Background
Eleazar Lopez Contreras was born on 5 May 1883 in Tachira.
government official military politician president
Eleazar Lopez Contreras was born on 5 May 1883 in Tachira.
He became a professional soldier in the army of Cipriano Castro, the first caudillo from the mountain state of Táchira, whence López Contreras also came. Juan Vicente Gómez gave him his first major military post, director of war, in charge of purchases for the armed forces. By 1928 he was commander of the Caracas garrison. He suppressed an attempted coup by junior officers supported by student leaders who had organized the Student Week protest against the Gómez regime.
López Contreras’ loyalty to Gómez led to his appointment as minister of war and marine in 1931. He still held that post when Gómez died, and he immediately assumed the presidency. Congress confirmed him as provisional president and subsequently elected him as constitutional president for the 1936-1941 period.
At the end of his term. President López Contreras chose Colonel Isaías Medina Angarita, his minister of war, as his successor, whose election was assured by López Contreras’ control over Congress, which then chose the chief executive.
As Medina’s term neared an end, López Contreras aspired to return to the presidency. He organized a party. Agrupación Cívica Bolivariana, which nominated him. Rumors were rife that López Contreras might try to overthrow Medina by a coup, since he had little chance of election by the Congress dominated by Medina. When a coup did occur, it came from young officers in alliance with Acción Democrática, which ended all possibility of López Contreras returning to power.
After the October 1945 coup, General López Contreras was deported. He stayed abroad until the end of the Acción Democrática regime in 1948. He played no further part in national politics.
As president, López Contreras relaxed the Gómez dictatorship. He deported most members of Gómez’ numerous family and confiscated their very large landed estates. For about a year, he allowed the organization of political parties, most of them opposition groups, as well as the establishment of a labor movement, permitted considerable freedom of the press, and brought enactment of a new labor law and a new petroleum law. However, after crushing an oil strike, he deported about three score leaders of the new parties in February 1937. Except in Caracas, he conducted rigged elections.
