Progressive candidate concedes Colombian presidential election to Trump-backed outsider
2026-06-24T14:30:57Z
BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — Progressive candidate Iván Cepeda on Wednesday conceded Colombia’s presidential election to Abelardo de la Espriella, a conservative outsider who was endorsed by U.S. President Donald Trump.
Election results showed de la Espriella, a businessman and lawyer who had never run for office, defeated Cepeda, a lawmaker, by 1 percentage point, or nearly 251,000 votes.
“We assume with serenity, responsibility, and absolute resolve — and let there be no doubt about it — the role that circumstances demand of us,” Cepeda said in an address to the nation. “We will exercise a democratic, vigilant and constructive opposition.”
The result effectively was an indictment of outgoing President Gustavo Petro’s government, whose policies Cepeda had promised to continue, including a largely failed effort to establish dialogue with multiple armed groups under a plan known as “total peace.”
Electoral authorities published all but a fraction of the vote count hours after polls closed Sunday. Petro and Cepeda did not accept those results, with the latter saying he would wait for a recount to do so.
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