De la Espriella Sworn In as President at Historic First Inauguration Outside Bogotá

Abelardo de la Espriella was sworn in as Colombia's 36th president on August 7 at Arena USC in Cali, alongside Vice President José Manuel Restrepo — the first presidential inauguration held outside Bogotá, chosen amid fears that unrest could disrupt a Bogotá ceremony. In his inaugural address, de la Espriella pledged to 'relentlessly defeat narco-terrorism,' abandon Petro's negotiated 'Total Peace' approach, and align more closely with Washington, which is providing roughly $1 billion in security assistance. He responded to lingering fraud allegations by saying 'there is no room for intransigence' and vowed to unite the country. Historic Pact lawmakers boycotted the ceremony, and outgoing president Gustavo Petro marked his final hours in office by posting an AI-generated video summarizing his presidency rather than attending.