De la Espriella wins Colombia's presidency in the preliminary count as Cepeda awaits the tally

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Abelardo de la Espriella has won Colombia's presidency in a close runoff, with preliminary results showing a narrow victory over Iván Cepeda. The opposition is contesting the results, creating political uncertainty.

Right-wing criminal lawyer Abelardo de la Espriella won Colombia's presidency, according to the preliminary count by the Registraduría, defeating left-wing senator Iván Cepeda by less than a point in the closest runoff in the country's history. With about 99.9% of the tables processed, De la Espriella took 49.66% of the vote against Cepeda's 48.70%, a difference of some 250,000 ballots. The governing-coalition candidate acknowledged the preliminary count but warned that he would not accept the result until the definitive tally, and challenged 33,000 of the 120,000 polling tables; President Gustavo Petro said that "neither can proclaim himself president."