Colombians to vote in presidential run-off pitting leftist against hardliner
Key takeaways
- Run-off election sees leftist Ivan Cepeda and far-right lawyer Abelardo de la Espriella vying for the presidency.
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- De la Espriella is proposing a heavy-handed approach that has earned him the endorsement of United States President Donald Trump.
Why this matters: an international story with cross-border implications worth tracking.
Run-off election sees leftist Ivan Cepeda and far-right lawyer Abelardo de la Espriella vying for the presidency.
xwhatsapp-strokecopylinkgoogle Add Al Jazeera on Googleinfo. A woman wearing a Colombian flag registers to cast her vote during the presidential election on May 31, 2026 in Bogota, Colombia [File: Leonardo Castaneda/Getty]By Al Jazeera Staff and APPublished On 21 Jun 202621 Jun 2026Colombians are heading to the polls to choose their next president in a run-off election, pitting a leftist heir to the country’s progressive government against a far-right outsider promising a crackdown on crime.
The vote takes place on Sunday, when more than 41 million eligible voters will decide between lawmaker Ivan Cepeda and criminal defence lawyer Abelardo de la Espriella, after the pair emerged from a field of 11 candidates in a first-round vote on May 31.