Alan García
Alan García | |
|---|---|
García in 2010 | |
| President of Peru | |
| In office 28 July 2006 – 28 July 2011 | |
| Prime Minister | Jorge Del Castillo Yehude Simon Javier Velásquez José Antonio Chang Rosario Fernández |
| Vice President | First Vice President Luis Giampietri Second Vice President Lourdes Mendoza |
| Preceded by | Alejandro Toledo |
| Succeeded by | Ollanta Humala |
| In office 28 July 1985 – 28 July 1990 | |
| Prime Minister | Luis Alva Castro Guillermo Larco Cox Armando Villanueva Luis Alberto Sánchez |
| Vice President | First Vice President Luis Alberto Sánchez Second Vice President Luis Alva Castro |
| Preceded by | Fernando Belaúnde |
| Succeeded by | Alberto Fujimori |
| Senator for Life as Former President of the Republic | |
| In office 28 July 1990 – 5 April 1992 | |
| Member of the Chamber of Deputies | |
| In office 26 July 1980 – 26 July 1985 | |
| Constituency | Lima |
| Member of the Constituent Assembly | |
| In office 28 July 1978 – 13 July 1979 | |
| President of the Peruvian Aprista Party | |
| In office 7 June 2004 – 17 April 2019 | |
| Preceded by | Position reestablished |
| Succeeded by | César Trelles |
| In office 15 July 1985 – 23 December 1988 | |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | Position abolished |
| General Secretary of the Peruvian Aprista Party | |
| In office 15 February 1992 – 23 December 1992 | |
| Preceded by | Luis Alva Castro |
| Succeeded by | Agustín Mantilla |
| In office 9 October 1982 – 15 July 1985 | |
| Preceded by | Fernando León de Vivero |
| Succeeded by | Armando Villanueva |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Alan Gabriel Ludwig García Pérez 23 May 1949 Lima, Peru |
| Party | Peruvian Aprista |
| Other political affiliations | Popular Alliance (2015–2016) |
| Height | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) |
| Spouse(s) | Carla Buscaglia (divorced) |
| Children | 6 |
| Alma mater | National University of San Marcos (LLB) |
| Signature | |
| ||
|---|---|---|
|
|
||
Alan Gabriel Ludwig García Pérez (Latin American Spanish: [ˈalaŋ ɡaβˈɾjel luðˈwiɣ ɣaɾˈsi.a ˈpeɾes]; born 23 May 1949) was a Peruvian politician who served as President of Peru for two non-consecutive terms, from 1985 to 1990 and from 2006 to 2011. He was the second leader of the American Popular Revolutionary Alliance (APRA), and its only member to serve as president. Mentored by the APRA's founder, Víctor Raúl Haya de la Torre, he served in the Constituent Assembly of 1978–1979. Elected to the Peruvian Congress in 1980, he rose to the position of General Secretary of the APRA in 1982, and was elected to the presidency in 1985 in a landslide.
García's first presidential term was marked by a severe economic crisis, social unrest, corruption, and violence. At its conclusion, he was accused and investigated for corruption and illicit enrichment. In 1992, he filed for asylum following president Alberto Fujimori's self-coup, and exiled himself with his family in Colombia and France for nine years. In the aftermath of Fujimori's downfall, he made a political comeback as he ran for the presidency in 2001, but lost in the second round to Alejandro Toledo. In 2006, he was again elected president, defeating Ollanta Humala, a feat considered a political resurrection due to the failure of his first term.
Throughout García's second term, Peru experienced a steady economy, becoming Latin America's fastest-growing country in 2008, surpassing China in terms of rising GDP. This economic success was acclaimed as a triumph by world leaders, and poverty declined from 48% to 28% nationally. In addition, Peru signed free trade agreements with the United States and China during García's presidency, but accusations of corruption persisted throughout his term and beyond. He was succeeded by Humala in 2011. He withdrew from party politics after failing to advance to the second round of the 2016 general election, placing fifth in his bid for a third presidential term under the Popular Alliance coalition between his party and the Christian People's Party, which included former rival Lourdes Flores as one of his running mates. On 17 April 2019, García died from a self-inflicted gunshot to the head as police officers under a prosecutor's orders were preparing to arrest him over matters relating to the Odebrecht scandal.
García is considered one of Peru's most controversial yet talented politicians. He was known as an immensely charismatic orator, but a 2017 poll of Peruvians named García and his government the most corrupt.