Currently, de la Espriella is the frontrunner in the presidential race. A 47-year-old criminal defence lawyer with no political experience, he won the first round of voting in May with 44 percent of the ballots cast.
Now, he faces left-wing Senator Ivan Cepeda in the final round. Polls place him in the lead, with the research firm AtlasIntel estimating his support at 52 percent, as of June 13.
De la Espriella does not fit the traditional mould of a right-wing politician. Before launching his presidential bid, he was best known for his work in court, representing a slate of controversial clients.
One was former right-wing President Alvaro Uribe, accused of concealing paramilitary ties. Another was Alex Saab, a Colombian national who formerly served as a left-wing minister in Venezuela’s government.
Outside the courtroom, de la Espriella has built an eclectic business empire spanning menswear, rum and whiskey. He has even released classical music albums and opened a Miami-area restaurant.
Critics credit his business credentials, fiery rhetoric and slick marketing tactics with appealing to voters disenchanted with traditional politics.
“De la Espriella is ahead because he has managed to channel conservative voters, attract some voters disappointed with the government, and present himself as an alternative to established political figures,” said Patricia Munoz, a political analyst at Javeriana University in Bogota.
But the centrepiece of his campaign has been his hardline approach to security.
“I, Abelardo de la Espriella, am capable of bombing, fumigating and striking with an iron fist against criminals and the corrupt, while embracing and protecting law-abiding Colombians,” he said in a social media video from July 2025, when he announced his candidacy.
One of the most stubborn issues facing Colombia is its internal armed conflict.
For more than six decades, Colombia has been locked in a fight between government forces, paramilitaries, left-wing rebels and criminal organisations.
To address the conflict, de la Espriella has pledged rigid punishments and tough-on-crime tactics.
Upon taking office, he plans to build 10 privately run mega-prisons and lengthen sentences. He has even threatened to shoot planes out of the sky, if they are found to be carrying drugs.
Those proposals have evoked comparisons to the far-right policies of such leaders as Donald Trump in the United States and Nayib Bukele in El Salvador. Trump recently endorsed de la Espriella’s campaign for president.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: aljazeera.com
