Right-wing candidate Abelardo de la Espriella defeated the left-wing challenger in a tight race early Monday, according to Colombian electoral authorities. He has pledged to move Colombia's embassy to Jerusalem and restore ties severed under outgoing President Gustavo Petro.
Right-wing candidate Abelardo de la Espriella has won Colombia's presidential runoff, defeating the left-wing challenger in a tight race. With more than 99% of ballots counted, de la Espriella led by about 1% (49.7% to 48.7%), according to Colombian electoral authorities. De la Espriella, a pro-Israel politician, has pledged to move Colombia's embassy back to Jerusalem and restore diplomatic ties severed by outgoing President Gustavo Petro in 2024.
As The Zioneer reported earlier Monday, Israeli officials welcomed the result. Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar congratulated de la Espriella and invited him to Israel, calling the victory a "strategic shift" that would restore ties. The diaspora minister also posted a video of a months-old meeting with de la Espriella, in which the president-elect told the local Jewish community: "Am Yisrael Chai."
Outgoing President Petro has refused to concede, alleging without evidence that Israel rigged the election results. The claims have been rejected by Colombian electoral authorities and by Israeli officials. De la Espriella's margin of victory was about 250,000 votes, based on official tallies across more than 99% of polling stations.
3 developments
Source and signal
A single-sourced dispatch is never rated Confirmed or Strong. Its Signal strengthens only when a second, independent source corroborates it.
- Open-source intake