Colombians, weary of violence, prepare to vote in polarizing election

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May 30, 2026 / 11:49 AM EDT

/ CBS News

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Millions in Colombia will head to the polls on Sunday to cast their vote in a high-stakes presidential election that is expected to result in a runoff between two strikingly different candidates. A new president could be elected, but no candidate is expected to clear the 50% threshold required to win in the first round. A runoff between the top two finishers is almost certain on June 21. Polls show that the race between the 14 candidates on the ballot has narrowed down to three names, though two dominate. On the far left is Senator Iván Cepeda, candidate of the ruling Pacto Histórico party and the heir to President Gustavo Petro's policies. On the far right is Abelardo de la Espriella, a lawyer who has modeled his rhetoric and optics after President Trump and El Salvador's Nayib Bukele. Right-wing Senator Paloma Valencia, backed by former President Álvaro Uribe, has positioned herself as a center-right candidate. An AtlasIntel poll published last week, based on 4,531 interviews, put Cepeda leading the first round with a razor-thin margin at 38.7%, over de la Espriella's at 37.3%, while both candidates more than doubled Valencia's 14.3%. Moderate presidential candidate and former mayor of Medellin, Sergio Fajardo, trails far behind in the first round. All three candidates, according to the poll, would defeat Cepeda in the runoff.