Order Code 98-684 F
Updated August 18, 2005
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 Division
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.
South America
Independence
Country
Head of Government
Last Election
Next Election
Date
Argentina
July 9, 1816
KIRCHNER, Néstor
April 27, 2003
2007
Bolivia
Aug. 6, 1825
RODRÍGUEZ, Eduardoa
June 2002 a
Dec. 4, 2005 a
DA SILVA, Luis Inácio
Brazil
Sept. 7, 1822
October 2002
October 2006
Lula
December 1999/
Chile
Sept. 18, 1810 LAGOS, Ricardo
Dec. 14, 2005
January 2000
Colombia
July 20, 1810
URIBE, Alvaro
May 2002
May 2006
Ecuador
May 24, 1822 PALACIO, Alfredob
Oct./Nov. 2002
October 2006
DUARTE FRUTOS,
Paraguay
May 14, 1811
April 27, 2003
April 2008
Nicanor
Peru
July 28, 1821
TOLEDO, Alejandro
April/June 2001
April 2006
Uruguay
Aug. 25, 1825 VÁZQUEZ, Tabaré
Oct. 31, 2004
October 2009
Venezuela
July 5, 1811
CHAVEZ, Hugo
July 2000
December 2006
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.
b. 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.
Congressional Research Service ˜ The Library of Congress

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CRS-2
Mexico and Central America
Independence
Next
Country
Head of Government
Last Election
Year
Election
Mexico
Sept. 16, 1810
FOX, Vicente
July 2000
July 2006
February
Costa Rica
Sept. 15. 1821
PACHECO, Abel
February/April 2002 2006
SACA, Elías Antonio
El Salvador
Sept. 15, 1821
March 21, 2004
March 2009
(Tony)
November/
November
Guatemala
Sept. 15, 1821
BERGER, Oscar
December 2003
2007
Nov. 27,
Honduras
Sept. 15, 1821
MADURO, Ricardo
November 2001
2005
BOLANOS, Enrique
November
Nicaragua
Sept. 15, 1821
November 2001
2006
Panama
Nov. 3, 1903
TORRIJOS, Martin
May 2, 2004
May 2009
Caribbean
Independence
Country
Head of Government
Last Election
Next Election
Year
Antigua &
Nov. 1, 1981
SPENCER, Baldwin
March 23, 2004
by March 2009
Barbuda
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
Cuba
May 20, 1902
CASTRO, F

idel
a
a
Dominica
Nov. 3, 1978
SKERRITT, Roosevelt
May 5, 2005
by May 2010
Dominican
Feb. 27, 1844
FERNANDEZ, Leonel
May 16, 2004
May 2008
Republic
Grenada
Feb. 7, 1974
MITCHELL, Keith
Nov. 27, 2003
by Nov. 2008
Guyana
May 26, 1966
BHARRAT, Jagdeo
March 2001
March 2006
Haiti
Jan. 1, 1804
ALEXANDRE, Boniface b November 2000 b November 2005
PATTERSON, Percival
Jamaica
Aug. 6, 1962
October 2002
by October 2007
James
St. Kitts &
Sept. 19, 1983
DOUGLAS, Denzil
Oct. 25, 2004
by October 2009
Nevis
by December
St. Lucia
Feb. 22, 1979
ANTHONY, Kenny
December 2001
2006
St. Vincent &
Oct. 27, 1979
GONSALVES, Ralph
March 2001
by March 2006
the Grenadines
Suriname
Nov. 25, 1975
VENETIAAN, Ronald
May 25, 2005c
May 2010
Trinidad &
Aug. 31, 1962
MANNING, Patrick
October 7, 2002
by October 2007
Tobago
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 two-
thirds vote needed, an 891-member People’s Assembly re-elected Venetiaan on Aug. 3, 2005.

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