Colombia greets Abelardo de la Espriella in a state of political tension
The South American country is moving from a left-wing government, led by Gustavo Petro, to a right-wing one, as has happened in much of the American continent.
Every four years, August 7th is a very special day in Colombia: a public holiday in memory of the battle that sealed the victory of the independence fighters over the royalists in the wars of independence is the moment when a new leader arrives in a country with a long presidential tradition. In 2026, it is also the day when the left hands over power that had eluded it for decades, and when it is received by a president with no previous political experience who will start a government that has promised to change Colombian politics: Abelardo de la Espriella, the histrionic criminal lawyer who surprised in the May elections and beat the continuity candidate in the June runoff.
Translated by urgent.news from El Pais's report. Machine-written; read the original for the full account.
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- The swearing-in of Abelardo de la Espriella as president of Colombia, live | The elected president arrives at the ceremony venue elpais.com
- Colombia's Abelardo de la Espriella takes office, vows war on guerrillas france24.com
- Colombia's far-right president Abelardo de la Espriella takes office, promising break with tradition lemonde.fr
- Trump ally de la Espriella sworn in as Colombia president punchng.com
