Fernando de la Rua
Encyclopedia : F : FE : FER : Fernando de la Rua
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| Term of Office: | December 10 1999— December 21 2001 |
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| Predecessor: | Carlos Menem |
| Successor: | Ramón Puerta |
| Vice-president: | Carlos Álvarez |
| Date of Birth: | September 15, 1937 |
| Place of Birth: | Córdoba |
| Profession: | Lawyer |
| Political Party: | Alianza (UCR + Frepaso) |
Fernando de la Rúa Bruno (born September 15 1937) is an Argentine politician. He was president of the country from December 10 1999 to December 21 2001 for the Alliance for Work, Justice and Education (political alliance by the Radical Civic Union and Frepaso).
Born in Córdoba City, he attended the local Military Lyceum before entering the Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, from which he obtained his law degree. De la Rúa became involved in politics at a young age. He first appeared in the political arena during the 1973 elections, when he became elected Senator representing the city of Buenos Aires. A few months later he ran for the Vice Presidency along with the veteran politician Ricardo Balbín on the Radical ticket. His youth (running for Vice President at the age of 36) earned him the still-standing nickname of "Chupete" ('Pacifier' or 'Dummy'), as he was perceived as a "baby" in politics.
After the democratic restoration in 1983 De la Rúa was elected to the Chamber of Deputies and once again ran for the Senate in 1989. He actually won the popular vote, but was outmanoeuvred in the Electoral College by the alliance between the Justicialist Party and the Ucedé.
In 1996 De la Rúa became the first popularly-elected Mayor of Buenos Aires, an office which he held before running for the Presidency in the 1999 Presidential elections, as a candidate for the aforementioned Alianza. During his campaign, De la Rúa capitalized on the popular perception of him as a quiet, honest and moderate politician to the point of boredom, even launching a campaign ad which began by having him saying "Dicen que soy aburrido..." ("They say I'm boring..."), and then going on criticizing the Menem administration's corruption and eccentricities. He won the election with almost 50% of the votes.
De la Rúa's government was characterized by an ongoing economic crisis, continuous fights and rivalries between the coalition partners, cabinet crises, a general sensation of inaction and a failure to tackle corruption. His lack of charisma and his slow demeanor (perceived as stupor) hurt his public image.
He was finally forced out of office by the popular demonstrations in the midst of the December 2001 riots, the financial crisis, and the growing popular unrest, which took form under the rallying cry of the Argentine: ¡que se vayan todos! ("away with them all!" – referring to the governing class; His last Economic Minister was Domingo Cavallo who was also Carlos Menem's minister.
De la Rúa is married to Inés Pertiné and has three children. The best known is Antonio, whose serial romances with celebrities have been publicized widely by gossip magazines, and is engaged to Colombian singer Shakira.
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