Colombia’s runoff election expected to trigger shift in decades-long armed conflict

Colombians are heading to the polls on Sunday for a presidential runoff election that is anticipated to bring about a significant change in the nation's protracted armed conflict. This conflict has reached its most intense phase since the 2016 peace accord between the government and the majority of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc). Current polling indicates that Abelardo de la Espriella, a far-right lawyer and businessman with admiration for Donald Trump, is the leading candidate. De la Espriella has pledged to discontinue President Gustavo Petro's "total peace" strategy, which involves negotiating the disarmament of all criminal organizations. Instead, he proposes a return to large-scale military engagement with armed factions.