Conservative lawyer Abelardo de la Espriella is leading leftist Senator Iván Cepeda in voter preference ahead of the June 21 presidential runoff, according to two new polls released on Saturday.
In the most recent AtlasIntel poll conducted for Semana magazine, De la Espriella had the support of 52.4% of those surveyed, eight points ahead of Cepeda with 44.4%. A separate poll by Guarumo and Ecoanalítica for El Tiempo had De la Espriella on 52.6% against 45% for Cepeda.
De la Espriella, a celebrity lawyer who has expressed his admiration for US President Donald Trump and El Salvador’s Nayib Bukele, unexpectedly topped Cepeda — an ally of President Gustavo Petro — in the first-round vote on May 31.
Trump endorsed De la Espriella in a post on Truth Social this week, saying that he is a “Smart, Strong, and Tough Leader” and that Colombia will have Washington’s “total support” if he wins the election. In response, Petro asked Trump not to “intervene in the campaign and allow the people of Colombia to decide freely.”
Read More: Petro Tells Trump to Stop Interfering in Colombian Election
In the AtlasIntel poll, De la Espriella leads in the central region, while Cepeda is ahead in the capital, Bogota. De la Espriella is more popular among women, while Cepeda has an advantage among younger voters between the ages of 18 and 24.
De la Espriella is also receiving most of the support that went to Paloma Valencia, the candidate who came in third in the first round and later endorsed him, El Tiempo reported, citing Víctor Muñoz, co-founder of the polling firm Guarumo.
The campaign has been marked by bitter attacks by the rival candidates, who have accused one another of receiving money from criminal groups or buying votes.
On Thursday, Cepeda said he will seek criminal charges against De la Espriella over allegations he received funds from illegal armed groups. Cepeda accused his opponent of having ties with leaders of the right-wing paramilitary group known as the AUC, which demobilized two decades ago. In a post on X, De la Espriella dismissed the allegations.
AtlasIntel surveyed 2,992 people in Colombia on June 9-11. The poll has a confidence level of 95% and a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points.
Guarumo and EcoAnalítica surveyed 2,073 people in Colombia on June 8-12. The poll has a confidence level of 95% and a margin of error of 2.9%.