Trump-endorsed right-wing firebrand Abelardo de la Espriella — known to the people of Colombia as "El Tigre" — just clawed his way to the presidency in a stunning upset that sent the country's socialist establishment scrambling for the exits. The markets loved it. Wall Street loved it. And if you're keeping score at home, the global left just lost another country.
But sure, tell me again how Trump is "isolated on the world stage."
De la Espriella pulled in 12.91 million votes — 49.65% — against left-wing Senator Iván Cepeda, who managed 12.67 million votes at 48.7%. That's a margin of roughly 248,000 votes with 99.65% of ballots counted. Not a blowout on paper, but the reaction on the ground told a different story. Colombia wasn't just picking a president. It was picking a direction. And it picked capitalism.
The outgoing socialist president, Gustavo Petro, apparently couldn't resist a parting shot on X, ranting about Israel being "the only entity in the world capable of doing that" — whatever "that" means. Classic move from a guy whose coalition just got swept out of the presidential palace. When your guy loses, blame a foreign country. The leftist playbook is truly universal.
Now here's where it gets fun. The Colombian peso jumped 1.5% immediately. The COLCAP stock index surged 4%. Energy stocks popped 7.2%. Colombian 2054 bonds climbed 0.8 cents to 116.9 cents on the dollar. Credicorp is projecting a 5% stock rise in the short term and as much as 20% longer-term, with bond yields expected to slide 150 to 200 basis points.
In other words, the money moved before De la Espriella even finished his victory speech.
BTG Pactual analyst Munir Jalil called the result "directionally constructive given the market-friendly platform on security, taxes, investment." JPMorgan analyst Diego Pereira acknowledged, "A one-point win is still a win, but one this thin reshapes both" the political and economic landscape. Translation from Wall Street speak: capitalism won and we're buying.
De la Espriella himself posted his gratitude in Spanish: "Gracias, Colombia! Casi 13 millones de colombianos depositaron su confianza" — nearly 13 million Colombians placed their trust in him. And he earned it by running on security, lower taxes, and attracting investment. You know, the things that actually make countries work.
The bigger picture is almost too good. In June of 2023, Latin America had 10 left-wing governments and just 3 on the right. Today? It's 7 right-wing, 6 left-wing. That's a net swing of four countries in three years. Argentina's Javier Milei. El Salvador's Nayib Bukele. And now Colombia's El Tigre. The dominoes are falling, and they're falling our way.
President Trump's endorsement carries weight because it signals something beyond politics — it signals markets, trade deals, and alignment with the most powerful economy on earth. Every socialist candidate in Latin America now has to answer one question: "Why is Wall Street betting against you?"
Good luck with that.
The global left spent years telling us that populism was a passing fad, a temporary tantrum from the unwashed masses. Colombia just proved — again — that when you give people a choice between free markets and government control, the tiger eats the socialist. Every single time.
