Luis Ángel González Macchi (born December 13, 1947, in

Asunción Asunción (, , , Guarani: Paraguay) is the capital and the largest city of Paraguay. The city stands on the eastern bank of the Paraguay River, almost at the confluence of this river with the Pilcomayo River. The Paraguay River and the Bay of ...

) was the

President of Paraguay The president of Paraguay ( es, Presidente del Paraguay), officially known as the President of the Republic of Paraguay ( es, Presidente de la República del Paraguay), is according to the Constitution of Paraguay the head of the executive bran ...

from 1999 until 2003.

Career

He was the President of the Paraguayan Senate from 1998 to 1999. As the president of the Senate, González Macchi was next in line for the presidency on March 23, 1999 following the assassination of

Vice President A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on ...

Luis María Argaña. President Raúl Cubas was suspected of being involved in the assassination. This, combined with other scandals resulted in his impeachment by the Chamber of Deputies on March 24. Realizing that he faced almost certain conviction and removal by the Senate, Cubas resigned on March 29, and González Macchi ascended to the presidency. As president, González Macchi attempted to create a coalition government to spur cooperation within Paraguay and repair the economy which had been damaged by the political crisis. This coalition did not last long, as the

Authentic Radical Liberal Party The Authentic Radical Liberal Party ( es, Partido Liberal Radical Auténtico or ''PLRA'') is a centrist liberal political party in Paraguay. The party is a full member of Liberal International. The ''liberales'', as they are known, are the le ...

left it in 2000, leaving González Macchi without a majority in the legislature. González Macchi became ever more unpopular as the economy sagged further and found passing legislation difficult because few legislators would vote on bills that he pushed for. There was a coup attempt in 2000 and an impeachment attempt in 2001, though both failed. González Macchi was able to hold on to his presidency until the elections of 2003, which

Nicanor Duarte Óscar Nicanor Duarte Frutos (born 11 October 1956) is a Paraguayan politician who served as President of Paraguay from 2003 to 2008. In 2013, President Horacio Cartes appointed Duarte as Ambassador to Argentina, a diplomatic posting he held fro ...

won. He could not run for a full term in this election, as the Constitution bars any sort of reelection for a president even if he serves a partial term. He left office on August 15, 2003. On December 4, 2006, González Macchi was sentenced to eight years in prison for fraud and embezzlement. The sentence was appealed.

References

External links

Biography by CIDOB
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gonzalez Macchi, Luis Angel 1947 births Living people People from Asunción Presidents of Paraguay Paraguayan people of Italian descent Paraguayan people of Spanish descent Paraguayan prisoners and detainees Prisoners and detainees of Paraguay Members of the Chamber of Deputies of Paraguay Presidents of the Senate of Paraguay Colorado Party (Paraguay) politicians 20th-century Paraguayan lawyers Universidad Nacional de Asunción alumni Paraguayan politicians convicted of crimes Heads of government who were later imprisoned Recipients of the Medal of the Oriental Republic of Uruguay