MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. — The vast majority of Colombians who cast their ballots on Sunday in the U.S. during the presidential runoff election voted for Abelardo De La Espriella, according to data published by the Colombian National Registry.
The preliminary count showed 80.57%, or 179,841 Colombians who cast their ballots in the U.S., voted for De La Espriella, 47, a former Miami-Dade resident who has both U.S. and Colombian citizenship.
The count also showed 41,142, or 18.43% of Colombians who cast their ballots in the U.S., voted for left-wing candidate Iván Cepeda, who has lived in Bulgaria, Cuba, and the Czech Republic.
There were more than 250 precincts for the Colombian diaspora worldwide. In South Florida, Colombian voters cast their ballots in Coral Gables, Kendall, Hialeah, Coral Springs, and Weston.
As of Monday afternoon, De La Espriella, a criminal defense attorney who campaigned as “El Tigre,” a law-and-order candidate, stood to become the president-elect after winning 250,830 more votes than Cepeda.
With information from 99.99% of the polling stations, 122,017 out of 122,020, the data showed 49.66%, or 12,959,542, voted for De La Espriella, and 48.7%, or 12,708,712, voted for Cepeda.
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U.S. President Donald Trump endorsed De La Espriella, a fan of Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele, who wants to open mega prisons, cut corporate taxes, restart oil exploration and fracking, and cut social spending.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro supported Cepeda, 63, a rival of former Colombian President Álvaro Uribe, who wants to continue negotiations with armed groups for their surrender, prioritize welfare programs, and protect the environment.
Petro’s four-year term ends on Aug. 7, when De La Espriella plans to be sworn in as Colombia’s 48th president.
During the presidential election’s first round on May 31, De la Espriella had 43.73% of the votes when he qualified for the runoff against Cepeda, who had 40.91% of the votes. About 70% of the voters in the U.S. also chose De La Espriella on May 31.
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