Colombia's presidential election pits outgoing leader's ally against pro-Trump candidates

BOGOTÁ, Colombia (AP) — Colombians milled into voting stations connected Sunday successful the archetypal circular of the South American nation’s statesmanlike election, choosing betwixt candidates with radically diverging visions for the aboriginal of bid successful a state haunted by decades of equipped conflict.

The vote, seen arsenic a referendum connected outgoing President Gustavo Petro’s policies, comes 10 years aft Colombia signed an historical bid pact with guerrillas of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, oregon FARC.

That statement offered anticipation to interruption the federation retired of a vicious rhythm of warring betwixt rebel groups and the authorities but unit has roared backmost since then, coming to a caput successful the lead-up to the statesmanlike vote. Criminal groups person progressively launched drone strikes, equipped attacks person plagued the contention and past June, 39-year-old person and statesmanlike hopeful Miguel Uribe Turbay was fatally changeable astatine a governmental rally.

In a state wherever the combat for bid has agelong been a portion of the governmental ethos, the question of however to code the struggle is erstwhile again dividing the country.

The ballot is slated to nonstop a connection to Latin America astatine a clip voters are progressively ditching leaders that pitched progressive policies, similar providing opportunities to youths and rooting retired corruption, to lick information ails, turning alternatively to heavy-handed information crackdowns similar El Salvador's. It besides comes arsenic the Trump medication is placing renewed unit connected the region.

“Today's predetermination isn't conscionable important for us, it's important for each of Latin America,” said Juan Acevedo, a 62-year-old sociologist walking retired of a voting presumption successful Colombia's superior connected Sunday morning. “Whoever wins present volition suggest to the portion if progressive policies volition proceed oregon if things are going to instrumentality to the right.”

Three apical candidates person starkly antithetic approaches

There are 11 candidates moving for president, but the predetermination has fundamentally turned into a three-horse race.

Senator and peace-builder Ivan Cepeda — a Petro state — has led the polls and promises to transportation connected with Petro's “total peace” inaugural to negociate with the country’s remaining rebel groups and motion bid agreements with them successful an effort to resoluteness the persistent crisis.

While the bid program has mostly failed arsenic criminals person taken vantage of ceasefires with the government, Cepeda and Petro person maintained beardown enactment among galore due to the fact that of progressive policies pushed guardant nether Petro, specified arsenic boosting the minimum wage.

Running against Cepeda are Abelardo de la Espriella and Paloma Valencia, who person vowed to travel down connected equipped groups with a heavier hand.

De la Espriella — a bombastic lawyer known arsenic “The Tiger” — has peculiarly gained traction among voters successful caller weeks for pitching himself arsenic an outsider keen connected emulating the heavy-handed tactics utilized successful El Salvador’s warfare connected gangs, which sharply reduced pack unit but fueled accusations of quality rights abuses.

Valencia is considered the governmental protege of Colombia's erstwhile president and strongman Álvaro Uribe, who governed from 2002 to 2010 with beardown enactment from the United States and whose authorities bushed backmost FARC rebels successful an violative that took a monolithic civilian toll.

Both de la Espriella and Valencia person touted their affinity for U.S. President Donald Trump adjacent arsenic helium has taken a much assertive stance toward Latin America than immoderate U.S. president successful decades and has pressured nations similar Colombia, Ecuador and Mexico to much forcefully ace down connected transgression groups.

If nary campaigner wins astatine slightest 50% of the ballot — thing highly uncommon successful Colombia — the 2 apical vote-getters volition look a runoff successful June.

Colombians besides disagree connected however champion to tackle the violence

Maria Eugenia, a 57-year-old seamstress who was stitching a brace of jeans connected Friday successful downtown Bogotá, Colombia's capital, said she welcomed an all-out violative connected an expanding slate of transgression groups, careless of the quality cost.

While she approved of Petro’s pushes to amended the country's aesculapian infrastructure, she said she was voting for de la Espriella due to the fact that unit successful agrarian areas of the state has gotten retired of hand. She said negotiating bid pacts was simply “rewarding” equipped groups.

“Of course, whenever you travel down with a dense hand, there’s ever going to beryllium debate,” she said. “But immoderate radical are going to person to autumn to cleanable up what needs to beryllium cleaned.”

Others, similar Acevedo, the sociologist strolling retired of a polling presumption connected Sunday with packs of different voters, said a information crackdown similar the 1 promoted by de la Espriella would lone beryllium returning to past subject campaigns that helium said lone reinforced Colombia's rhythm of violence.

He said helium planned to ballot for Cepeda, adding that portion the authorities hasn't done a cleanable occupation — failing to walk ambitious reforms and travel done connected promises to trim unit — it was amended to proceed pushing guardant with their governmental coalition's efforts to instrumentality a antithetic attack successful addressing the country's violence.

He added that his main critique of Petro's medication was the powerfulness grabs made by transgression groups arsenic the negotiated with the government. He said helium hoped that if Cepeda won, helium would onslaught a amended equilibrium betwixt negotiating bid and maintaining power implicit those groups.

“We're a state that has lived done 60 years of conflict,” Acevedo said. “The information present is that we instrumentality to the times wherever everyone is saying that the lone mode to lick our problems is with bullets and much war.”

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