Colombia’s leftwing presidential candidate, Iván Cepeda, has conceded the election to Abelardo de la Espriella, a Trump-endorsed millionaire, with preliminary results showing a narrow margin of victory. Cepeda, who received 12.7 million votes, said he accepted the result as an act of democratic responsibility; De la Espriella, who received 12.96 million votes, was endorsed by U.S. President Donald Trump, who labeled Cepeda a ‘radical left Marxist.’

Concession and Criticism of Foreign Interference

In a statement. Cepeda said: ‘At this stage of the count, I have decided to accept the result of the process, which indicates that Abelardo de la Espriella is the new president of the republic. I do so as an act of democratic responsibility. I do so to contribute to coexistence, peace and dialogue among Colombians.’ Cepeda emphasized that accepting the result does not mean renouncing the truth or silence in the face of serious concerns he raised during the campaign.

Cepeda also criticized the U.S. for its perceived interference, stating: ‘We denounced the open and improper foreign interference in Colombia’s internal affairs. In particular, the interventions carried out by the government of the United States and especially those of President Donald Trump in favor of Abelardo de la Espriella’s candidacy.’ This was a direct reference to Trump’s public endorsements of De la Espriella.

Trump’s Endorsement and Electoral Context

Trump’s support for De la Espriella became a focal point of the election. After the first round, Trump praised De la Espriella for his win and labeled Cepeda a ‘radical Left Marxist.’ Following the second-round victory, Trump claimed De la Espriella had won ‘easily,’ despite the narrow margin of 0.96 percentage points. This was the smallest margin of victory in recent Colombian history for a presidential candidate.

Cepeda initially planned to wait for the final legal count, which is still being tallied, but changed course after a 4,500-word social media post in which he announced the transition process with De la Espriella. Cepeda likened the transition to handing Simón Bolívar’s sword, a national symbol — to a viceroy, a reference to the Trump-backed candidate.

Regional Political Shift and De la Espriella’s Plan

De la Espriella has announced that Colombia will join the ‘Shield of the Americas,’ a Trump-backed initiative uniting far-right governments across Latin America. Once he takes office on 7 August, only four countries in the region will remain under leftwing governance. De la Espriella, who has threatened to ‘gut the Left’ during the campaign, struck a conciliatory tone in his victory speech, promising that those who disagree with his policies will have nothing to fear.

As the second-placed candidate, Cepeda is entitled to a Senate seat, where he pledged to serve as a ‘democratic, vigilant and constructive opposition.’