Ernesto Samper Pizano
| Ernesto Samper Pizano | |
|---|---|
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| 29th President of Colombia | |
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In office 7 August 1994 – 7 August 1998 |
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| Vice President |
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| Preceded by | César Gaviria Trujillo |
| Succeeded by | Andrés Pastrana Arango |
| 4th Secretary General of the Union of South American Nations | |
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Assumed office 1 August 2014 |
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| Preceded by | Alí Rodríguez Araque |
| 17th Secretary General of Non-Aligned Movement | |
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In office 18 October 1995 – 7 August 1998 |
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| Preceded by | Suharto |
| Succeeded by | Andrés Pastrana Arango |
| Colombia Ambassador to Spain | |
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In office 1991 – 1993 |
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| President | César Gaviria Trujillo |
| Preceded by | William Jaramillo Gómez |
| Succeeded by | María Emma Mejía Vélez |
| 1st Minister of Economic Development of Colombia | |
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In office 7 August 1990 – 28 October 1991 |
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| President | César Gaviria Trujillo |
| Succeeded by | Jorge Ospina Sardi |
| Senator of Colombia | |
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In office 20 July 1986 – 20 July 1990 |
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| Personal details | |
| Born |
3 August 1950 Bogotá, D.C., Colombia |
| Nationality | Colombian |
| Political party | Liberal |
| Spouse(s) |
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| Children |
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| Alma mater |
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| Profession | Economist |
| Religion | Roman Catholicism |
Ernesto Samper Pizano (born 3 August 1950) is a Colombian politician. Samper is a member of the , wealthy and influential Samper family. He served as the President of Colombia from 1994 to 1998, representing the Liberal Party. He currently serves as the Secretary General of the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR). He was involved in the 8000 process scandal, which takes its name from the folio number assigned to it by the chief prosecutor's office. The prosecutor charged that money from the Cali Cartel was funneled into Samper's presidential campaign to gain his success in what would have been a very close race after he failed to win by a majority during the first round (Colombia has 2 rounds of elections, unless the first round yields a majority winner). The Colombian House of Representatives acquitted Samper with a vote of 111 to 43, precluding the process.
Samper is related to several other Colombians of note. His great great grandfather was the poet Diego Fallon, and his great great grandmother Felisa Pombo Rebolledo was sister of the poet Rafael Pombo. He is also a collateral descendant of Antonio Nariño, paternal grandson of writer Daniel Samper Ortega, grandson in direct line of businessman Tomas Samper Brush and grandson of politician Miguel Samper Agudelo, who was a presidential candidate in 1898; and also the nephew of renowned architect Germán Samper Gnecco, brother of writer, journalist and columnist Daniel Samper Pizano, a cousin of Patricio Samper Gnecco, and uncle of the current director of the SoHo Magazine, Daniel Samper Ospina. His great great grandfather, Teodoro Valenzuela Sarmiento, was the nephew of former president and hero of the Independence of Colombia Crisanto Valenzuela Conde.
In 1993, when the presidential campaign was in its early stages, it became increasingly clear that the race was going to be close, particularly between Samper and Andrés Pastrana, the candidate of the Colombian Conservative Party: opinion polls were sharply divided. Presidential elections took place on 29 May 1994. The results of the first electoral round showed Ernesto Samper winning with a slight 0.32% lead over Andrés Pastrana. Colombian electoral law states that if no candidate wins more than 50% + 1 vote in the first round, a second round between the two candidates who achieved the highest number of votes in the first round shall take place to identify a winner.
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Wikipedia