AS A wave of left-wing, anti-US sentiment sweeps across Latin America, a conservative who takes pride in being George Bush’s staunchest ally in the region is set to be re-elected President of Colombia with a landslide majority. Álvaro Uribe, a hardline foe of leftist rebels who killed his father, could win 57 per cent of the vote tomorrow, polls suggest, enough to win in the first round.

His nearest opponent is Carlos Gaviria, a former professor of law, who is tipped by polls to win 19 per cent of the vote for his promise to implement social reform. Señor Uribe’s high approval rating, which has rarely fallen below 70 per cent during four years in office, reflects popular support for his military offensive against insurgents and their drug trade.

Kidnapping and crime rates have fallen, and order has been restored to many towns and villages that had fallen under the control of paramilitary forces during nearly four decades of violence. Señor Uribe’s administration has benefited from hundreds of millions of dollars and training from Washington for the fight against the cocaine trade, a policy that annoys Hugo Chávez, the President of neighbouring Venezuela, and has heightened tensions at the border between the countries.

Four years ago the Oxford-educated Señor Uribe, 53, was elected to crush the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc). The military was bolstered by US Black Hawk helicopters that were shipped in to fight the insurgent group, which, according to Washington, is a terrorist group and a leading drug cartel.

Most analysts agree that the US-backed “Democratic Security” policy has weakened the guerrillas. More senior guerrilla leaders have been extradited to the US than in previous administrations. The Government has also attacked, with mixed results, the Farc’s main source of revenue, cocaine, by spraying record numbers of coca fields.

While waging war on the guerrillas Señor Uribe initiated a controversial peace process with the Farc’s rival, the United Self-Defence Forces of Colombia (AUC), a loose confederation of right-wing paramilitary groups, during which about 30,000 fighters have laid down their weapons. All of this has made many Colombians feel safer. “Security has improved,” Enrique Nieto, a taxi driver in Bogotá, said. “Before Uribe we were at the mercy of the guerrillas. People couldn’t even travel outside the city because of guerrilla roadblocks and the fear of being kidnapped.”

Perhaps the Government’s most tangible success has been the improved security along the motorways. During holiday weekends drivers travel in convoys escorted by police, a practice that has helped to revive the tourist industry.

Many business leaders credit the Government with generating stable economic growth and lowering interest rates and inflation. Señor Uribe’s critics say that the war against the guerrillas has come at the cost of social reform, especially among the poor African- Colombian and indigenous communities.

With the threat of guerrilla violence before election day, security has been stepped up in rural areas. Bogotá is on maximum alert, with an extra 50,000 US-trained special troops surrounding the capital.

Señor Uribe has pledged to initiate peace talks with the Farc, including the establishment of a demilitarised zone.

“If there’s a generous gesture from the Farc, they’ll find infinite generosity from me,” Señor Uribe said. This policy is popular among the voters who wish to see their belligerent leader offer an olive branch. Opinion polls suggest that two thirds of Colombians believe that the Government should seek a peace agreement.

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