella and left-wing Senator Iván Cepeda emerged as the top two candidates in Sunday’s first-round vote, according to results released by electoral authorities.
With nearly all ballots counted — about 99.5% — de la Espriella held 43.7% of the vote, while Cepeda secured roughly 41%. Neither candidate reached the majority threshold needed to win outright, triggering a runoff that is widely seen as a referendum on whether to continue President Gustavo Petro’s leftist agenda or pivot toward a more conservative, security-first approach.
About 41 million Colombians were eligible to cast ballots in the race to succeed Petro, who is constitutionally barred from seeking a second term. The election unfolds against a backdrop of deteriorating security and deepening political polarization.
Conservative Senator Paloma Valencia, who had been considered a front-runner in the run-up to the vote, finished a distant third with around 7%, underscoring the fragmentation of the right and the narrowing of the contest to two ideologically opposed candidates.
Cepeda, a member of Petro’s governing coalition, has pledged to defend and expand the outgoing administration’s reform agenda, which includes increased social spending and negotiations with armed groups. De la Espriella, by contrast, has campaigned on a tough-on-crime platform that calls for lower government spending, a harder line against illegal armed groups, and a rollback of what he calls the failed “total peace” policy.
The campaign was overshadowed by a surge in violence. In the weeks leading up to the first round, a wave of attacks killed and wounded civilians, soldiers, and police officers across several regions. Kristin Wesemann, head of the Colombia office of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation (KAS), a German think tank, described the current situation as “one of the worst waves of violence in recent years,” linking the spike to power struggles among armed groups vying for control of drug trafficking routes and illegal mines.
Petro made history in 2022 as Colombia’s first left-wing president. His supporters credit his administration with reducing poverty and expanding social programs, while his critics argue that the “total peace” initiative — which sought to negotiate with multiple armed groups simultaneously — has failed to deliver tangible security improvements. The fragmentation of the political landscape was already evident in March’s parliamentary elections, where Petro’s coalition became the largest force in the Senate but fell short of a majority, signaling that whoever wins the presidency will face tough coalition-building in Congress.
The runoff will now test whether Colombians are willing to continue down the path of reform and dialogue, or prefer a return to a more traditional, conservative model centered on public order and fiscal restraint. Analysts expect a tight race, with both candidates working to mobilize their bases and sway the substantial number of voters who supported other candidates in the first round.