Bogotá, Colombia — Abelardo De La Espriella was inaugurated as the President of Colombia in a ceremony today, beginning his four year term.
The hard-right populist narrowly beat rival Iván Cepeda in a June run-off race, sealing the end of the country’s first leftist government led by outgoing President Gustavo Petro.
De la Espriella pledges a sweeping crackdown on corruption and insecurity in Colombia, as well as pro-business and traditional family policies.
The president was sworn in at a ceremony at a university in Cali, Colombia’s third largest city, before members of congress.
He later travelled to a nearby military base to deliver his inaugural address.
“I am sending a firm message to the people: the time for the recovery of order, authority, and freedom has begun,” said De La Espriella during his first speech as president.
“In the government of ‘The Tiger’, all the rules of democracy will be respected; there will be no room for tricks against the legitimate exercise of the mandate that begins today,” he added.
De la Espriella broke with historical precedent by holding the inauguration outside of the capital, Bogotá, a move that required lawmakers to approve the relocation of congress.
He also faced criticism after proposing to hold the ceremony in a military base as a tribute to the armed forces, a move that the outgoing president, Gustavo Petro, blocked.
“The law dictates where the seat of Congress is, and it is in a session of Congress where the new president must take office, just as I and everyone else did,” Petro posted on X days before the event.
Still, de la Espriella pushed to move the congress to Cali, part of his pledge to devolve power to Colombia’s regions.
The new president also broke with tradition by barring former presidents like Juan Manuel Santos and Ernesto Samper from attendance to the inauguration, arguing “coherence” and his distancing from traditional politics.
His rival for the right-wing ticket, Paloma Valencia, was not invited either.
The White House sent a delegation led by Attorney General Todd Blanche.
Other right-wing presidents and political leaders were also present, including Argentinian President Javier Milei, Ecuador’s Daniel Noboa, Paraguay’s Santiago Peña, Costa Rica’s Laura Fernández, Panamá’s José Raúl Mulino, the Dominican Republic’s Luis Abinader, Chile’s José Antonio Kast, and Honduras’s Nasry Asfura. El Salvador was represented by Vice President Félix Ulloa.
Spain’s King Felipe VI and FIFA President Gianni Infantino were also present.
Political tensions on the horizon
On the campaign trail, de la Espriella sought to distinguish himself from traditional political figures like Álvaro Uribe and his Democratic Center (CD) party, who have been the face of the right for years.
Uribe and the CD’s candidate, Valencia, endorsed de la Espriella after a disastrous result in the first round of the presidential election.
“I ask God that in these coming years, starting with the government of President Abelardo De La Espriella, tranquility and happiness prevail for all Colombians,” said Uribe ahead of the inauguration.
But the CD, which has the second most seats in congress, will remain a powerful lawmaking force that de la Espriella must negotiate with.
De la Espriella and his newly created political party Defensores de la Patria (Defenders of the Homeland) will also have to contend with the leftist Historic Pact party led by Petro and Cepeda, which has the most seats in congress.
With the Historic Pact boycotting the ceremony and a total breakdown in the handover, Colombia is set for unprecedented tensions between the government and the opposition.
As Vice President José Manuel Abondano is already scheduled to make the new administration’s first diplomatic visit to Israel in October, De La Espriella begins his term with a series of radical changes that offer a glimpse into what his administration will look like.
Featured image: Abelardo de la Espriella via X.