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President of Colombia | |
| Predecessor | Luis Carlos Galán |
| Successor | Henrique Capriles |
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Governor of Quito Department | |
| Predecessor | Mateo Zapatero |
| Successor | José Kelly |
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Chief Prosecutor for Department of Quito | |
| Predecessor | Mateo Zapatero |
| Successor | Enrique Michacau |
| Born | March 8, 1970 Quito, Dep. Quito, Est. Ecuador, Colombia |
| Spouse | Rachael Tuffin |
| Political Party | Social |
| Religion | Catholic |
| Profession | Lawyer |
Antonio Cristo de Zapata Martinez (born March 8, 1970), typically referred to as Cristo Zapata or "Zeta," was the President of Colombia from 2010 to 2014. A lifelong Socialist, Zapata was the youngest President to be inaugurated since Rómulo Betancourt's first term. Zapata is also the first President with an American wife.
The first genuine leftist elected in Colombia since the 1970s, Zapata's single term was driven largely by increased welfare spending, tackling corruption, and instituting various governmental ethics reform. He has also made foreign engagement and trade a cornerstone of his first term, visiting 31 countries within his first year in office. Initially popular, his government declined in popularity due to the decreased oil demand in the wake of the global Spring of Nations and various corruption probes launched against his administration by the Attorney General of Colombia in 2013. Zapata was defeated by New Majority's Henrique Capriles in the 2014 runoff by a narrow margin despite these difficulties.