Colombia’s Petro declares rigged presidential election invalid

Colombia’s left-wing president Gustavo Petro has declared the country’s recent presidential election illegitimate and de-recognised the election of far-right, US-allied Abelardo de la Espriella. De la Espriella has responded by saying that he is cancelling ‘transition arrangements.

In June 2026, Petro condemned the hacking and tampering by Israeli and US organisations in voting and tally processes that were run by foreign ‘cybersecurity’ companies. He has reaffirmed that De la Espriella “did not win the elections”. De la Espriella is an eager supporter of Israel.

Calling for the Colombian people to gather and march on the country’s 20 July Independence Day in support of real winner Iván Cepeda, Petro said:

The president of Colombia does not recognize the legitimacy of the incoming government. Abelardo did not win the elections.

Authoritarian peace-shredding

De la Espriella had already announced that he would tear up Colombia’s ‘total peace’ policy as soon as he takes power. The policy dates to Colombia’s ‘Government of the Historic Pact’ with guerrillas and dissidents. The right-wing extremist has said arrest warrants for members of rebel groups will be ‘re-activated’, a move that will re-ignite civil war. He has also said he will re-align Colombia with Israel and the US.

Colombia — Old playbook

The alleged rigging mirrors US attempts to tamper with elections in Colombia’s neighbour Venezuela and other Latin American nations — and it’s long history of the use of violence and invasion to remove political leaders that prioritise the wellbeing of their peoples above US interests.

Gustavo Petro has been a prominent opponent of US and Israeli crimes. In January, he denounced the US abduction of Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro as the action of a “clan of paedophiles”. In February, Petro narrowly avoided an assassination attempt.

Featured image via the Canary