Colombia’s Pro-Israel Candidate Pulls Off a Surprise, Advances to the Presidential Runoff

The results of the first round of Colombia’s presidential election have placed the South American country at a historic crossroads—not only in domestic politics. The narrow victory of conservative right-wing candidate Abelardo de la Espriella over his left-wing rival, Senator Iván Cepeda, opens a real possibility for a major shift in Bogotá’s foreign relations with Jerusalem for the first time. The two will face off in a decisive second round on June 21.

In recent years, current President Gustavo Petro has pursued a hostile policy toward Israel, a policy that reached its peak in 2024 with the severing of diplomatic ties between the two countries. Cepeda, his ideological successor, has stated explicitly that he would continue the same policy if elected. De la Espriella, by contrast, is presenting the opposite position: he publicly supports restoring and strengthening ties with Israel and the United States, and sees cooperation with them as a central tool for dealing with Colombia’s internal challenges. Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar did not wait—he quickly congratulated de la Espriella on social media and wished him success going forward.

The disagreement between the candidates does not end in the international arena. Also at stake is Colombia’s approach to its internal security crisis—armed militias that control large swaths of the country. Cepeda wants to continue the current government’s policy of dialogue and engagement with criminal groups, a policy that its critics say has actually led to an unprecedented wave of violence. De la Espriella, by contrast, is promising a hard line: expanding the army’s powers, building prisons in the heart of the jungle, and waging an uncompromising fight against the cartels.

In the first round, de la Espriella received about 44% of the vote, compared with 41% for Cepeda. Because neither candidate crossed the 50% threshold, the final decision will be made in the second round. A conservative candidate who won only 6% of the vote announced her support for “El Tigre” (the Tiger)—de la Espriella’s nickname—a move that could tip the balance in his favor. On the other side, President Petro said he does not accept the election results and claimed fraud—without providing any evidence—against the backdrop of a campaign marked by serious violence in the streets.