2014 Election Blog: Colombia Heads to a Presidential Runoff
With a close race and low turnout, Colombia's president and his top rival each garnered less than 30 percent of ballots cast.
Colombia's May 25 presidential vote saw low turnout and a divided electorate, as candidate Óscar Iván Zuluaga edged out President Juan Manuel Santos in a first round. With over 99 percent of the votes counted, Zuluaga garnered about 29.3 percent of the vote; Santos came in second with roughly 25.7 percent. As no candidate earned the necessary 50 percent to avoid a runoff, Santos and Zuluaga will face off in a second-round vote on June 15.
In total, five candidates appeared on the ballot. The Conservative Party's Marta Lucía Ramírez took the third spot with 15.5 percent, and the Democratic Pole/Patriotic Union Alliance's Clara López won just over 15.2 percent. The Green Alliance's Enrique Peñalosa came in last with about 8 percent.
Aside from the split results, voter apathy ran high. Only 40 percent of eligible voters turned up to cast a vote, and 6 percent of those who did cast a "blank vote," preferring not to pick any candidate. And though over half a million Colombian expats are eligible to vote abroad, overseas absention ran even higher at around 80 percent.
- Writing for U.S. News & World Report, AS/COA's Adriana La Rotta shares election insights, such as how the country's peace talks factor into the race.
- Find out more about the candidates in a post for AS/COA's 2014 election blog.
Check out quotes, videos, and more about today's presidential vote: