BOGOTA – Colombia’s 2026 presidential election has moved to a runoff contest after the first round of voting on Sunday delivered a split result that put a far-right independent and a leftist incumbent coalition candidate at the top of the ballot count. According to preliminary official data released by Colombia’s National Civil Registry, independent candidate Abelardo de la Espriella – linked to the far-right Defenders of the Homeland movement – and Ivan Cepeda, nominee of the ruling left-wing Historic Pact coalition, secured the two highest vote shares to advance to the second round.
With 97.58 percent of all ballots cast across the country already processed, de la Espriella holds a narrow lead over Cepeda, capturing 43.77 percent of the vote compared to Cepeda’s 40.88 percent. Right-wing contender Paloma Valencia, running for the opposition Democratic Center party, finished in third place with 6.91 percent of the total vote, falling well short of the support needed to earn a spot in the runoff.
More than 41.4 million registered Colombian voters were eligible to participate in Sunday’s election, which tasked the electorate with choosing a president and vice president to serve the 2026-2030 presidential term. Votes were cast at roughly 13,000 polling stations spread across the South American nation, with polls opening at 8 a.m. local time and closing at 4 p.m. local time.
Under Colombia’s constitutional electoral rules, a candidate must win an outright majority of more than 50 percent of the first-round vote to claim the presidency immediately. Since no candidate in the 2026 race crossed that threshold, the two top finishers will compete in a head-to-head runoff election scheduled for June 21. The winner of the runoff will be inaugurated to take office on August 7, marking the start of the four-year presidential term.