Order Code 98-684 F
Updated August 18, 2005July 26, 2006
CRS Report for Congress
Received through the CRS Web
Latin America and the Caribbean:
Fact Sheet on Leaders and Elections
Mark P. Sullivan
Foreign Affairs, Defense, and Trade Division
Barbara Salazar Torreon
Information Research DivisionJulissa Gomez-Granger
Knowledge Services Group
This fact sheet tracks the current heads of government in Central and South America,
Mexico, and the Caribbean, and provides the dates of the last and next election for head
of government. It also provides the national independence date for each country.
Table 1. South America
Country
Argentina
Independence
Head of Government
Date
July 9, 1816
Last Election
KIRCHNER, Néstor
Independence
Date
Argentina
July 9, 1816
KIRCHNER, Néstor
Apr. 27, 2003
2007
Bolivia
Aug. 6, 1825
RODRÍGUEZ, EduardoMORALES, Evo
Dec. 18, 2005
2011
Brazil
Sept. 7, 1822
DA SILVA, Luis Inácio
Lula
Oct. 2002
Oct. 1, 2006
Chile
Sept. 18, 1810 LAGOS, Ricardo
Colombia
July 20, 1810 URIBE, Alvaro
b
April 27, 2003
a
June 2002
a
Next Election
2007
Dec. 4, 2005 a
October 2002
October 2006
December 1999/
January 2000
Dec. 14, 2005
May 2002
May 2006
Oct./Nov. 2002
October 2006
April 27, 2003
April 2008
Ecuador
May 24, 1822 PALACIO, Alfredo
Paraguay
May 14, 1811
Peru
July 28, 1821 TOLEDO, Alejandro
April/June 2001
April 2006BACHELET, Michelle
Dec. 11, 2005/
Jan. 15, 2006
2010
Colombia
July 20, 1810 URIBE, Alvaro
May 28, 2006
May 2010
Ecuador
May 24, 1822 PALACIO, Alfredoa
Oct./Nov. 2002
Oct. 15/Nov. 26,
2006
Paraguay
May 14, 1811
Apr. 27, 2003
Apr. 2008
Peru
July 28, 1821 TOLEDO, Alejandrob
Apr.9, 2006/
June 4, 2006
Apr. 2011
Uruguay
Aug. 25, 1825 VÁZQUEZ, Tabaré
Oct. 31, 2004
OctoberOct. 2009
July 2000
DecemberDec. 3, 2006
Venezuela
July 5, 1811
Head of Government
DUARTE FRUTOS,
Nicanor
CHAVEZ, Hugo
a. Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada, elected in October 2002, resigned on October 17, 2003 because of political unrest and
was succeeded by Vice President Carlos Mesa. Mesa subsequently resigned in June 2005 because of political
unrest and was succeeded on June 9, 2005, by Eduardo Rodríguez, the president of the Supreme Court. Early
elections have been set for December 4, 2005.
bCHÁVEZ, Hugo
Last Election
Next Election
a. Lucio Gutierrez, elected in November 2002, was removed from office by Ecuador’s Congress on April 20, 2005,
following weeks of popular protests, and was succeeded by Vice President Alfredo Palacio.
b. Alan García won the June 4, 2006, presidential election, and will be inaugurated on July 28, 2006.
Congressional Research Service ˜ The Library of Congress
CRS-2
Table 2. Mexico and Central America
Country
Independence
YearDate
Mexico
Sept. 16, 1810 FOX, Vicente
July 2000
July 2006
FOX, Vicentea
July 2, 2006
July 2012
Costa Rica
Sept. 15. 1821 PACHECO, Abel
February/April 2002
February
2006
El Salvador
Sept. 15, 1821
March 21, 2004
March
ARIAS, Oscar
Feb. 5, 2006
Feb. 2010
El Salvador
Sept. 15, 1821
SACA, Elías Antonio
(Tony)
Mar. 21, 2004
Mar. 2009
Guatemala
Sept. 15, 1821
BERGER, Oscar
November/
December 2003
November
Nov./Dec. 2003
Nov. 2007
Honduras
Sept. 15, 1821 MADURO, Ricardo
November 2001
ZELAYA, Manuel
Nov. 27,
2005
2005
Nov. 2009
Nicaragua
Sept. 15, 1821
November 2001
November
BOLANOS, Enrique
Nov. 2001
Nov. 5, 2006
Panama
Nov. 3, 1903
TORRIJOS, Martin
May 2, 2004
May 2009
Head of Government
Next
Last Election
Last Election
SACA, Elías Antonio
(Tony)
BOLANOS, Enrique
TORRIJOS, Martin
Caribbean
Country
Independence
Year
Antigua &
Barbuda
Nov. 1, 1981
SPENCER, Baldwin
March 23, 2004
by MarchNext Election
a. According to the official vote count, Felipe Calderón of the National Action Party received 35.89% of the vote in
the July 2, 2006, presidential election, while Andrés Manuel López Obrador of the Party of the Democratic
Revolution received 35.31%. López Obrador has petitioned the Federal Judicial Electoral Tribunal for a full
manual recount, which has until Sept. 6, 2006, to certify the results. The presidential inauguration is to be held
on December 1, 2006.
Table 3. Caribbean
Country
Independence
Date
Head of Government
Last Election
Next Election
Antigua &
Barbuda
Nov. 1, 1981
SPENCER, Baldwin
Mar. 23, 2004
by Mar. 2009
Bahamas
July 10, 1973
CHRISTIE, Perry
May 2002
by May 2007
Barbados
Nov. 30, 1966
ARTHUR, Owen
May 21, 2003
by May 2008
Belize
Sept. 21, 1981
MUSA, Said
March 5, 2003
by March 2008
a
Head of Government
Last Election
Next ElectionMar. 5, 2003
by Mar. 2008
Cuba
May 20, 1902
CASTRO, Fidel
a
a
Dominica
Nov. 3, 1978
SKERRITT, Roosevelt
May 5, 2005
by May 2010
Dominican
Republic
Feb. 27, 1844
FERNANDEZ, Leonel
May 16, 2004
May 2008
Grenada
Feb. 7, 1974
MITCHELL, Keith
Nov. 27, 2003
by Nov. 2008
Guyana
May 26, 1966
BHARRAT, Jagdeo
March 2001
b
November 2000
March 2006
b
November 2005
Haiti
Jan. 1, 1804
ALEXANDRE, Boniface
Jamaica
Aug. 6, 1962
PATTERSON, Percival
James
October 2002
by October 2007 BHARRAT, Jagdeo
Mar. 2001
Aug. 28, 2006
Feb. 7, 2006
2011
Oct. 2002
by Oct. 2007
Haiti
Jamaica
Jan. 1, 1804
Aug. 6, 1962
PRÉVAL, Réne
SIMPSON MILLER, Portia
b
St. Kitts &
Nevis
Sept. 19, 1983
DOUGLAS, Denzil
Oct. 25, 2004
by OctoberOct. 2009
St. Lucia
Feb. 22, 1979
ANTHONY, Kenny
DecemberDec. 2001
by December
Dec.2, 2006
St. Vincent &
the Grenadines
Oct. 27, 1979
GONSALVES, Ralph
March 2001
by March 2006Dec. 7, 2005
by Mar. 7, 2010
Suriname
Nov. 25, 1975
VENETIAAN, Ronald
May 25, 2005c2005
May 2010
Trinidad &
Tobago
Aug. 31, 1962
MANNING, Patrick
OctoberOct. 7, 2002
by OctoberOct. 2007
a. Castro has served as head of government since the 1959 Cuban Revolution. Since that time, there have been no
elections for head of government.
b. Alexandre became interim president February 29, 2004, following the departure of President Jean Bertrand Aristide.
c. Legislative elections were held May 25, 2005. Since the legislature could not elect a national president by the twothirds vote needed, an 891-member People’s Assembly re-elected Venetiaan on Aug. 3, 2005Portia Simpson Miller was sworn in as Prime Minister on March 30, 2006, after replacing out going Prime Minster
P.J. Patterson as leader of the ruling People’s National Party.