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Polls have closed in Colombia's presidential election.

The vote is being held after months of public recrimination between current left-wing President Gustavo Petro and his US counterpart Donald Trump over a number of issues including drug trafficking and American intervention in the region.

Colombia's constitution prohibits Petro seeking re-election and he has thrown his support behind Iván Cepeda. Challenging him are right-wing political outsider Abelardo de la Espriella and conservative Paloma Valencia.

The outcome of the election could redefine which countries the Latin American nation aligns itself with and how the government intends to tackle drug gangs amid spiralling violence.

As polls opened, Petro told a crowd in the capital, Bogotá, that Sunday's vote would "determine where Colombia is headed" and would "define the [country's] destiny".

Voting began at 08:00 local time (13:00 GMT) and closed at 16:00 on Sunday. 

None of the candidates appear likely to win an outright majority, with a run-off vote expected on 21 June.

Polling suggests Cepeda has the greatest support, with de la Espriella his next-closest rival.

Cepeda has promised to continue with the Petro administration's policy of "total peace", which sought negotiated settlements with armed insurgent groups that engage in drug trafficking - though talks have stalled or fallen apart and there has been renewed violence. 

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said in a recent report that armed conflict in Colombia last year had affected civilians the most in a decade. 

Just hours before voting began, authorities in the northern Cesar region relocated a polling station following a drone attack on security forces that left a soldier injured, local media report.

Colombia's defence ministry has deployed 408,000 soldiers and police to secure the election.

Election monitors say that more than a quarter of Colombia's municipalities face some risk of violence as the country's 41 million voters head to the polls. 

De la Espriella and Valencia have vowed to launch a military crackdown if elected.

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