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Colombia’s outgoing left-wing President Gustavo Petro has alleged electoral fraud in the country’s presidential election and warned that the incoming far-right government could trigger a “civil war”.
President-elect Abelardo de la Espriella, 48, is due to be sworn in on Friday in the southwestern city of Cali, breaking with the tradition of holding presidential inaugurations in Bogota before Congress.
At a press conference on Monday, Petro claimed the June runoff election was affected by large-scale, systematic fraud that allegedly deprived his political ally, Ivan Cepeda, of victory.
“We are facing fraud and an undoubtedly profound institutional problem, namely the inauguration of an illegitimate president,” Petro said.
He accused foreign interests of manipulating electoral algorithms and said money and companies from outside Colombia had interfered in the vote.
“Foreign money and foreign companies with the capacity to manipulate algorithms” interfered in the outcome of the electoral process, Petro said.
De la Espriella had received an endorsement from United States President Donald Trump before the election. Petro has previously accused Trump of interfering in Colombian politics.
The outgoing president also alleged that De la Espriella planned to extradite him to the United States on what he described as false charges. He warned that such a move could provoke widespread unrest and potentially lead to civil conflict.
Petro said he believed the public would reject any attempt to extradite him and argued that the resulting confrontation could create the conditions for a civil war.
“It’s crystal clear what a civil war in Colombia could look like,” said the president.
Meanwhile, the left-wing bloc in Congress, led by Cepeda, said it would boycott De la Espriella’s inauguration and called for a day of mobilisation against the incoming president.
The announcement has raised concerns about renewed protests similar to those that began under former President Ivan Duque, including demonstrations backed by Petro that left dozens dead between 2019 and 2021.
De la Espriella, who has no previous political experience, has pledged to boost private investment, reduce the size of the state by 40 percent and take a tougher approach to guerrilla groups and drug cartels.
His government will take office as Colombia faces its worst security situation in a decade following Petro’s efforts to negotiate peace with several armed groups.
