Andrés Zaldívar facts for kids
José Andrés Rafael Zaldívar Larraín, born on March 18, 1936, is a well-known Chilean politician. People often call him El Chico Zaldívar, which means "Short Zaldívar." He was a key member of the Christian Democrat Party. Andrés Zaldívar's family roots are from the Basque region.
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Early Life and Education
Andrés Zaldívar was born in Santiago, Chile. He went to primary and secondary school at the Instituto Alonso de Ercilla de Santiago, a school run by the Marist Brothers. In 1959, he graduated from the Universidad de Chile, where he studied law.
In 1952, Zaldívar started his political journey by joining the Conservative Party. While he was at university, he represented Chile at an international student meeting in Chicago in 1956. In 1957, he joined the Christian Democrat Party. He became a leader for young people in his party's Santiago branch.
After finishing his studies, Zaldívar worked as a lawyer for the town of Colina from 1959 to 1962. Later, he became a local police judge in La Cisterna.
Political Career Highlights
During the government of Eduardo Frei Montalva, Zaldívar held important roles. From 1964 to 1967, he was the Undersecretary of Finance, helping to manage the country's money. He then became the Minister of Finance in 1968. By 1970, he was in charge of both Finance and Economy.
He also worked on international finance. From 1968 to 1970, he was a governor for the Inter-American Development Bank. He also represented Chile in Washington and Caracas, working on economic and social committees.
During the time of the Popular Unity government (1970-1973), Zaldívar took on many roles within the Christian Democrat Party. He was a national counselor and a member of the Political Committee. From 1976 to 1982, he served as the president of the Christian Democrats. In this role, he became one of the main leaders who spoke out against the military government led by Pinochet.
During the Military Government
In 1973, Zaldívar was elected to the Senate of Chile for the first time. However, after the military coup in Chile in September 1973, the Congress was closed. Zaldívar and his family went to live in Spain for a short time. He returned to Chile the next year and became president of the Christian Democrat Party again, a role he held from 1975 to 1982.
While in exile, Zaldívar became the President of the International Christian Democrats, a group of political parties from different countries. He held this position from 1981 to 1986. In 1981, he also helped start a research center in Spain called CIPIE, where he was president.
In 1988, Zaldívar was a key part of the successful "No" campaign. This campaign encouraged people to vote "No" in the national vote that year, which helped bring democracy back to Chile. Also in 1988, he became the president of his party for another two years.
Return to Democracy
In 1989, Zaldívar was elected Senator for West Santiago. This election was very close. He received 31.27% of the votes. Because of Chile's voting system, he was elected along with Jaime Guzmán, even though Guzmán had fewer votes.
During this time, Zaldívar worked on the Senate's Public Works Committee and led the Finance Committee. In 1997, he was re-elected as Senator.
In his second term after democracy returned, Zaldívar was part of several committees, including those for Constitution and Justice. In March 1998, he was chosen to be the President of the Senate, a very important leadership role. He held this position until August 2004.
In 1999, Zaldívar ran to become President of Chile, representing the Christian Democrat Party. He competed in a primary election against Ricardo Lagos. Lagos won the primary vote with 71.3% compared to Zaldívar's 28.7%.
In 2005, Zaldívar ran for the Senate again but did not win his seat back. However, he soon became a main leader and planner for Michelle Bachelet's presidential campaign. After Bachelet won, Zaldívar was appointed as her Minister of the Interior, a top government position.
On March 21, 2017, he once again became the President of the Senate, taking over from Ricardo Lagos Weber.
Trivia
- Zaldívar's nickname, "Chico" (meaning "Shorty"), comes from his height.
- In the Chilean TV show Hippie, which was set in the early 1970s, Zaldívar appeared as himself. He was shown being interviewed by college students outside the National Congress.
See also
In Spanish: Andrés Zaldívar para niños
