Abelardo de la Espriella Wins Colombia Presidency by 1 Point as Iván Cepeda Concedes
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Jun 24
Abelardo de la Espriella Wins Colombia Presidency by 1 Point as Iván Cepeda Concedes
3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Jun 24
Summary
Iván Cepeda accepted the vote count on Wednesday, saying it showed Abelardo de la Espriella as Colombia’s new president after a race decided by less than 1 percentage point.
The concession came days after Cepeda refused to acknowledge preliminary results, turning an apparent victory for the conservative outsider into a clearer path for an August 7 transfer of power.
Cepeda still alleged U.S. interference, AI-driven voter manipulation, vote-buying and other unethical tactics, arguing the narrow result was tainted even as he accepted it.
De la Espriella — a businessman and lawyer known as “El Tigre” and backed by Donald Trump — has promised a harder security line, including mega-prisons, fracking and renewed glyphosate spraying.
The result points to a rightward shift in Colombia, ending Gustavo Petro’s leftist influence and likely replacing his “total peace” talks with a militarized crackdown on armed groups.