Abelardo de la Espriella leads preliminary results in Colombia's presidential election

Preliminary results from the second round of Colombia's presidential election show ultraright-wing candidate Abelardo de la Espriella leading over leftist rival Iván Cepeda by a narrow margin.

Key points

• Abelardo de la Espriella, candidate for the Defensores de la Patria movement, secured approximately 49.6% of the vote in the preliminary count.
• President Gustavo Petro has called for calm and urged citizens to wait for the official scrutiny process to conclude before declaring a winner.
• Petro alleged irregularities, specifically citing the submission of electoral forms without the required signatures of poll workers.
• The official scrutiny process, which validates the final results, is scheduled to begin on Monday.

Why it matters

The election represents a potential shift in Colombia's political direction, moving away from the current left-wing administration toward a platform focused on security and a hardline approach to crime.