Colombia’s outgoing President Gustavo Petro confirmed on July 15 that he will boycott the August 7 inauguration of his successor, Abelardo de la Espriella, continuing his refusal to recognize the results of the June 21 presidential runoff election.
“I cannot accept a president, and that is why I will not be anywhere on August 7, nor shake his hand; let him say so, but he knows why, because it is a fraud,” Petro said during a televised Cabinet meeting, according to MercoPress. The decision breaks with Colombian tradition, under which the outgoing head of state attends and witnesses the incoming president’s oath before Congress.
De la Espriella, a right-wing lawyer and millionaire, defeated left-wing Senator Iván Cepeda by a narrow margin of roughly 248,000 ballots, or 0.96 percent of the vote, according to Reuters and multiple news outlets. Petro has alleged fraud without providing evidence to judicial authorities, claiming irregularities involving 848,000 overseas ballots and blaming the Israeli firm Black Cube and Colombia’s Thomas Greg & Sons, which handled the election’s technological logistics. Colombia’s National Civil Registry and National Electoral Council have dismissed his claims and maintained the official results.
The European Union’s Electoral Observation Mission also rejected Petro’s fraud allegations in June 2026, according to AP News. Thirteen Colombian universities expressed alarm over Petro’s refusal to accept the election results, according to reporting from ColombiaOne.
Petro’s boycott is part of an escalating conflict between the outgoing and incoming administrations. On July 6, the Colombia Reports outlet quoted Petro as saying he didn’t recognize De la Espriella’s electoral victory, calling the alleged fraud “the harshest blow to national sovereignty since the Spanish reconquest during the years of the Patria Boba.” De la Espriella responded by suspending the presidential transition process on July 7, accusing Petro of attempting a coup—a charge the incoming president-elect made without evidence, according to NBC News and ABC News.
Another dispute centers on the inauguration location. De la Espriella wants to be sworn in at a military garrison in southern Colombia as a tribute to the armed forces, but the Colombian Constitution requires the ceremony to take place before Congress. As commander of the armed forces until the handover, Petro has barred the use of any military facility for the ceremony, forcing the incoming Congress—set to be installed July 20—to decide whether to relocate, according to MercoPress and City Paper Bogotá reporting.
Petro clarified that his rejection of the election result was not a call to violence, according to MercoPress. He reiterated that he will leave office on the scheduled date despite refusing to recognize De la Espriella’s victory. The outgoing president, who rose to prominence as a former guerrilla fighter in the demobilized M-19 group, has led Colombia since August 2022 and is constitutionally barred from seeking another term.
Sources
- MercoPress — Petro’s confirmation of boycotting the inauguration and his direct quote on July 15, 2026
- Colombia Reports — Petro’s refusal to recognize the election result on July 6, 2026
- Reuters — De la Espriella’s election victory margin and date
- AP News — EU Electoral Observation Mission rejection of fraud claims
- ABC News — De la Espriella suspending the transition process
- NBC News — President-elect’s accusations and transition suspension
- City Paper Bogotá — Inauguration location dispute and August 7 date
- ColombiaOne — University statements on election acceptance
