Colombian hardliner hopes to channel Nayib Bukele's electoral magic
An independent candidate who looks and sounds a lot like El Salvador hardliner Nayib Bukele is winning over conservative Colombian voters tired of that country’s rising rates of violent crime and ever-increasing public deficit.
Abelardo de la Espriella, who adopted the nickname ‘El Tigre’ (The Tiger) due to his uncompromising personality and fierce reputation as a criminal lawyer, promises to root out corruption with an iron fist and dislodge criminal organizations once and for all.
His support for megaprisons has prompted comparisons to Bukele, El Salvador’s wildly popular hardline president, while his promises to “gut the left” and slash public spending are not dissimilar to Argentina’s chainsaw-wielding leader, Javier Milei.
Abelardo has expressed his admiration for Bukele on several occasions, and was even invited to his inauguration in El Salvador in 2024. After his visit, he described the Central American nation as “the best example in the world of what a country can achieve.”
Not only has de la Espriella styled himself after Bukele politically, but many note similarities in the two hardliners’ personal style: impeccably tailored suits, slicked back hair, and their signature goatees.
Amidst the highest levels of violence since the signing of the peace accords with the FARC rebels in 2016, Bukele hopes his hardline policies will win over Colombians as they head to the polls to choose their next president this May 31.
As the only frontrunner in the presidential race who has never held public office, de la Espriella stands out as a political outsider.
Leaning on his notoriety as a prominent criminal defence attorney representing celebrities and politicians across four law offices in Colombia and the United States, De la Espriella’s message is simple: he will defend Colombia like he defends his clients. His website, Defenders of the Homeland, invites supporters to join his fight to save Colombia.
De la Espriella has taken advantage of his background to appeal to voters through anti-establishment messaging, according to observers.
“He has… tried to present himself as a kind of outsider – someone who does politics, but isn’t in politics,” explained Juan Nicolas Garzon, a law and politics professor at Bogotá’s La Sabana University.
This is evident in his campaign slogans, which refer to “los nunca” – those who have “never stolen a peso of public money: those who have never asked for anything for free, those of us who have never lived off the state.”
Speaking to National Post, de la Espriella’s running mate, José Manuel Restrepo, said the presidential hopeful “understands that politics today is not done in the same old ways or with the logos of traditional political parties.”
De la Espriella hopes his lack of political experience will play in his favour, representing a change from what he deems as a corrupt political establishment.
“He is giving up a much more comfortable and successful life in the business and corporate world in favour of the needs of the country […] which has also been received well in different segments of society,” Garzon told the National Post.
The academic also noted that, like Bukele, voters enjoy his smooth-tongued, unconventional, and unfiltered way of speaking.
“Some would say he is very witty, direct, and confrontational, which has marked the style of his campaign,” added Garzon.
One of de la Espriella’s key campaign promises is to target organized crime, narcotrafficking, and the increasing power of armed rebel groups across the country, which have fuelled soaring violence in recent years.
His campaign promises to “save the miracle homeland” from its foremost enemy, crime, through constructing 10 megaprisons, inspired by Bukele’s infamous CECOT detention centre in El Salvador.
“That is why megaprisons are so important, because they are a way to demonstrate sanctions against these criminals who have caused so much harm to the country, including all those involved in organized armed groups, extortion, and trafficking,” explained his running mate, Restrepo.
De la Espriella’s hard-nosed proposal stands in stark contrast to leftist incumbent Gustavo Petro, whose “Total Peace” policy has sought to curb the country’s long-running armed conflict through negotiating with rebel groups.
But Petro’s controversial strategy has failed to tame bloodshed, with the first few months of this year seeing over 50 massacres, the most violent quarter in a decade.
The president’s choice to succeed him, Iván Cepeda, has vowed continuity, but many Colombian voters back tougher measures as rebel violence soars.
De la Espriella has won voters with his unambiguous approach to insecurity: “In my government, there will be no peace process. Criminals will be subdued.”
Like Bukele, the candidate’s appeal lies in his zero tolerance policy on crime, which has for years dogged many Colombian communities.
However some question de la Espriella’s record, having defended several prominent criminals in Colombia. His representation of David Murcia Guzmán, the mastermind behind the largest pyramid scheme in Colombia’s history, and Alex Saab, a businessman linked to the Nicolás Maduro regime in Venezuela, have drawn sharp criticism from his opponents.
Yet de la Espriella is keen to highlight his fight for justice in other landmark social cases. These include his pro bono legal support for Natalia Ponce de León, a woman who became a symbol of resilience after a brutal acid attack, and representation for the family of Rosa Elvira Cely, whose tragic murder led to the creation of Colombia’s femicide laws.
De la Espriella’s campaign chances appear strong ahead of elections at the end of the month.
With an approval rating of 29.4 per cent, he is polling consistently ahead of his main conservative rival, Paloma Valencia, who stands at 20.9 per cent according to recent surveys.
While leftist Cepeda leads in the polls overall, analysts expect the race to head to a run-off. Meanwhile, online betting site Polymarket puts de la Espriella ahead of all the other candidates with a 44 per cent chance of winning the most first-round votes.
Latin America Reports
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