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Right-wing candidate pulls ahead in first round of Colombia's presidential vote

Abelardo de la Espriella of the Defenders of the Motherland movement salutes after voting during the presidential election in Barranquilla, Colombia, Sunday, May 31, 2026.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/3975x2650+0+0/resize/1100/quality/50/format/jpeg/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F84%2F6f%2F30ea2b374e3abe349d5d05a32621%2Fap26151496780248.jpg) Presidential candidate

Colombia prepares to go to polls in election shadowed by resurgence of political violence

Abelardo de la Espriella saluting, with the message ‘Firme por la patria’, meaning ‘Steadfast for the homeland’](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/7c388f4dea5de98978a2ddab6e8da9f70ae01649/0_0_5500_3845/master/5500.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none) A billboard for the far-right presidential candidate

Colombia’s climate crossroads: Trumpism casts shadow over presidential battle

Presidential candidate Abelardo de la Espriella addresses supporters from a bulletproof booth during a campaign

Two presidential campaign staffers killed in Colombia as elections near

presidential candidate Abelardo de la Espriella, who said gunmen on motorbikes shot the victims in the central

Colombia’s far-right presidential candidate De la Espriella wins first round of vote ahead of runoff

candidate De la Espriella wins first round of vote ahead of runoff The far-right lawyer Abelardo de la Espriella won the first round of Colombia’s presidential

Violence escalates in Colombia with dozens of attacks before presidential vote

presidential candidates, including Cepeda, and conservatives Abelardo de la Espriella and Paloma Valencia. While Cepeda

First Thing: Trump tells critics to ‘sit back and relax’ as Iran claims to target US base

presidential candidate Espriella wins first round of vote ahead of runoff** ![Abelardo de la Espriella

Could key climate talks mark ground zero in global push to ditch fossil fuels?

presidential election at the end of May, in which the ruling party’s candidate, Iván Cepeda, faces a fierce challenge from the far-right populist Abelardo de la Espriella

Death toll in Colombia highway bus bomb attack rises to 20

presidential elections on 31 May. Left-wing candidate Ivan Cepeda, who is endorsed by Petro, has called for more negotiation efforts with the rebels. Opposition right-wing candidates Paloma Valencia and Abelardo De la Espriella

Colombia goes to polls in election pitting outgoing leader’s ally against pro-Trump candidates

Abelardo de la Espriella and Paloma Valencia, who have vowed to come down on armed groups with a heavier hand. De la Espriella – a bombastic lawyer known as “the Tiger” – has gained traction among voters

Bomb blast on Colombia highway leaves at least 20 dead ahead of May elections

presidential frontrunner Miguel Uribe Turbay was [shot in broad daylight while campaigning in the capital, Bogotá.](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jun/13/colombia-assassination-attempt-fears-of-bloody-past) A leftist senator, Iván Cepeda, an architect of Petro’s controversial policy of negotiating with armed

Bomb attack on Colombia highway kills 19 ahead of election

presidential frontrunner Miguel Uribe Turbay was shot in broad daylight while campaigning in the capital Bogota and later died from his wounds. Leftist Senator Ivan Cepeda, an architect of Petro’s controversial policy of negotiating

Celebration, shock and scepticism follow Colombia’s presidential election

presidential race would be settled in a run-off between two finalists: hard-right political outsider Abelardo de la Espriella and leftist Senator Ivan Cepeda. Though the overall result surprised few, de la Espriella

Trump admirer’s surprise first-round win is a blow to Colombia’s traditional conservatives

presidential election on Sunday. That is no insignificant margin, given that De la Espriella’s lead over Cepeda amounted to little more than 670,000 votes – 43.7% against 40.9%. Although polls had shown the wealthy

Colombian election reflects on ‘total peace’ promise as violence surges again

candidates Abelardo de la Espriella and Paloma Valencia, close behind in the polls, both promise to scrap the plan and return to all-out war as soon as they take office. Llorente said