The left-wing candidate Iván Cepeda recognized this Wednesday the defeat in the presidential elections last Sunday in Colombia and accepted the victory of the far-right candidate Abelardo de la Espriella, who obtained 12.9 million votes (49.78%) and beat him by less than a percentage point difference.

“As a candidate of the Historical Pact and the Alliance for Life, as I announced at the time and at this stage of the scrutiny, I have decided to accept the result that arises from said process and which indicates that Abelardo de la Espriella is the new president of the Republic,” Cepeda said in a public statement.

The leftist leader assured that he made this decision “as an act of democratic responsibility” and stated that he seeks to contribute “to coexistence, peace and dialogue among Colombians.”

Furthermore, Iván Cepeda assured that he will defend democracy and will not accept possible violations of public freedoms by the new Government, which will take office on August 7.

“We will not accept that public freedoms are violated, that social movements are stigmatized or that there is an attempt to treat youth and organized citizens as internal enemies,” Cepeda said in a public statement. EFE