Colombian journalist Victoria “Vicky” Dávila, now among the top contenders for the presidency in next May’s election, has built her campaign around a hardline security agenda with a central promise: swift justice for drug traffickers.

“I will have an express extradition program” to the U.S., she said in an interview with the Miami Herald. “The day after their capture, they’ll be on a DEA plane —period.”

The 52-year-old candidate, who has spent more than three decades in journalism, frames her candidacy as a response to what she sees as Colombia’s institutional unraveling.

“I am going as a soldier to defend Colombia, like a soldier going to war,” she said, presenting her bid as a “completely citizen-driven movement.”

Dávila, who visited Miami last week, currently polls in the top tier of a very crowded field of more than 70 candidates, virtually tied with writer Gustavo Bolívar at around 12 percent.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro is barred by the 2015 amended constitution from running for another four-year presidential term and is likely to back Bolívar or another left-leaning politician. Although Petro’s unpopularity has increased in recent years, his progressive platform is seen favorably by around a third of the population.

A security platform

Dávila’s campaign’s centerpiece is a sweeping security overhaul. Alongside rapid extraditions, she promises to reinstate arrest warrants for “kingpins and war criminals” and to rebuild intelligence operations weakened in recent years.

“This government decided to pursue total peace, and that completely deteriorated security,” she said, blaming the current administration’s strategy for rising coca cultivation. “We are flooded. We have 300,000 hectares of coca, and this is only a business of death.”

She describes the armed forces as “impoverished, weakened,” with senior officers removed in recent years. Her solution is to reinstate many generals and admirals, invest in modern tools and incorporate technology. “We have to rebuild the intelligence apparatus and add not just police and military intelligence, but also artificial intelligence to fight crime decisively.”

Dávila also calls for renewed international backing similar to the U.S.-supported Plan Colombia of the late 1990s. “We need a Plan Colombia 2.0… to reactivate cooperation in intelligence, judicial coordination, retraining our forces, equipping them.… We need drones, technology.”

Venezuela, armed groups and regional risks

A central theme of her platform is Colombia’s fraught relationship with its neighbor, Venezuela, and its leader Nicolás Maduro.

“Maduro is the owner of the cocaine business on the border,” she said, arguing that the Venezuelan regime is directly involved in the drug trade.

She criticizes the binational zone agreement promoted by the government in Bogotá, saying, “The only thing it is allowing is for Maduro… to stick his nose into Colombian territory.”

In her view, armed groups find safe haven in Venezuela under official protection and made reference to the Cartel of the Suns, which federal prosecutors in the U.S. say is run by high ranking members of Venezuela’s government.

“Venezuela is an immense danger… that Cartel of the Suns is allied with all those armed groups and hides them there, along with Maduro and Venezuela.”

At home, she paints a grim picture of criminal groups: “A large part of the country is hijacked by criminal groups,” she said, citing the regions of Chocó, Catatumbo and Cauca as examples. “Criminals are already in 70% of municipalities.”

Violence, threats and political risk

Dávila also dwells on what she calls an environment of harassment and violence. She pointed to the murder of Sen. Miguel Uribe, who was shot in June and died in August, saying authorities have shown more interest in “covering up the truth than finding it.”

Her own campaign, she claims, faces grave risks. “I have some very serious threats—very, very serious—and the government does not stop harassing me.” She attributes the threats to “extremist people linked with drug trafficking” who want to ensure “anyone who thinks differently must be destroyed, eliminated, disappeared, shot at.”

According to Dávila, the National Police warned her of an assassination plot, forcing her to reinforce her security. Yet she said she remains defiant: “They cannot silence us, and they cannot eliminate us. We are going to rescue Colombia.”

Economic policy and energy

Beyond security, Dávila promises fiscal discipline and structural reforms. “We are going to make a responsible but drastic spending cut. We are going to merge ministries and agencies. We are going to restore investor confidence.”

She criticized the current government’s fiscal management, pointing to a deficit she said “could reach 7.8%.” She proposes to reactivate oil and gas exploration, assist the national oil company, Ecopetrol, and secure new energy supplies to “regain energy self-sufficiency” and avoid blackouts.

Her comments were directed at the strategic changes implemented in the Colombian oil company under the Petro administration, which ceased new oil and gas exploration contracts, sought to divest fracking operations to fund clean energy initiatives, and shift the company’s focus from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources. The changes have led to financial instability, a considerable decrease in the company’s stock value, reduced profits compared to previous years, and raised concerns regarding its potential financial pressure on the nation.

Her economic program also envisions targeted investment in infrastructure, housing, tourism and agriculture — sectors she argues could be revitalized with technology and credit support.

Fighting corruption

Corruption, she argues, is a systemic illness demanding tough measures. “One of the most critical and chronic illnesses in Colombia is corruption,” she said. Her plan includes a task force empowered to seize assets and arrest corrupt officials, as well as the construction of new prisons to house them.

“From a special task force that will literally go to the homes of corrupt officials, to the construction of four prisons to house all these corrupt people… we’ll take back the money from the corrupt and from narcos. That way, we will have money for social investment.”

She also pledged reforms in healthcare and tighter oversight of public finances: “strict control over every peso.”

Citizen’s candidacy

Dávila emphasizes that she is not aligned with her country’s traditional political machinery. “I do not come from politics… Today, I am not in an alliance with any party or anyone,” she said, pointing to her “provincial” origins as proof of independence from established elites.

She also appeals to international allies, especially the United States. “Please, from here, from the United States, I ask President Trump, I ask the international community: do not take your eyes off Colombia.” On Venezuela, she was even more direct: “Trump, do your thing. Do it. Please take that problem off my back. Let democracy return to Venezuela.”

The interview outlined a candidacy built on sharp contrasts: hardline security policies, austerity-driven economics, an anti-corruption crusade, and a rejection of the ruling government’s peace strategy.

For now, she insists on presenting herself as a citizen alternative. By December, she expects to define alliances and formalize her campaign structure. Until then, she portrays her mission in stark terms: to rescue Colombia through forceful change.

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