The two leading candidates for president in Colombia will go head-to-head in a runoff election next month. Right-winger Ivan Duque received the most votes in the first round, but not enough to secure the victory. He'll face leftist Gustavo Petro. CGTN's Toby Muse takes a look at the two men fighting for the presidency.

Colombia's electoral choice for president couldn't be clearer, It's between two extremes: a former Marxist guerrilla and a far right-wing senator a sign of how polarized the country is today.

JAIRO LIBREROS POLITICAL ANALYST "It's the first time in recent Colombian history that two extremes have the possibility of reaching the presidential palace. One hand is the extreme right Duque and the extreme left is Gustavo Petro."

Ivan Duque is the front-runner, picking up just under 40% in the first round of voting. He represents the Centro Democratico party having spent much of his career at the Inter-American Development Bank. He became a senator in 2014. Duque will also push for greater foreign investment in Colombia's mining sector and for opening up more land for exploration. If he wins, he's promised to stiffen the country's peace deal with rebels and demand prison time for the top guerrillas.

IVAN DUQUE RIGHT-WING COLOMBIAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE "We don't want to tear up the peace agreement. We want to make clear that a Colombia in peace is a Colombia with peace and justice."

Gustavo Petro is a former rebel with the group M-19, most famous for its attack on the Palace of Justice in Bogota that killed 98 people in 1985. He became one of Colombia's foremost senators uncovering a congressional scandal that tied dozens of politicians with far-right death squads. He also served as mayor of Bogota. His campaign has focused on tackling Colombia's massive poverty.

GUSTAVO PETRO LEFTIST COLOMBIAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE "When we've talked of overcoming poverty, we're not talking about impoverishing the rich, we're talking of enriching the poor people of Colombia."

Petro says that sustainable development would be the guiding force of his economic policy. Both candidates have tried to broaden their appeal. Petro is frequently accused of wanting to turn Colombia into another Venezuela. While Duque has been accused of being a puppet of controversial ex-president Alvaro Uribe. During the campaign, Duque emphasized he would be his own man - but he is the candidate of a political party that has as its logo a silhouette of Uribe.

TOBY MUSE BOGOTA "Right now the odds' favorite -Duque. He won nearly double the votes of Petro in the first round of voting. And all of those Colombia voters call in between these two extremes they have to decide if they are going to move to the left or to the right. Toby Muse, CGTN, Bogota."