Juan Bosch

Juan Emilio Bosch y Gaviño (30 June 1909, La Vega – 1 November 2001, Santo Domingo) was the first democratically elected president of the Dominican Republic after the assassination of dictator Rafael Leónidas Trujillo in 1961. He founded the Dominican Revolutionary Party (PRD) in 1939 and the Dominican Liberation Party (PLD) in 1973. He was also a well-known writer, mostly producing short stories and tales.

Related Topics:
30 June - 1909 - La Vega - 1 November - 2001 - Santo Domingo - Dominican Republic - Rafael Leónidas Trujillo - 1961 - Dominican Revolutionary Party - 1939 - Dominican Liberation Party - 1973

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Due to his opposition to Trujillo, he was exiled from the country in 1937. Bosch returned following Trujillo's assassination and was elected president in December 1962 as the Dominican Revolutionary Party (PRD) candidate. Conservative military officers opposed to his socialist policies launched a successful coup d'état seven months later.

Related Topics:
1937 - 1962 - Dominican Revolutionary Party - Conservative - Socialist - Coup d'état

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In 1965, perredistas (pro-Bosch PRD members) who referred to themselves as Constitutionalists overthrew the Reid government and installed Rafael Molina Ureña as provisional president. Both civilians and junior military officers took part in the revolt. However, their actions provoked a counter-response from the dominant conservative wing of the military, who called themselves Loyalists, and a civil war broke out. On April 25, 1965, the Loyalists launched tank assaults and bombing runs against the new government, but the Constitutionalists remained in power.

Related Topics:
1965 - Constitutionalist - Reid - Rafael Molina Ureña

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On April 28th, the U.S. intervened in the civil war and dispatched 20,000 troops to the island. U.S. president Lyndon B. Johnson justified the intervention based on his belief that the PRD was filled with communists. An interim government was set up, and elections were held on July 1, 1966 that saw Bosch defeated by Joaquín Balaguer of the Reformist Party (PR,) who garnered 57% of the vote. Balaguer's candidacy was bolstered by fear of resurgent violence should Bosch win, as well as support from conservative sectors including peasants, religious women, and businessmen.

Related Topics:
U.S. - Lyndon B. Johnson - Communists - 1966 - Joaquín Balaguer - Reformist Party

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As a rival of Joaquín Balaguer, Bosch remained an important figure in Dominican politics, later forming the splinter Dominican Liberation Party (PLD.) He ran unsuccessfully for president as the PLD candidate in 1978, 1982, 1986, 1990, and 1994.

Related Topics:
Joaquín Balaguer - Dominican Liberation Party - 1978 - 1982 - 1986 - 1990 - 1994

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