US's Rubio congratulates De la Espriella on victory in Colombia’s presidential runoff

US secretary of state says Trump administration looks forward to working with Colombia's incoming government on security and migration

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio congratulated Abelardo de la Espriella on winning Colombia’s presidential runoff election Sunday and pledged close cooperation with the incoming administration on regional security, migration and economic ties. Rubio said in a post on the US social media platform X that he spoke to De la Espriella to “congratulate him on his electoral victory.” “The Trump Administration looks forward to working closely with your incoming administration to advance regional security cooperation, end illegal immigration to the United States, and strengthen our economic ties. Colombia's best days are ahead,” he added. Rubio’s remarks came as preliminary election results showed the US-backed candidate winning Colombia’s presidential runoff by a narrow margin. According to figures released by Colombia’s National Civil Registry, De la Espriella, the candidate of the Defensores de la Patria party, secured 49.65% of the vote with 99.93% of ballots counted, defeating Senator Ivan Cepeda of the ruling leftist Pacto Historico coalition, who received 48.7%. Both outgoing President Gustavo Petro and Cepeda have refused to recognize the verdict as final, citing voting irregularities and launching a massive legal challenge to contest tens of thousands of polling stations. A criminal defense attorney and businessman, De la Espriella campaigned on a hardline law-and-order platform focused on combating guerrilla groups, drug trafficking and rising crime, a message heavily amplified by an explicit social media endorsement from US President Donald Trump.