Colombia votes in presidential election that could redefine relations with US

Colombia is heading to the polls to take a caller president.

The predetermination is being held aft months of nationalist recrimination betwixt existent left-wing President Gustavo Petro and his US counterpart Donald Trump implicit a fig of issues including cause trafficking and American involution successful the region.

Petro cannot question re-election and has thrown his enactment down Iván Cepeda. Challenging him are centre-right candidates Abelardo de la Espriella and Paloma Valencia.

The result of the predetermination could redefine which countries the Latin American federation aligns itself with and however the authorities intends to tackle cause gangs amid spiralling violence.

Voting begins astatine 08:00 section clip (13:00 GMT) and volition adjacent astatine 16:00.

None of the candidates successful Sunday's canvass look apt to triumph an outright majority, with a run-off ballot expected connected 21 June.

Polling suggests Cepeda has the top support, with de la Espriella his next-closest rival.

Cepeda has promised to proceed with the Petro administration's argumentation of "total peace", which sought negotiated settlements with equipped insurgent groups that prosecute successful cause trafficking - though talks person stalled oregon fallen isolated and determination has been renewed violence.

De la Espriella and Valencia person vowed to motorboat a subject crackdown if elected.

Colombia's statesmanlike hopefuls person campaigned amid persistent governmental violence, with 1 candidate fatally changeable past summer. Last week, de la Espriella appeared astatine a rally successful Medellin down bulletproof glass.

He and Valencia person expressed a tendency to reconstruct Colombia's adjacent information confederation with the US.

Cepeda has insisted, conscionable arsenic Petro did, that Colombia should not beryllium a "vassal state" to the US - though observers person noted that the 2 nations' historical anti-drugs co-operation has continued during adjacent the astir heated disputes.

The seizure by US forces of Venezuela's erstwhile President Nicolás Maduro successful January has near Petro 1 of the region's fewer remaining left-wing leaders not ideologically aligned with the Trump administration.

Trump has accused Petro of not doing capable to forestall cocaine from his state winding up connected America's streets.

At 1 point, Trump adjacent called him "a sick antheral who likes selling cocaine to the United States" and said "he could beryllium next" for US subject intervention.

Petro has argued his authorities has seized the largest magnitude of drugs successful history. But connected his ticker cocaine accumulation has besides soared to grounds highs, according to the United Nations' United Nations' World Drug Report 2025. Petro disputes the UN's method of counting.