Abelardo de la Espriella reaches the second round of the presidential election in Colombia with unprecedented national and international support for the regional right. In the final stretch against Iván Cepeda, the candidate from Defensores de la Patria received support from Donald Trump, Javier Milei, José Antonio Kast, Santiago Abascal, and figures from Brazilian bolsonarism.
The Colombian election is no longer seen solely as a local dispute but as a key election for the stability of the region. For a large part of the conservative bloc in America and Europe, the runoff represents a historic opportunity to put a stop to Gustavo Petro's communist project and recover an agenda based on security, order, sovereignty, and economic freedom.
Abelardo is Donald Trump's favorite candidate in the coffee-growing country.
Donald Trump publicly called for votes for De la Espriella and promised that, in the event of victory, Colombia would have the full support of the United States. The American president described him as a strong, tenacious leader prepared to face drug trafficking, crime, and illegal immigration.
After years of tension between Petro's government and Washington, a potential victory for De la Espriella could mean a profound reconfiguration of the bilateral relationship, especially in the neglected areas of security, the fight against organized crime, and strategic cooperation.
Javier Milei expressed his support for Abelardo through his social media.
After a phone conversation with the Colombian candidate, Argentine President Javier Milei stated that Colombia must choose between the path of economic growth and prosperity or the continuation of impoverishing communism. The phrase summarized the political axis of the runoff: freedom or more socialism.
Milei's support also reinforces the possibility of a new regional axis of right-wing governments in Latin America. Buenos Aires, Bogotá, Santiago, and Washington could align on a common agenda against drug trafficking, continental leftism, and the advance of statist models that have failed time and again in the region.
From Chile, José Antonio Kast congratulated De la Espriella on his victory in the first round and wished him success in the electoral decision. The Chilean president emphasized that a freer and safer Colombia would be good news for the entire region, in a context marked by the growth of transnational crime and the migration crisis.
The support of the Chilean president
In Spain, Santiago Abascal also celebrated the progress of the Colombian candidate and spoke of an opportunity for Colombia to regain freedom, prosperity, and sovereignty. The massive support was joined by Eduardo and Flávio Bolsonaro, sons of former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro, who maintained contact with the candidate and highlighted his proposal against narcoterrorism.
Their support solidified the regional interpretation of the Colombian electoral process: the right sees the runoff as a key opportunity to weaken the leftist axis in Latin America.
