List of Presidents of Venezuela
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The President of Venezuela (Spanish: Presidente de Venezuela) is the English political nomenclature that designates both the head of state and head of government of Venezuela. The current presidential term is for six years with one possibility of immediate reelection, and with the constitutionally guaranteed recourse of holding a popular recall referendum anytime within the last three years of a presidential term.
The designation "President" encompasses only those persons who were sworn into office as President of Venezuela following Venezuela's declaration of independence from Spanish colonial rule, which took effect on March 5, 1811. The first president, taking office on March 5, 1811, was one of the three signers of the Declaration of Independence: Cristóbal Mendoza. [1]
Due to the profound turmoil of the South American Wars of Independence and the period of Gran Colombia over what is now Venezuela, this page has gaps between 1814 and 1819. The Congress of Angostura appointed Simón Bolivar "Jefe Supremo de la República de Venezuela" (Supreme Commander of the Republic of Venezuela) from 1819 until 1830. The list below includes interim caretaker as well as regular serving presidents, and democratically-installed presidents as well as those installed by other means (e.g.; Marcos Pérez Jiménez, Pedro Carmona Estanga).
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[edit] Comments on presidential ordering
The first numbering column reflects the number of the presidency. Since its creation as a republic in 1811, Venezuela has had a total to date of 70 presidencies: a single person serving a single term beginning with Cristóbal Mendoza. The second column reflects uninterrupted time in office served by a single person. For example, Juan Crisóstomo Falcón served two consecutive terms and is counted in the first column as both 20th presidency and 21st presidency and in the second column as 19th presidential office. The third column lists the actual numbering of distinct individual presidents. Venezuela has been ruled by a total of forty-three men to date. Many of the men listed below became President on a provisional basis as they waited for the arrival of the elected or regular president, such as commonly occurs in the aftermath of a civil war, rebellion, or coup d'état. As a consequence, other Venezuelan presidential rosters may not choose to include the seventy terms below, citing the extreme brevity of certain terms, unusual circumstances that may have surrounded a president's ascendancy into office, and other factors. The colors shaded about each president indicate the political party affiliation of each President (see key, below).
[edit] List of Presidents of Venezuela
| Key: | Fifth Republic Movement (Movimiento V República) | Independent | Military government | Democratic Action (Acción Democrática) | COPEI (COPEI — Partido Social Cristiano de Venezuela) |
|---|
| # (unique) | # (all) | # (selected all) | President | Dates in office | Form of entry | Occupation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 1 | Image:President Mendoza.jpg | Cristóbal Mendoza | 1811-1813 | Elected by First Congress | Lawyer / Politician |
| 2 | 2 | 2 | Image:Simón Bolívar.jpg | Simón Bolívar | 1813-1814 | Indirect elections | Military general |
| 3 | 2 | 2 | Image:Simón Bolívar.jpg | Simón Bolívar | 1819-1830 | Indirect elections | Military general |
| 4 | 3 | 3 | ![]() | José Antonio Páez | 1830-1835 | Indirect elections | Military general |
| 5 | 4 | 4 | Image:José María Vargas.jpg | José María Vargas | 1835-1836 | Indirect elections | Physician |
| 6 | 5 | 5 | Image:Andrés Narvarte.jpg | Andrés Narvarte | 1836-1837 | Interim caretaker | Lawyer / politician |
| 7 | 6 | 6 | ![]() | José María Carreño | 1837-1837 | Interim caretaker | Military general |
| 8 | 7 | 7 | ![]() | Carlos Soublette | 1837-1839 | Interim caretaker | Military general |
| 9 | 8 | 3 | ![]() | José Antonio Páez | 1839-1843 | Indirect elections | Military general |
| 10 | 9 | 7 | ![]() | Carlos Soublette | 1843-1847 | Indirect elections | Military general |
| 11 | 10 | 8 | ![]() | José Tadeo Monagas | 1847-1851 | Indirect elections | Military general |
| 12 | 11 | 9 | Image:JoseGregorioMonagas.jpg | José Gregorio Monagas | 1851-1855 | Indirect elections | Military general |
| 13 | 12 | 9 | ![]() | José Tadeo Monagas | 1855-1858 | Indirect elections | Military general |
| 14 | 13 | 10 | ![]() | Pedro Gual Escandon | 1858-1858 | — | — |
| 15 | 14 | 11 | ![]() | Julián Castro | 1858-1859 | Coup d'état | Military general |
| 16 | 15 | 10 | ![]() | Pedro Gual Escandon | 1859-1859 | — | — |
| 17 | 16 | 11 | ![]() | Manuel Felipe Tovar | 1859-1861 | Coup d'état (first term); direct elections (second term) | Politician |
| 18 | 17 | 10 | ![]() | Pedro Gual Escandon | 1861-1861 | — | — |
| 19 | 18 | 3 | ![]() | José Antonio Páez | 1861-1863 | — | — |
| 20 | 19 | 12 | ![]() | Juan Crisóstomo Falcón | 1863 - 1865 | Victory in the Federal War (first term) | — |
| 21 | 19 | 12 | ![]() | Juan Crisóstomo Falcón | 1865 - April 1868 | Indirect elections (second term) | Military general |
| 22 | 20 | 13 | Image:Venezuela coat of arms.png | Manuel Ezequiel Bruzual | 1868-1868 | — | — |
| 23 | 21 | 14 | Image:Venezuela coat of arms.png | Guillermo Tell Villegas | 1868-1868 | — | — |
| 24 | 22 | 15 | ![]() | José Ruperto Monagas | 1869-1870 | Revolution | Military general |
| 25 | 23 | 14 | Image:Venezuela coat of arms.png | Guillermo Tell Villegas | 1870-1870 | — | — |
| 26 | 24 | 16 | ![]() | Antonio Guzmán Blanco | 1870-1877 | Revolution (first term) | Lawyer / Military general |
| 27 | 24 | 16 | ![]() | Antonio Guzmán Blanco | 1870-1877 | Indirect elections (second term) | Lawyer / Military general |
| 28 | 25 | 17 | ![]() | Francisco Linares Alcántara | 1877-1878 | Indirect elections | Military general |
| 29 | 26 | 18 | Image:Venezuela coat of arms.png | José Gregorio Varela | 1878-1878 | — | — |
| 30 | 27 | 16 | ![]() | Antonio Guzmán Blanco | 1879-1880 | Election by the Federal States | Lawyer / Military general |
| 31 | 27 | 16 | ![]() | Antonio Guzmán Blanco | 1880-1882 | Election by the Federal States | Lawyer / Military general |
| 32 | 27 | 16 | ![]() | Antonio Guzmán Blanco | 1882-1884 | Election by the Federal States | Lawyer / Military general |
| 33 | 28 | 18 | ![]() | Joaquín Sinforiano de Jesús Crespo | 1884-1886 | Elections by the Federal States | Military general |
| 34 | 29 | 16 | ![]() | Antonio Guzmán Blanco | 1886-1887 | Elections by the Federal States | Lawyer / Military general |
| 35 | 30 | 19 | Image:Venezuela coat of arms.png | Hermógenes López | 1887 - 1888 | Intermin caretaker | Military general |
| 36 | 31 | 20 | ![]() | Juan Pablo Rojas Paúl | 1888 - 1890 | Elections by the Federal States | Lawyer |
| 37 | 32 | 27 | Image:Presidente Raimundo Andueza.jpg | Raimundo Andueza Palacios | 1890-1892 | Elections by the Federal States | Lawyer |
| 38 | 33 | — | Image:Venezuela coat of arms.png | Guillermo Tell Villegas | 1892-1892 | — | — |
| 39 | 34 | 28 | ![]() | Joaquín Sinforiano de Jesús Crespo | 1892-1894 | Revolution | Military general |
| 40 | 34 | 29 | ![]() | Joaquín Sinforiano de Jesús Crespo | 1894-1898 | Revolution | Military general |
| 41 | 35 | 30 | ![]() | Ignacio Andrade | 1898-1899 | Direct elections | Politician |
| 42 | 36 | 31 | ![]() | Cipriano Castro Ruiz | 1899-1908 | Revolution | Military general |
| 43 | 37 | 32 | Image:Juan Vicente Gómez.jpg | Juan Vicente Gómez | 1908-1914 | Coup d'état | Military general |
| 44 | 38 | — | ![]() | Victorino Márquez Bustillos | 1915-1922 | Appointed provisional president<ref>Bustillos was appointed to the presidency in a provisional fashion after Juan Vicente Gómez, after himself being elected (by the National Assembly) as president. Gómez opted not to assume the presidency, instead choosing to continue in the role of directing the Venezuelan army.</ref> | Lawyer / politician |
| 45 | 39 | 32 | Image:Juan Vicente Gómez.jpg | Juan Vicente Gómez | 1922-1929 | — | — |
| 46 | 40 | — | Image:Juan Bautista Pérez.jpg | Juan Bautista Pérez | May 30 1929 - June 13 1931 | Indirect election by the National Assembly | Lawyer / magistrate |
| 47 | 41 | 32 | Image:Juan Vicente Gómez.jpg | Juan Vicente Gómez | 1931-1935 | Indirect election by the National Assembly | Military general |
| 48 | 42 | 33 | ![]() | Eleazar López Contreras | 1935-1936 | Interim caretaker (first term) | — |
| 49 | 42 | 34 | ![]() | Eleazar López Contreras | 1936-1941 | Indirect elections (second term) | Military general |
| 50 | 43 | 35 | ![]() | Isaías Medina Angarita | 1941-1945 | Indirect elections | Military general |
| 51 | 44 | 36 | Image:Rómulo Betancourt.jpg | Rómulo Ernesto Betancourt Bello | 1945-1948 | Coup d'état | Politician |
| 52 | 45 | 37 | Image:Rómulo Gallegos.jpg | Rómulo Gallegos Freire | 1948-1948 | Direct elections | Writer / Novelist |
| 53 | 46 | 38 | ![]() | Carlos Delgado Chalbaud | 1948-1950 | Coup d'état | Military officer |
| 54 | 47 | 39 | ![]() | Germán Suárez Flamerich | 1950-1952 | Interim caretaker | Lawyer |
| 55 | 48 | 40 | ![]() | Marcos Pérez Jiménez | 1952-1958 | Indirect elections | Military officer |
| 56 | 49 | 41 | Image:Wolfgang Larrazábal.jpg | Wolfgang Larrazábal | 1958-1959 | Coup d'état | Rear admiral |
| 57 | 50 | 42 | Image:Edgar Sanabria.jpg | Edgar Sanabria | 1959-1959 | Interim caretaker | Lawyer |
| 58 | 51 | 43 | Image:Rómulo Betancourt.jpg | Rómulo Ernesto Betancourt Bello | 1959-1964 | Direct elections | Politician |
| 59 | 52 | 44 | ![]() | Raúl Leoni Otero | 1964-1969 | Direct elections | Lawyer |
| 60 | 53 | 45 | Image:Rafael Caldera 1.jpg | Rafael Caldera Rodríguez | 1969-1974 | Direct elections | Lawyer |
| 61 | 54 | 46 | ![]() | Carlos Andrés Pérez Rodríguez | 1974-1979 | Direct elections | Politician |
| 62 | 55 | 47 | Image:LuisHerreraCampins.jpg | Luis Herrera Campins | 1979-1984 | Direct elections | Lawyer |
| 63 | 56 | 48 | ![]() | Jaime Lusinchi | 1984-1989 | Direct elections | Physician |
| 64 | 57 | 49 | ![]() | Carlos Andrés Pérez Rodríguez<ref>On May 21 1993 Pérez resigned after being accused of corruption by the Attorney General. President of Congress Octavio Lepage was in charge of the government until Ramón J. Velásquez was elected by Congress on June 4, 1993.</ref> | 1989-1993 | Direct elections | Politician |
| 65 | 58 | 50 | ![]() | Ramón José Velásquez | 1993-1994 | Interim president | Writer |
| 66 | 59 | 51 | Image:Rafael Caldera 1.jpg | Rafael Caldera Rodríguez | 1994 - 2 February 1999 | Direct elections | Lawyer |
| 67 | 60 | 52 | ![]() | Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías<ref>On April 11, 2002, senior military officers refused Chávez's orders to carry out Plan Ávila. They arrested Chávez, saying he had resigned, and Pedro Carmona Estanga assumed the presidency. Following an uprising, aided by sectors of the military loyal to Chávez, the new government collapsed and Chávez was restored to power early on April 15 2002. Between the deposing of Carmona and the return of Chávez, Vice President Diosdado Cabello assumed the presidency.</ref> | 2 February 1999 - 11 April 2002 | Direct elections | Military officer (Lt. colonel) |
| 68 | 61 | — | ![]() | Pedro Carmona Estanga <ref>http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/1927599.stm</ref><ref>http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/1927322.stm</ref><ref>http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/1926185.stm</ref><ref>http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/1927678.stm</ref> | 11 April 2002- 13 April 2002 (2 days) | Coup d'état | Businessman |
| 69 | 62 | — | ![]() | Diosdado Cabello Rondón | 13 April 2002 - 13 April 2002 (several hours) | Interim caretaker | Engineer |
| 70 | 63 | 53 | ![]() | Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías | 13 April 2002 - present | Direct elections | Military officer (Lt. colonel) |
| 71 | 63 | 52 | ![]() | Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías | Takes office in 2007 | Direct elections | Military officer (Lt. colonel) |
[edit] Notes
<references />
[edit] See also
- Politics of Venezuela
- History of Venezuela
- Venezuelan presidential election, 2000
- lists of incumbents
- Politics
- (Politics Portal)
- (Venezuela Portal)
[edit] External link
- http://www.venezuela.gov.ve/ Official portal for the President
[edit] References
- (Spanish) Nuestros Presidentes — Official government portal for presidential biographies.
- (Spanish) Jefes de Estado de Venezuela
- (Spanish) Cuadro de Presidentes Venezolanos
- (Spanish) Presidentes y jefes de Gobierno
- (Spanish) Comentarios sobre la Lista de Presidentes
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| Society & Culture | Venezuelan Spanish | Cuisine | Demographics | Education | Heritage | Holidays | Hospitals | Media | Music | Newspapers | Television stations | Miss Venezuela | List of notable Venezuelans |
| Miscellany | Communications | East-West Railway | Military | Transportation |
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