Colombian Candidates Trade Allegations of Voter Pressure as They Head to Presidential Runoff

Abelardo de la Espriella urged prosecutors on Tuesday to investigate whether rebel groups coerced voters in remote areas to support Iván Cepeda in the May 31 first-round presidential election. De la Espriella’s campaign said Cepeda secured more than 70 percent of the vote across 109 municipalities with active illegal armed groups and reached as high as 97 percent in some locations.

The campaign filed a formal complaint with prosecutors.

It stated that the results alone do not constitute definitive proof of a crime but should prompt authorities to examine whether threats, pressures, or mechanisms were used to coerce voters and alter their freedom. Cepeda’s camp did not immediately respond to the accusations.

Cepeda, an ally of President Gustavo Petro and a former member of Colombia’s communist party, has acted as a mediator between the government and Marxist rebels.

9 percent, with 14 candidates on the ballot. Cepeda won around 41 percent of the overall vote. A European Union electoral observation mission reported receiving complaints from voters who said they were pressured by government officials and illegal armed groups during the May election, though the mission did not specify which candidate people had been pressured to support.

The municipalities where Cepeda received a large share of the vote lie along Colombia’s Pacific coast, an area that tends to support the current government. Security ranks among voters’ top concerns, alongside corruption and the state of the nation’s healthcare system. ” Cepeda has said he favors continuing negotiations, though with possible adjustments to methods.

De la Espriella has pledged to cancel the talks and adopt a more confrontational approach, including aerial spraying of coca fields with herbicides. ” President Gustavo Petro replied on X that “freedom dies” when one country intervenes in another’s affairs. The candidates will face each other in a runoff election on June 21.