List of presidents of Venezuela

Under the Venezuelan Constitution, the President of Venezuela is the head of state and head of government of Venezuela. As chief of the executive branch and face of the government as a whole, the presidency is the highest political office in the country by influence and recognition. The president is also the commander-in-chief of the National Bolivarian Armed Forces of Venezuela. The president is directly elected through a popular vote to a six-year term. Since the 2009 constitutional referendum, any person can be elected to the office an indefinite number of times. Upon the death, resignation, or removal from office of an incumbent president, the vice president assumes the office. The president must be at least 30 years of age, and has to be a "natural born" citizen of Venezuela, and cannot possess any other citizenship.

The Miraflores Palace is the president's official workplace, the center of the administration, and a prominent symbol of the office.

This list includes only those persons who were sworn into office as president following the establishment of the independent State of Venezuela, which took place on January 13, 1830. There have been 46 people sworn into office, and 64 presidencies, as several politicians (most prominently between 1830 and 1953) have held the office more than once. José Antonio Páez, the first president, was inaugurated in 1830. Antonio Guzmán Blanco served during the most number of terms, with three. Juan Vicente Gómez has served during the longest (although interrupted by interim presidencies), with over 27 years. Romulo Betancourt served from 1959 until 1964.[1] Hugo Chávez served the longest uninterrupted period in office with 11 consecutive years, from his restoration to power in April 2002 until his death in March 2013.

The current presidency has been disputed between Juan Guaido and Nicolás Maduro since January 10, 2019, in the ongoing Venezuelan presidential crisis. Maduro was elected to his first term in 2013 but received backlash from opposing Venezuelans and some members of the international community especially the United States. Maduro was accused of authoritarian rule and fraud in the elections that were held on May 20, 2018. Guaido, the President of the National Assembly of Venezuela, took the Oath of Office as Interim President on January 23, 2019, citing Article 233 of the Constitution of Venezuela to "cease the usurpation, hold a transitional government, and call for new elections". The office remains disputed.

History

The presidential designation 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 July 5, 1811. The first president, taking office on July 5, 1811, was actually the president of a triumvirate of the first established Republic of Venezuela that rotated the presidency weekly. The person serving as president during the week of July 5 was one of the three signatories of the Declaration of Independence: Cristóbal Mendoza. Mendoza shared the triumvirate with Juan Escalona and Baltasar Padrón. A second triumvirate followed on April 3, 1812 whose members were Francisco Espejo, Fernando Toro and Francisco Javier Ustariz.[2][3]

Owing to the profound confusion of the Venezuelan War of Independence and the period of Gran Colombia over what is now Venezuela, this page has gaps between 1813 and 1819. For this period in time, historians refer to the Republic of Venezuela as the Second Republic of Venezuela (1813–1814) and the Third Republic of Venezuela (1817–1819) as Simon Bolivar twice reestablished the republic. The Congress of Angostura appointed Simón Bolívar "Supreme Commander of the Republic of Venezuela" (Jefe Supremo de la República de Venezuela) from 1819 until 1830.

In 1830, José Antonio Páez declared Venezuela independent from Gran Colombia and became president, taking office on January 13, 1830. Although he was not the first president of Venezuela (having in mind Cristóbal Mendoza in 1811), he was the first head of state of independent Venezuela, after the dissolution of Gran Colombia.

Presidents of Venezuela since independence (1830–present)

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).[4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11]

State of Venezuela (1830–1864)

President of the State of Venezuela
Conservative Party (7)   Liberal Party (3)   Independent (1)   Military government (3)
No. [note 1]	Portrait	President (Birth–Death)		State	Term of office	Term [note 2]	Party
1			José Antonio Páez (1790–1873)	Portuguesa	13 January 1830 – 20 January 1835	1 (1831–35)	Conservative Party
2			Andrés Narvarte (1781–1853)	Vargas	20 January 1835 – 9 February 1835		Conservative Party
3			José María Vargas (1786–1854)	Vargas	9 February 1835 – 9 July 1835	2 (1835–39)	Conservative Party
4			José María Carreño (1792–1849)	Miranda	27 July 1835 – 20 August 1835		Conservative Party
(3)			José María Vargas (1786–1854)	Vargas	20 August 1835 – 24 April 1836		Conservative Party
(2)			Andrés Narvarte (1781–1853)	Vargas	24 April 1836 – 20 January 1837		Conservative Party
(4)			José María Carreño (1792–1849)	Miranda	27 January 1837 – 11 March 1837		Conservative Party
5			Carlos Soublette (1789–1870)	Vargas	11 March 1837 – 1 February 1839
(1)			José Antonio Páez (1790–1873)	Portuguesa	1 February 1839 – 28 January 1843	3 (1839–43)	Conservative Party
(5)			Carlos Soublette (1789–1870)	Vargas	28 January 1843 – 20 January 1847	4 (1843–47)	Conservative Party
6			José Tadeo Monagas (1784–1868)	Monagas	20 January 1847 – 5 February 1851	5 (1847–51)	Conservative Party
7			José Gregorio Monagas (1795–1858)	Monagas	5 February 1851 – 20 January 1855	6 (1851–55)	Liberal Party
(6)			José Tadeo Monagas (1784–1868)	Monagas	20 January 1855 – 15 March 1858	7 (1855–60)	Liberal Party
8			Pedro Gual Escandón (1783–1862)	Caracas	15 March 1858 – 18 March 1858		Liberal Party
9			Julián Castro (1810–1875)	Miranda	18 March 1858 – 2 August 1859		Military
(8)			Pedro Gual Escandón (1783–1862)	Caracas	2 August 1859 – 29 September 1859		Independent
10			Manuel Felipe de Tovar (1803–1866)		29 September 1859 – 20 May 1861		Liberal Party
						8 (1860–64)
(8)			Pedro Gual Escandón (1783–1862)	Caracas	20 May 1861 – 29 August 1861		Liberal Party
(1)			José Antonio Páez (1790–1873)	Portuguesa	29 August 1861 – 15 June 1863		Military
11			Juan Crisóstomo Falcón (1820–1870)	Falcón	15 June 1863 – 25 April 1868		Military
						9 (1864–73)

United States of Venezuela (1864–1953)

President of the United States of Venezuela
Democratic Action (3)   Conservative Party (1)   Liberal Party (8)   Independent (6)   Military government (6)
No. [note 1]	Portrait	President (Birth–Death)		State	Term of office	Term [note 2]	Party
(11)			Juan Crisóstomo Falcón (1820–1870)	Falcón	15 June 1863 – 25 April 1868	9 (1864–73)	Military
12			Manuel Ezequiel Bruzual (1832–1868)	Magdalena (Gran Colombia)	25 April 1868 – 28 June 1868		Independent
13			Guillermo Tell Villegas (1823–1907)	Carabobo	28 June 1868 – 20 February 1869		Liberal Party
14			José Ruperto Monagas (1831–1880)	Monagas	20 February 1869 – 16 April 1870		Military
(13)			Guillermo Tell Villegas (1823–1907)	Carabobo	16 April 1870 – 27 April 1870		Liberal Party
15			Antonio Guzmán Blanco (1829–1899)	Caracas	27 April 1870 – 27 February 1877		Liberal Party
						10 (1873–77)
16			Francisco Linares Alcántara (1825–1878)	Aragua	27 February 1877 – 30 November 1878	11 (1877–82)	Liberal Party
17			José Gregorio Valera (1826–1896)		30 November 1878 – 26 February 1879		Liberal Party
(15)			Antonio Guzmán Blanco (1829–1899)	Caracas	26 February 1879 – 26 April 1884		Liberal Party
						12 (1882–88)
18			Joaquín Crespo (1830–1898)	Aragua	26 April 1884 – 15 September 1886		Liberal Party
(15)			Antonio Guzmán Blanco (1829–1899)	Caracas	15 September 1886 – 8 August 1887		Liberal Party
19			Hermógenes López (1830–1898)	Carabobo	8 August 1887 – 2 July 1888		Independent
20			Juan Pablo Rojas Paúl (1826–1905)	Caracas	2 July 1888 – 19 March 1890	13 (1888–90)	Liberal Party
21			Raimundo Andueza Palacio (1846–1900)	Portuguesa	19 March 1890 – 17 June 1892	14 (1890–94)	Conservative Party
(13)			Guillermo Tell Villegas (1823–1907)	Carabobo	17 June 1892 – 31 August 1892		Liberal Party
22			Guillermo Tell Villegas Pulido (1854–1949)	Barinas	31 August 1892 – 7 October 1892		Liberal Party
(18)			Joaquín Crespo (1841–1898)	Aragua	7 October 1892 – February 28 1898		Military
						15 (1894–98)
23			Ignacio Andrade (1839–1925)	Mérida	28 February 1898 – 20 October 1899	16 (1898–08)	Liberal Party
24			Cipriano Castro (1858–1924)	Táchira	20 October 1899 – 19 December 1908		Military
25			Juan Vicente Gómez (1857–1935)	Táchira	19 December 1908 – 5 August 1913	17 (1908–14)	Military
26			José Gil Fortoul (1861–1943)	Lara	5 August 1913 – 19 April 1914		Independent
27			Victorino Márquez Bustillos (1858–1941)	Portuguesa	19 April 1914 – 24 June 1922	18 (1914–22)	Independent
(25)			Juan Vicente Gómez (1857–1935)	Táchira	24 June 1922 – 30 May 1929	19 (1922–29)	Military
28			Juan Bautista Pérez (1869–1952)	Caracas	30 May 1929 – 13 June 1931	20 (1929–31)	Independent
(25)			Juan Vicente Gómez (1857–1935)	Táchira	13 June 1931 – 17 December 1935	21 (1931–36)	Military
29			Eleazar López Contreras (1883–1973)	Táchira	18 December 1935 – 5 May 1941		Independent
						22 (1936–41)
30			Isaías Medina Angarita (1897–1953)	Táchira	5 May 1941 – 18 October 1945	23 (1941–48)	Democratic Party
31			Rómulo Betancourt (1908–1981)	Miranda	18 October 1945 – 17 February 1948		Democratic Action
32			Rómulo Gallegos (1884–1969)	Caracas	17 February 1948 – 24 November 1948	24 (1948–52)	Democratic Action
33			Carlos Delgado Chalbaud (1909–1950)	Caracas	24 November 1948 – 30 November 1950		Military
34			Germán Suárez Flamerich (1907–1990)	Caracas	30 November 1950 – 2 December 1952		Independent

Republic of Venezuela (1953–1999)

Venezuela took the name of Republic of Venezuela (Spanish: República de Venezuela) with the adoption of the 1953 constitution, written by the Constituent Assembly elected in November 1952. The Presidents of Venezuela under this constitution (as well as the 1961 Constitution, which kept the name) were officially styled as President of the Republic of Venezuela.

This period of the history of Venezuela began with the presidency of Marcos Pérez Jiménez, widely perceived to be a dictator.[12][13] After a short period of political instability following Pérez Jiménez's exile in 1958, democracy was restored in the country with the election of Democratic Action leader Rómulo Betancourt as president in 1959. This marked the beginning of the so-called Puntofijo Pact, which was characterized by the prevalence of the bipartidism of the two main political parties in the country at the time, Democratic Action and Copei.

The second presidency of Carlos Andrés Pérez (1989–93) saw a deep economic crisis, major riots in which hundreds were killed by security forces (the Caracazo, 1989), two coup attempts in 1992, and the 1993 impeachment of Pérez. That same year, Rafael Caldera became the first President of Venezuela not to belong to either Democratic Action or Copei in over forty years, having been elected under the banner of National Convergence. The Puntofijo Pact ended in 2000 when a new constitution entered in force.

President of the Republic of Venezuela
Democratic Action (5)   Copei (2)   National Convergence (1)   Independent (2)   Military government (1)
No. [note 1]	Portrait	President (Birth–Death)		State	Term of office	Term [note 2]	Party
35			Marcos Pérez Jiménez (1914–2001)	Táchira	2 December 1952 – 23 January 1958	25 (1952)	Military
36			Wolfgang Larrazábal (1911–2003)	Sucre	23 January 1958 – 14 November 1958[note 3]		Independent
37			Edgar Sanabria (1911–1989)	Caracas	14 November 1958 – 13 February 1959[note 3]		Independent
(31)			Rómulo Betancourt (1908–1981)	Miranda	13 February 1959 – 13 March 1964	26 (1958)	Democratic Action
38			Raúl Leoni (1905–1972)	Bolívar	13 March 1964 – 11 March 1969	27 (1963)	Democratic Action
39			Rafael Caldera (1916–2009)	Yaracuy	11 March 1969 – 12 March 1974	28 (1968)	Copei
40			Carlos Andrés Pérez (1922–2010)	Táchira	12 March 1974 – 12 March 1979	29 (1973)	Democratic Action
41			Luis Herrera Campins (1925–2007)	Portuguesa	12 March 1979 – 2 February 1984	30 (1978)	Copei
42			Jaime Lusinchi (1924–2014)	Anzoátegui	2 February 1984 – 2 February 1989	31 (1983)	Democratic Action
(40)			Carlos Andrés Pérez (1922–2010)	Táchira	2 February 1989 – 21 May 1993[note 4]	32 (1988)	Democratic Action
43			Octavio Lepage (1923–2017)	Anzoátegui	21 May 1993 – 5 June 1993		Democratic Action
44			Ramón José Velásquez (1916–2014)	Táchira	5 June 1993 – 2 February 1994		Democratic Action
(39)			Rafael Caldera (1916–2009)	Yaracuy	2 February 1994 – 2 February 1999	33 (1993)	National Convergence

Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela (1999–present)

Venezuela became the "Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela" (Spanish: República Bolivariana de Venezuela) with the adoption of the 1999 constitution, which renamed the country in honor of Simón Bolívar. The new constitution was promulgated by President Hugo Chávez, who served de jure from 1999 until his death in 2013. The new constitution augmented the presidential term from five years to six years.

Chávez's presidency was interrupted shortly in 2002 following a failed coup d'état attempt that put Pedro Carmona in office for a day. After government-loyal forces ousted Carmona from Miraflores, Vice President Diosdado Cabello assumed executive control for a couple of hours until Chávez could be restored. In 2009, a constitutional referendum approved the elimination of term limits, which allowed Chávez to be re-elected again in 2012. However, Chávez died in March 2013, only three months into his fourth term, and was succeeded by his Vice President Nicolás Maduro, who was elected the following month to finish Chávez's term, enforcing the majority of Chávez's economic policies.

Under Maduro, Venezuela has seen a rise in unemployment, shortages of goods, closures of several corporations, and the deterioration of productivity. Maduro – who has seen a sharp decline in his approval ratings in correlation to the economic collapse, and was the subject of a 2016 recall referendum to remove him from office that was later suspended[14] – has been criticized for what opponents consider to be him backsliding the country towards a full-fledged authoritarian regime; this led to an ongoing constitutional crisis stemming from a March 2017 ruling by the Supreme Tribunal of Justice (whose members largely consist of Maduro supporters) that removed immunity for National Assembly members (including those opposing Maduro),[15] which subsequently made a brief assumption of legislative powers from the Assembly,[16][17] and the Constituent Assembly election, which resulted in the formation of a Constituent Assembly intended to rewrite the 1999 constitution. These actions have worsened tensions and sparked violence during protests against the Maduro administration over concerns that Maduro would eliminate or significantly erode the independence of Venezuela's democratic institutions and shift the country towards one-man rule.

2019 presidential crisis

The process and results of the May 2018 Venezuelan presidential election were widely disputed.[18][19] The opposition-majority National Assembly declared Maduro a "usurper" of the presidency on the day of his second inauguration and disclosed a plan to set forth its president, Juan Guaidó as the succeeding acting President of the country under article 233 of the Venezuelan Constitution.[19][20] A week later, the Supreme Tribunal of Justice declared that the presidency of the National Assembly was the "usurper" of authority and declared the body to be unconstitutional.[19]

Minutes after Maduro took the oath as President of Venezuela, the Organization of American States (OAS) approved a resolution in a special session of its Permanent Council declaring Maduro's presidency illegitimate and urging new elections.[21] Special meetings of the OAS on 24 January and in the United Nations Security Council on 26 January were held but no consensus was reached. Secretary-General of the United Nations António Guterres called for dialogue.[22] During the 49th General Assembly of the Organization of American States, on 27 June, Guaidó's presidency was recognized by the organization.[23]

Guaidó declared himself acting president and swore himself in on 23 January.[24] Maduro's government has accused the United States of organizing a coup d'état to remove him and take control of the country's oil reserves.[25] Guaidó rejects the characterization of his actions as a coup, saying that his movement is backed by peaceful volunteers.[26] As of June 2019, Guaidó has been recognized as the acting President of Venezuela by 54 countries.[27] Internationally, support has followed traditional geopolitical lines, with allies China, Cuba, Iran, Russia, Syria, and Turkey supporting Maduro; and the US, Canada, and most of Western Europe supporting Guaidó as acting president.[28] The United Nations has continued to recognize the Maduro presidency as the legal representative of Venezuela as of December 2019.[29][30]

President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela
Fifth Republic Movement–United Socialist Party (2)   Popular Will (1)   Independent (1)
No. [note 1]	Portrait	President (Birth–Death)		State	Term of office	Term [note 2]	Party
45			Hugo Chávez (1954–2013)	Barinas	2 February 1999 – 5 March 2013[note 5]	34 (1998) (2000)	Fifth Republic Movement
						35 (2006)	United Socialist Party
						36 (2012) (2013)
46			Nicolás Maduro (1962–)	Caracas	5 March 2013 – Incumbent[note 6] (disputed from 10 January 2019)
						37 (2018)
47			Juan Guaidó (1983–)	Vargas	23 January 2019 (disputed) – Incumbent (disputed)	37 (2018)	Popular Will
	Independent

Timeline

See also

• List of current heads of state and government
• List of Vice Presidents of Venezuela

Notes

1. For the purposes of numbering, a presidency is defined as an uninterrupted period of time in office served by one person. For example, Carlos Soublette was both the 8th and 10th President because the two periods where he was president were not consecutive. A period during which a vice-president temporarily becomes acting president under the Constitution is not a presidency, because the president remains in office during such a period.
2. For the purposes of numbering, a term is a period between two presidential elections. Some terms might be longer than originally expected due to coup d'états or the installation of military dictatorships, thus extending the time between two elections. Venezuela's unique history has allowed several presidents to serve during a single term, as well as some presidents, such as Jose Maria Vargas, serving twice during a single term.
3. Larrazábal resigned early to challenge Rómulo Betancourt at the 1958 election, leaving Edgar Sanabria as acting president until the end of his term, on 13 February 1959.
4. Octavio Lepage, then President of Congress, served as acting president from 21 May 1993 and until 5 June 1993, when Ramón José Velásquez was formally selected to succeed Perez as president.
5. Hugo Chávez's first term as president began in February 1999 and is generally considered to last until August 2000, with his second term taking place after he was confirmed during the presidential elections of 2000 as part of the country's constitutional assembly. Therefore, many historians consider the period between August 2000 and January 2007 as Chávez's second term. However, this list considers the period between February 1999 and January 2007 as a single period.
6. Disputed since January 23, 2019 between Nicolás Maduro and Juan Guaidó.

References

1. fundaromulobetancourt.org
2. (in Spanish) "Presidentes de Venezuela". Consulado General de Bucaramanga. Archived from the original on 2017-12-25. Retrieved 2017-03-02.
3. Briceño Perozo, Mario. "Mendoza, Cristóbal de"lar, 1899. ISBN 978-980-6397-37-8.
4. CALDERA, Rafael. «De Carabobo a Puntofijo: los Causahabientes». Editorial Libros Marcados. Quinta Edición. 2008.
5. FERNANDEZ, Alfredo. «Venezuela: sus presidentes y constituciones». Organización Gráfica Capriles. 2006. Depósito Legal lf25220069002436.
6. CAMEJO, Armando. «Historia de Venezuela: documental y crítica». Ediciones Paz Pérez. 1965.
7. FERNANDEZ PAEZ, Carmelo. «Memorias». Ediciones de la Presidencia de la República. 1983.
8. GONZÁLEZ GUINAN, Francisco. «Historia Contemporánea de Venezuela TOMO XI». Ediciones de la Presidencia de la República. 1954.
9. RODRIGUEZ ITURBE, José. «Iglesia y Estado en Venezuela (1824-1964)». Universidad Central de Venezuela, Facultad de Derecho. 1968.
10. SALCEDO, Bastardo. «Historia Fundamental de Venezuela». Universidad Central de Venezuela. Ediciones de Biblioteca, Segunda edición. 1972.
11. USLAR PIETRI, Arturo. «Cuéntame a Venezuela». Editorial Lisbona S.A.. 1981-82.
12. Rohter, Larry (22 September 2001). "Marcos Pérez Jiménez, 87, Venezuela Ruler". The New York Times. Retrieved 20 January 2016.
13. Ledezma, Eurídice (21 September 2001). "Obituary: General Marcos Pérez Jiménez". The Guardian. Retrieved 20 January 2016.
14. "Venezuela Suspends Recall Campaign Against President Maduro". Fox News. 20 October 2016. Retrieved 21 October 2016.
15. "Venezuela 'coup': Alarm grows as court takes power". BBC News. 2017-03-31. Retrieved 2017-03-31.
16. Casey, Nicholas; Torres, Patricia (2017-03-30). "Venezuela Muzzles Legislature, Moving Closer to One-Man Rule". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-03-31.
17. "Venezuela: Supreme court backtracks on powers bid". BBC News. 2017-04-01. Retrieved 2017-04-01.
18. Bullock, Penn (10 January 2019). "Climate Change, U.S. Shutdown, Michael Cohen: Your Friday Briefing". The New York Times. President Nicolás Maduro was inaugurated for a second term after an election last year that was widely considered illegitimate — and despite a plummeting economy and skyrocketing violence, hunger and migration.
19. "El Tribunal Supremo de Justicia de Venezuela declara "inconstitucional" a la Asamblea Nacional y anula el nombramiento de Juan Guaidó como su presidente". BBC. 21 January 2019. Retrieved 29 January 2019.
20. "Prensa de la AN rectifica comunicado que proclama a Juan Guaidó Presidente de la República". Efecto Cocuyo. 11 January 2019. Archived from the original on 1 May 2019. Retrieved 12 January 2019.
21. "La OEA aprobó la resolución que declara ilegítimo al nuevo gobierno de Nicolás Maduro" [The OAS approved the resolution that declared the new government of Nicolás Maduro illegitimate]. Infobae (in Spanish). 10 January 2019.
22. "UN political chief calls for dialogue to ease tensions in Venezuela; Security Council divided over path to end crisis". UN News. 26 January 2019. Retrieved 29 January 2019.
23. "México, Uruguay, Bolivia y Nicaragua respaldaron al régimen de Maduro e intentaron desplazar al enviado de Guaidó de la Asamblea de la OEA". Infobae (in Spanish). EFE. 27 June 2019. Si se convalidan las credenciales (por las del enviado de Guaidó) se reconoce un nuevo gobierno de Venezuela y Uruguay eso no lo puede aceptar
24. "National Assembly President Juan Guaido swears himself in as President of Venezuela". CNN. 29 January 2019. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
25. "Canciller Arreaza advierte que objetivo de plan golpista es el petróleo venezolano" (in Spanish). Gobierno Bolivariano de Venezuela. 29 January 2019. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
26. Borges, Anelise (18 February 2019). "'I'm ready to die for my country's future,' Juan Guaido tells Euronews". Euronews. Retrieved 18 February 2019.
27. Phillips, Tom (12 May 2019). "Guaidó says Maduro is 'sowing terror' against leaders who tried to oust him". The Guardian. Retrieved 13 May 2019.
28. Vasilyeva, Nataliya (24 January 2019). "Venezuela crisis: Familiar geopolitical sides take shape". Associated Press. Retrieved 25 February 2019.
29. "UN backs credentials of Maduro officials". EFE (in Spanish). 19 December 2019. Retrieved 20 December 2019.
30. "Report of the Credentials Committee". United Nations General Assembly. Retrieved 29 January 2020.

External links

• Official portal for the President
• Official government site (Government Online)