Dilian Francisca Toro

Dilian Francisca was born on 6 January 1959, in Guacarí, Colombia. When she was 15 years old, she co-founded Casa de la Cultura of Guacarí, a non-profit cultural organization working with at-risk groups. She studied Medicine at the Free University of Colombia, at Cali, where she graduated as Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery; she latter attended Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, in Brazil, where she specialized in Rheumatology.

Upon returning to Colombia, she was elected councilwoman for the Municipality of Guacarí, and in 1992 she became Mayor of Guacarí post which she occupied until 1994.

In 1996, she married former Senator Julio César Caicedo Zamorano in a religious ceremony officiated in the San Juan Bautista de Guacarí church,[2] that same year she was named Secretary of Health for the Department of Valle del Cauca. Toro inherited the political support once held by the former liberal party leader in Valle del Cauca Carlos Abadía who was jailed as part of the 8000 process scandal, in which members of the Cali Cartel financed the political campaigns of numerous politicians including the presidential campaign of Ernesto Samper who resulted elected.

Toro was first elected to Congress as a Liberal Party candidate in the 2002 Legislative Elections receiving a total of 71,721 votes.[3]

Because of her support for President Álvaro Uribe Vélez and his bid for re-election, Toro was sanctioned by the Liberal Party in 2004, which prompted to join a splinter group of Congresspersons from different parties who joined to form the Social National Unity Party and backed President Uribe.

In 2006 Toro was re-elected senator, and elected by her peers as President of the Senate of Colombia.