(AFP) – Colombian leftist candidate Ivan Cepeda on Wednesday conceded defeat in the tightly fought presidential election won by hard-right rival Abelardo de la Espriella. Hours later, election authorities confirmed the preliminary results showing a narrow victory of less than a percentage point for De la Espriella. Cepeda told reporters that he had “decided to accept the result emerging from that process.”
“I do it to contribute to coexistence, peace and dialogue among Colombians,” he added, having distanced himself from violent protests against the results on Sunday night. The president-elect’s office welcomed Cepeda’s comments, adding that the next government will guarantee the “right to political opposition and peaceful protest.” The leftist senator is an ally of President Gustavo Petro, who has alleged electoral fraud and raised the possibility of annulling the vote due to the “direct intervention” of the United States.
De la Espriella received enthusiastic backing from US President Donald Trump before and after Sunday’s runoff vote. The European Union’s Election Observation Mission to Colombia (MOE) on Tuesday gave the election a clean bill of health. Accepting the result “does not mean renouncing the truth or remaining silent in the face of events we consider serious,” Cepeda said, referring to what he called “open and improper foreign interference” in the elections. Cepeda will take a seat in the Senate, election authorities said, a right reserved for presidential candidates who were defeated in the runoff.
– ‘Authoritarian subjugation’ – De la Espriella will enter public office for the first time in August, marking the end of Colombia’s first-ever leftist government. In an interview with AFP during the campaign, the millionaire lawyer said he would seek US and Israeli support to conduct bombing campaigns against guerrilla groups. In an X post on Wednesday, he said Colombia and Israel would share a relationship “like never before” after speaking with Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar.
“Colombia will restore and strengthen its relationship with the State of Israel,” he said, in a reversal of Petro’s decision to sever ties with the country following its offensive in the Gaza Strip. De la Espriella once called for the Colombian political left to be “gutted” but later toned down his words. Cepeda warned that he would reject “any attempt at authoritarian subjugation” under the incoming administration.
“We will resort, if necessary, to resistance and peaceful civil disobedience,” he said. Cepeda urged “composure and calm” following violent protests in the cities of Cali and Bogota on Sunday, during which demonstrators burned US flags in reference to De la Espriella’s rapport with the Trump administration. Trump offered his hearty congratulations to De la Espriella on Monday.
“I look forward to working together to build a powerful relationship between Colombia and the United States of America, which will bring new levels of Greatness for both of our Countries!” he wrote on Truth Social.
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