They vote in presidential runoff between Ivan Cepeda and Abelardo de la Espriella.
From 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday, 13,742 polling stations will serve citizens eligible to elect the country’s next president. In this election, 1,414,661 Colombians will be able to cast their ballots from abroad.
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Colombia Faces Stark Choice in Presidential Runoff Vote
The opening ceremony for the elections was held in Bogota’s Bolivar Square, attended by President Gustavo Petro, National Registrar Hernan Penagos, and Mayor Carlos Galan.
Petro urged his fellow citizens to “go out and vote by any means necessary, overcoming any obstacle, geographical or logistical difficulty,” recalling that the official election results will be those from the official count conducted by the judges, not the preliminary tally.
In the presidential runoff, voters will choose between leftist Ivan Cepeda and far-right candidate Abelardo de la Espriella, who have presented Colombia with two different proposals for addressing the armed conflict that has persisted for more than six decades.
De la Espriella Admires Trump, Milei and Bukele
In the first round of voting, De la Espriella, who calls himself “The Tiger,” won 43.74% of the vote. He is a lawyer who gained public prominence for defending public figures linked to paramilitarism or corruption, including former far-right President Alvaro Uribe and former Supreme Court Justice Jorge Pretelt.
De la Espriella takes every opportunity to turn politics into a populist spectacle in which he embraces the positions that the far right typically promotes as its governing platform.
During the election campaign, De la Espriella, the candidate of the “Homeland Defenders”, has publicly declared his admiration for U.S. President Donald Trump, Argentine President Javier Milei, and Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele.
Advocating a “tough-on-crime” approach from Colombia’s presidency, De la Espriella has won Trump’s sympathy. Through social media, the Republican leader has said that if the Colombian lawyer wins, he will have “the full support and strength” of the United States.
To address security problems, De la Espriella proposes building 10 mega-prisons with private financing in remote locations and without cellphone service.
He also wants to eliminate the Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP), the transitional justice tribunal established under the 2016 peace agreement signed between the Colombian state and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).
With the second round of Colombia’s presidential election taking place today, now is a good time to watch our 2013 feature documentary ‘The Colombia Connection’ (@ColombiaDocu) directed by Pablo Navarrete (@pablonav1).
The film features an interview with the leftwing politician… pic.twitter.com/cgO9d3LP1G
— Alborada Films (@alboradafilms) June 21, 2026
Cepeda Has Dedicated His Life to Justice and Human Rights
Historic Pact candidate Ivan Cepeda presents represents the option to continue the path of historic transformations initiated by outgoing President Gustavo Petro. He is the son of Manuel Cepeda Vargas, who was killed by state-linked paramilitary forces while driving from his home to work.
For most of his life, legislator Cepeda, who holds a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from Bulgaria and a master’s degree in international humanitarian law from France, has been actively involved in defending the victims of the armed conflict.
Since 2010, Cepeda has promoted reparations and transitional justice legislation and has defended the implementation of the 2016 Peace Agreement.
He became widely known for his 13-year legal battle against former President Alvaro Uribe (2002-2010), which ended with the far-right politician’s conviction for bribery in criminal proceedings and procedural fraud.
Recently, in line with his political and professional career, Cepeda filed complaints against De la Espriella with Colombia’s Attorney General’s Office and the International Criminal Court (ICC) over ties to paramilitarism.
On security, Cepeda proposes addressing the root causes of violence: poverty and inequality. In addition to committing to implement the 2016 Peace Agreement, he will continue negotiations with armed groups if they refrain from killing social leaders.
In recent weeks, the Historic Pact candidate has received public endorsements from center-right and even right-wing politicians, intellectuals, and artists, who view De la Espriella as a very serious threat to Colombia’s peace, development, and sovereignty.
#Colombia | President Gustavo Petro has revealed the discovery of an unauthorized financial fund based in Miami, Florida, designed to destabilize his administration’s public image.
Petro identified political figures, including Federico Gutierrez, alongside international… pic.twitter.com/09rSevFylN
— teleSUR English (@telesurenglish) June 17, 2026
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Sources: EFE – RTVE – teleSUR
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