Far-right lawyer Abelardo De La Espriella has clinched a narrow victory in Colombia’s presidential run-off election, according to an initial ballot count.
Abelardo de la Espriella won 49.7 percent of the vote versus left-wing Senator Ivan Cepeda’s 48.70 percent, with 99.9 percent of results released by electoral authorities early Monday.
Security was a key concern for many De La Espriella voters, especially in regions where extortion and drug trafficking have risen recently. Leftist armed groups and crime gangs founded by former right-wing paramilitaries have fought each other and the state for more than 60 years. During the campaign, De La Espriella said he would scrap peace talks with dissident groups and launch a 90-day campaign of U.S.-backed air attacks against them.
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