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As Colombia heads into a pivotal presidential runoff on Sunday, conservative outsider Abelardo de la Espriella is riding a wave of voter frustration over crime, cartels and economic uncertainty.
His rise comes as outgoing President Gustavo Petro faces mounting political turmoil, turning the election into a high-stakes battle over the future of one of America’s most important allies in Latin America.
De le Espriella’s campaign is built on a platform of law and order, anti-cartel crackdowns and repairing U.S.-Colombia relations as he faces leftist politician Iván Cepeda in the presidential runoff. Cepeda is from Petro’s socialist party.
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Colombia’s presidential candidate Abelardo de la Espriella, of the Defensores de la Patria party, speaks behind bulletproof glass during his closing campaign rally in Medellin, Colombia on May 24, 2026. Colombia will hold presidential elections on May 31. (Jaime Saldarriaga/AFP Via Getty Images)
In a region increasingly defined by larger-than-life political figures, de la Espriella is known universally as “El Tigre,” and has transformed his nickname into a political movement. Campaign rallies feature tiger imagery, merchandise and slogans built around strength and fearlessness.
He has openly embraced comparisons to President Trump, presenting himself as a political outsider willing to confront entrenched elites, challenge progressive orthodoxies and restore what supporters describe as strength and order to government.
Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro delivers a speech during a troop recognition ceremony at the Jose Maria Cordova Military Cadet School in Bogota on March 11, 2025. (Raul Arboleda/AFP via Getty Images)
Earlier this week Trump endorsed him stating in part on social media that: “Colombian Presidential Candidate, “El Tigre (THE TIGER),” Abelardo de la Espriella, is a Smart, Strong, and Tough Leader, who fights tirelessly for, and loves, his Great Country and People, just like I do for the United States of America.”
Trump added, “Because of his tremendous accomplishments in life, and his political support for me, it is my Honor to give Abelardo my Complete and Total Endorsement. GET OUT AND VOTE FOR “EL TIGRE” ABELARDO DE LA ESPRIELLA — HE WILL NOT LET THE WONDERFUL PEOPLE OF COLOMBIA DOWN. It will rise to a new height of Greatness!”
President Donald Trump, left, waves as he greets El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele as Bukele arrives at the White House, Monday, April 14, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
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Aside from the Trump comparison, he’s also been likened to El Salvador’s President Bukele. Like Bukele, he has built a political brand around toughness, disruption and public frustration with crime. His campaign rhetoric frequently emphasizes restoring state authority and defeating criminal organizations through overwhelming force.
Petro’s ally, Iván Cepeda, has pledged to continue the administration’s social and economic agenda while expanding negotiations with armed groups.
Cepeda’s campaign did not respond to a Digital request for comment on his campaign and hopes for the country.
Colombia’s presidential candidate Ivan Cepeda, of the Pacto Historico party, speaks to supporters during his final campaign rally in Barranquilla, Atlantico department, Colombia on May 24, 2026. (Vanessa Romero/AFP via Getty Images)
Carlos Chacón, executive director of Instituto de Ciencia Política (ICP), a think tank in Colombia told Digital, “Colombia is torn between two models and two visions: the leftist model, which seeks to increase state intervention in the economy, a model already proven to generate fiscal deficits and economic crises; a model that prioritizes negotiations and appeasement over security, resulting in the strengthening of criminal networks nationwide; and, above all, a model whose political agenda is to alter the Constitution.”
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Chacón said the difference between the two candidates is clear, saying that Abelardo’s model “favors free enterprise and seeks to ensure security, regain territorial control, downsize the state, revitalize strategic sectors, and mend international relations, would be implemented entirely within the framework of the 1991 Constitution.” He added, “Abelardo has never spoken of replacing the constitutional model with an authoritarian one, as is the case with the project proposed by Petro, Cepeda.”
Colombian presidential candidate Abelardo De La Espriella of the political movement Defenders of the Homeland reacts after the results of the first round of the presidential election, in Barranquilla, Colombia May 31, 2026. (Sergio Acero/reuters )
One of the recurring themes of de la Espriella’s campaign has been rebuilding a close relationship with Washington and pursuing a more aggressive security partnership against narcotrafficking and armed groups. He has advocated U.S.-backed operations against narco-terrorist camps and stronger bilateral cooperation on security issues.
De la Espriella rise comes as the outgoing Colombian President Petro faces a battle over allegations of improper involvement in the country’s presidential election. The head of Colombia’s congressional investigative commission has proposed suspending president Petro while authorities examine allegations that he improperly intervened in the presidential campaign on behalf of his political movement.
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A supporter of Colombia’s presidential candidate for the Defensores de la Patria party, Abelardo de la Espriella, takes a selfie as she awaits his arrival to his last campaign rally in Barranquilla, Colombia, on May 23, 2026. Colombia will hold presidential elections on May 31. (Vanessa Romero/AFP via Getty Images)
The proposal has triggered fierce debate across Colombia, with supporters describing it as necessary accountability and critics arguing it exceeds constitutional authority. Petro has denied wrongdoing and remains in office.
The outcome of this election will help determine not only the future of Colombia’s security strategy, but also the trajectory of one of Washington’s most important allies in the Western Hemisphere.
