Alfonsín, Raúl (1927–)

Raúl Ricardo Alfonsín, born in 1927, was the president of Argentina from 1983 to 1989 when democracy was restored after the last military dictatorship (1976–1983). As a member of the UCR-party (Radical Civic Union), he projected a charismatic image. Alfonsín's presidential campaign represented the first introduction of typical American methods for political communication in Argentina and one of the earliest in South America.

In 1958, Alfonsín was elected member of the Buenos Aires Provincial Congress. In 1963 he became national legislator. He lost in his party's primaries for the presidential nomination in 1973. During the military dictatorship he worked for the defense of human rights. When running for the presidency in 1983, he emerged as the most competent “media-liked candidate.” For the first time in Argentina, ...