International
MAGA Movement accompanies Donald Trump to vote in Palm Beach
Dozens of supporters of former president (2017-2021) and Republican candidate Donald Trump met this Tuesday at the voting center of the Morton and Barbara Mandel Recreation Center, in Palm Beach (Florida, USA), to support him and accompany him to vote in the place.
“I am here because I am a faithful follower of Donald Trump, he is a leader who can say no more, because we need a leader for the economy and people,” Juan David Rubio, a Colombian-American resident in the area, who spent hours waiting for the arrival of the former president, told EFE.
Rubio is one of the hundreds of followers of the White House aspirant who is part of the MAGA (Make America Great Again) movement, which in Spanish means ‘Let’s Make the United States Great Again’, and who were encouraged to accompany Trump at the time of casting his vote for the Presidency.
Dressed in a black T-shirt on which Trump’s photo is printed on the words “Never Surrender”, Rubio repeated the rhetoric of Trump’s campaign about how the Democrats have destroyed the country, without giving further details.
The support of the MAGA movement to Trump
For her part, the Cuban Xiomara Claudio, who had a cap and posters in support of the Republican, explained that she was there “to support our President Trump because he is the only one who will protect this country. Not Kamala Harris (in reference to the vice president and Democratic candidate).”
Former New York Mayor Rudy Giulliani also arrived at the place, assuring the press that if the Republican loses the elections it is “because the Democratic Party is the most corrupt in the history of the United States.”
Trump’s supporters of the MAGA movement spent hours standing, enduring the sun and intermittent rain, hoping to see their candidate.
In the early hours of the morning, the line in front of the polling center was extended for several blocks, with people waiting to cast their vote, in what is considered a crucial day.
The only political activists not related to the Trump movement were some women who promoted the right to abortion in Florida, a point that will be decided in a referendum included in the ballot, in which seats for the Senate, members of the House of Representatives, school district leaders and judges are also chosen.
Trump is “very confident” in victory
Numerous media, including EFE, installed their equipment in the community center with a playground, soccer fields and classrooms for neighbors, a gym and a cafeteria.
The former president arrived at the place with his wife, Melania Trump, and cast the vote shortly after 11:40 local time (16:40 GMT)
“We are doing very well in Georgia (‘hinge’ state) and everywhere,” Trump told the media at the voting center of this city where his luxurious Mar-a-Lago complex is located.
Trump said that he is “very confident” in the victory, which, according to him, will not even be by a very narrow margin, to ensure that this has been “the best” of the three electoral campaigns he has starred in.
However, he complained about the probable delay in calculating the election results.
However, Trump did not go out to greet his supporters. Once it was known that he would not do it, the members of the MAGA movement left the place and its surroundings, although they promised to meet around the Palm Beach County Convention Center, where the campaign will see the vote count and followers of the tycoon have already begun to arrive.
Strict security measures
The streets adjacent to the voting center and the convention center were closed from the day before, as well as those surrounding the former president’s house, in a measure that had already been implemented following previous incidents such as the arrest of a man with a gun near the golf course last July.
The city has been heavily guarded. “We have no reason to think that something could happen, but the community must know that we are always attentive in case anything happens, and we are ready to act, if necessary,” the local police spokesman, Captain Will Rothrock, told the press when talking about the operation.
He added that the Palm Beach County Police Department closely monitors security during the election process, in coordination with other state and federal security agencies, including the U.S. Secret Service.
International
Peruvian Court Orders Definitive Dismissal of Money Laundering Case Against Keiko Fujimori
A court of Peru’s National Superior Court of Specialized Criminal Justice ordered the definitive dismissal of the criminal proceedings for alleged money laundering and criminal organization against presidential candidate Keiko Fujimori, authorities reported on Tuesday, January 13, 2026.
The ruling was issued by the Tenth National Preparatory Investigation Court in compliance with a previous decision by the Constitutional Court (TC). The decision was confirmed by Fujimori’s attorney, Giuliana Loza, who said on social media platform X that “there was no money laundering nor criminal organization.”
According to the defense, the case was closed for lacking legal grounds and for violating due process. “The proceedings concluded because they lacked a legal basis and constituted clear prosecutorial persecution,” Loza stated.
Judge Wilson Verastegui, whose ruling was reported by local media, said the Constitutional Court determined that the facts alleged in the so-called ‘Cocktails Case’ do not constitute a criminal offense under the principle of legality. The court noted that the crime of illegal financing of political organizations was not in force at the time the alleged acts occurred.
The dismissal also applies to other leaders of the Fuerza Popular party, including Pier Figari, Ana Rosa Herz, Jaime Yoshiyama and José Chlimper, as well as the party itself.
Keiko Fujimori, daughter of former president Alberto Fujimori (1990–2000), had been under investigation for the alleged irregular financing of her 2011 and 2016 presidential campaigns, a case that exposed her to a possible 30-year prison sentence. However, one year ago the National Superior Court annulled the trial and returned the case to the intermediate stage.
Fujimori is currently pursuing her fourth presidential bid, ahead of Peru’s general elections scheduled for April.
International
Colombian Defense Chief Meets U.S. Officials to Advance Bilateral Narcotics Strategy
Colombia’s Minister of Defense, Pedro Sánchez Suárez, is in the United States this Tuesday and Wednesday to discuss bilateral cooperation in the fight against drug trafficking, Colombian officials said, in a visit that comes as ties between Bogotá and Washington begin to ease after a period of diplomatic tension.
The trip is seen as a prelude to a scheduled visit by Colombian President Gustavo Petro to Washington, where he is expected to meet U.S. President Donald Trump for the first time in early February. Sánchez will remain in Washington through Wednesday, according to Colombian government sources.
During his stay, Sánchez is slated to meet with senior U.S. officials, including representatives from the Department of Defense, members of the U.S. Senate, and White House advisors, to outline a joint strategy to “defeat drug trafficking” and expand cooperation on intelligence against transnational crime.
According to a statement from the Colombian Defense Ministry, the agenda will include strengthening collaboration on technology, intelligence sharing, and efforts to disrupt criminal networks that operate across borders. Officials said the discussions will also help set the stage for Petro’s upcoming talks with Trump.
The visit follows a period of strained U.S.–Colombia relations last year, when Washington revoked Petro’s visa and withdrew Colombia’s certification as a key partner in anti-drug efforts — moves that coincided with disagreements over counter-narcotics strategy and broader diplomatic frictions. However, a recent phone call between Petro and Trump, described as cordial by officials, helped lower tensions and reopened channels for dialogue ahead of the presidential meeting.
International
Dominican court postpones hearing in deadly nightclub collapse case
A Dominican court on Monday postponed until March a preliminary hearing against the owners of a nightclub that collapsed last year, killing more than 200 people.
The roof of the Jet Set nightclub collapsed in the early hours of April 8, 2025, during a concert by popular merengue singer Rubby Pérez, who died along with 235 other people.
Jet Set owner and manager Antonio Espaillat and his sister Maribel, who served as the club’s administrator, were arrested on charges of involuntary manslaughter but were later released on bail after posting approximately $842,500.
Both appeared at the Palace of Justice, where they were met by a small protest from relatives and friends of the victims.
“Thirty years in prison is not enough” and “President, we want JUSTICE,” read signs held by demonstrators.
The preliminary hearing determines whether there is sufficient evidence to send the case to trial. The court decided to reschedule the hearing for March 16.
“We don’t want money and we’re not demanding anything else, only justice for those who died,” said Secundino Pérez, a 75-year-old shopkeeper who lost 12 friends in the Jet Set tragedy.
“Antonio and his family celebrated Christmas sitting at a table, celebrating their freedom,” said Edgar Gómez, who lost his daughter in the collapse.
The Dominican Republic’s Public Prosecutor’s Office maintains that the defendants “significantly altered” the structure of the nightclub. Prosecutors filed formal charges in November and requested that the case proceed to trial.
The charge of involuntary manslaughter carries a sentence of three months to two years in prison.
“May your conscience never let you sleep. I lost my son,” a woman shouted through tears before the hearing, while others chanted, “Murderers, murderers, murderers.”
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