Carlos Lleras Restrepo | |
---|---|
22nd President of Colombia | |
In office 7 August 1966 – 7 August 1970 |
|
Preceded by | Guillermo León Valencia |
Succeeded by | Misael Pastrana Borrero |
23rd Minister of Finance and Public Credit of Colombia | |
In office 8 October 1943 – 6 March 1944 |
|
President | Alfonso López Pumarejo |
Preceded by | Arcesio Londoño Palacio |
Succeeded by | Gonzalo Restrepo Jaramillo |
20th Minister of Finance and Public Credit of Colombia | |
In office 26 August 1941 – 7 August 1942 |
|
President | Eduardo Santos Montejo |
Preceded by | Gonzalo Restrepo Jaramillo |
Succeeded by | Alfonso Araújo Gaviria |
18th Minister of Finance and Public Credit of Colombia | |
In office 7 August 1938 – 24 March 1941 |
|
President | Eduardo Santos Montejo |
Preceded by | Héctor José Vargas |
Succeeded by | Gonzalo Restrepo Jaramillo |
Personal details | |
Born |
Bogotá, D.C., Colombia |
12 April 1908
Died | 27 September 1994 Bogotá, D.C., Colombia |
(aged 86)
Nationality | Colombian |
Political party | Liberal |
Spouse(s) | Cecilia de la Fuente Cortés (1933—1994) |
Children |
|
Alma mater | National University of Colombia (LLD, 1930) |
Profession | Lawyer |
Religion | Roman Catholic |
Carlos Alberto Lleras Restrepo (12 April 1908 – 27 September 1994) was the 22nd President of Colombia from 1966 to 1970.
Lleras was born in Bogotá, on 12 April 1908. He was the third son of the prominent physician and researcher, Dr. Federico Lleras and Amalia Restrepo. He died in Bogotá, on 27 September 1994.
Lleras studied in La Salle Institute in Bogotá and later studied jurisprudence at Universidad Nacional de Colombia. He obtained his Law degree in 1930. He was also a member of Phi Iota Alpha, the oldest inter-collegiate Greek-letter organization for international Latin American students.
Lleras was a cousin of Alberto Lleras Camargo, another important Colombian politician and President of Colombia. Married to Cecilia de la Fuente, Lleras was the father of Clemencia (d) - mother of Senator German Vargas Lleras-, Carlos - lawyer, journalist and former Ambassador of Colombia in the USA-, Maria Ines (d) and Fernando - poet, writer and musician.
Lleras became involved in politics at an early age. In 1929, he was elected by the liberal party as delegate to the National Convention of Apulo. By age 21 he was a member in the national committee of the Colombian Liberal Party. Lleras was elected to the state senate of Cundinamarca, and later MP as congressman in the House of Representatives.
In 1932, during the so-called “Liberal Republic”, Lleras was appointed General Comptroller of the country and in 1938 he was appointed as Minister of Finance (Ministro de Hacienda) during the presidency of Eduardo Santos. He was elected as Chairman of the Liberal Party several times and Senator of the Republic.
Lleras ran for president of Colombia for the first time in 1944, but his bid was unsuccessful. On 27 November 1965, he accepted the nomination of the liberal party, and received the endorsement of the conservative party. This made him the official candidate of the “National Front”, and he won the election in 1966.
After the presidency, Lleras founded and produced the political magazine “Nueva Frontera”.
Lleras was inaugurated as President of Colombia on 7 August 1966, and called his administration "the era of national transformation" ("Transformación Nacional").