Presidential Designate (Colombia)

Not to be confused with President-designate.

The Presidential Designate of Colombia is a member of the Cabinet without official duties since the Rafael Núñez's administration.^[1] The Presidential Designate was elected by the Senate to replace the president in the event of his death, resignation, or removal from office, and was first in the line of succession, ahead of the Minister of Government.^[2][3]

Presidential Designate of Colombia
Presidential seal from 1922 to 2002
National flag
Longest serving Carlos Holguín Mallarino June 4, 1887 – August 7, 1888
Style	His Excellency
Type	Presidential Designate
Status	Abolished
Member of	Cabinet
Reports to	Senate of Colombia
Seat	Bogotá, D.C.
Appointer	President of Colombia with Senate advice and consent
Term length	Four years, once
Precursor	Vice President of Colombia
Formation	May 14, 1863
First holder	Santos Gutiérrez
Final holder	Juan Manuel Santos
Abolished	August 7, 1991
Succession	1st in the line of succession

In 1991, with the adoption of the Constitution of 1991, the presidential designate was replaced by the vice president.^[4][5]

History

Surviving President

The first trace of a presidential appointee emerged in New Granada when President Pedro Alcántara Herrán appointed Juan de Dios Aranzazu. Initially, the role of the Presidential Designate was to assume as president as a survivor in the event of the president or vice president's absolute absence.

Successor to the President

During the United States of Colombia, the position of Presidential Designee became the absolute successor to the president. During this period, the presidential designee was elected each year, along with the second and third designees. These three designees are responsible for replacing the president and cabinet members in the absence of any of them, in order to provide political stability to the executive branch.

With the birth of Colombia and the constitution in 1886, the office of Presidential Designated reappeared as the immediate successor to the president in 1905, when President Rafael Reyes, through a Constituent Assembly, abolished the office of vice president. Between 1910 and 1945, there was a substitute for the presidential appointee known as the second presidential appointee, which was later abolished. Finally, in 1991, the Constitution of 1991 abolished the office of Presidential Designate, bringing the office of Vice President back into the Colombian political scene.

See also

• List of Presidential Designates of Colombia