Herizo Jossicher Razafimahaleo (February 21, 1955Curriculum Vitae
at Herizo.org . – July 25, 2008
''Madagascar Tribune'', July 26, 2008 .) was a politician in

Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f ...

. He ran for President three times, and he served as Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister from 1997 to 1998. As a youth, Herizo Razafimahaleo was a prominent Malagasy

swimmer Swimming is an individual or team racing sport that requires the use of one's entire body to move through water. The sport takes place in pools or open water (e.g., in a sea or lake). Competitive swimming is one of the most popular Olympic ...

and set his country's record for being the longest uninterrupted breaststroke

champion A champion (from the late Latin ''campio'') is the victor in a challenge, Competition, contest or competition. There can be a territorial pyramid of championships, e.g. local, regional/provincial/state, national, continental and world champi ...

. He attended the University of Antananarivo and later the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

Ross School of Business The University of Michigan Ross School of Business (branded as Michigan Ross) is the business school of the University of Michigan, a Public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The school was originally established ...

where he obtained his

MBA A Master of Business Administration (MBA) is a professional degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration; elective courses may allow further study in a particular a ...

(later on in his life he also attended the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

and

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher lear ...

John F. Kennedy School of Government The John F. Kennedy School of Government, commonly referred to as Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), is the school of public policy of Harvard University, a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Harvard Kennedy School offers master's de ...

). Razafimahaleo was economic adviser to President

Didier Ratsiraka Didier Ignace Ratsiraka (; 4 November 1936 – 28 March 2021) was a Malagasy politician and naval officer who was the third president of Madagascar from 1975 to 1993 and the fifth from 1997 to 2002. At the time of his death, he was the longest ...

from 1989 to 1991. He founded the LEADER Fanilo party in 1992 and was elected to the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repr ...

in June 1993 from

Ambositra Ambositra is a city (commune urbaine) in central Madagascar. Ambositra is the capital of the Amoron'i Mania region, and of Ambositra District. Geography It is situated at the RN 7 (Antsirabe - Tulear) and the RN 41 to Fandriana. It is situa ...

. Razafimahaleo was named Minister of Industrial Promotion and Tourism in the government of Prime Minister Francisque Ravony in August 1993, but resigned from this position in July 1994."LEADER FANILO sous la IIIe République" (timeline)
, Herizo.org . He founded the newspaper ''L'Express de Madagascar'' in 1995."Principaux jalons du parcours de Herizo RAZAFIMAHALEO"
, Herizo.org . Razafimahaleo was the LEADER-Fanilo candidate in the November 1996 presidential election, winning 15.13% of the vote and taking third place.Elections in Madagascar
African Elections Database. On December 28 he announced his support for Ratsiraka in the second round of the election, which was held on the next day; Razafimahaleo's support has been considered crucial in enabling Ratsiraka's narrow victory over former president

Albert Zafy Albert Zafy (1 May 1927 – 13 October 2017) was a Malagasy politician and educator who served as the fourth president of Madagascar from 1993 to 1996. In 1988, he founded the National Union for Democracy and Development (UNDD). In 1992, Zafy s ...

."Presidential elections in Madagascar, Herizo Razafimahaleo’s third try"
African Press Agency, September 2, 2006. Ratsiraka took office as president on February 9, 1997, and in the new government of Prime Minister

Pascal Rakotomavo Pascal Joseph Rakotomavo (1 April 1934Biographical page at Antananarivo Provin ...

, named on February 27, Razafimahaleo became Deputy Prime Minister in charge of Foreign Affairs; he was one of three deputy prime ministers. He was not included in the subsequent government of Prime Minister Tantely Andrianarivo, formed in July 1998. Razafimahaleo was again a candidate in the December 2001 presidential election, winning about 4% of the vote and taking fourth place. Amidst the crisis that followed this election, with Ratsiraka and his main challenger,

Marc Ravalomanana Marc Ravalomanana (; born 12 December 1949) is a Malagasy politician who served as the sixth List of presidents of Madagascar, president of Madagascar from 2002 to 2009. Born into a farming Merina people, Merina family in Imerinkasinina, near th ...

, disputing the election results, Razafimahaleo resigned as National President of LEADER-Fanilo and withdrew from politics on May 18, 2002. He began a return to active politics with a press conference on January 24, 2006, in which he was sharply critical of Ravalomanana. He officially announced on September 1, 2006, that he would run for president again in the December 2006 election. In the days prior to the election some observers considered him the main challenger to Ravalomanana, the incumbent president. Razafimahaleo took 9.03% of the vote and came in fourth place according to official results. His best result was in

Antsiranana Province Antsiranana is a former province of Madagascar with an area of 43,406 km2. It had a population of 1,188,425 (July 2001). Its capital was Antsiranana. A diversity of ethnic groups are found in the province, including Anjoaty, Sakalava, Antakar ...

, where he won 22.44% of the vote, followed by

Fianarantsoa Province Fianarantsoa Province is a former province of Madagascar. It has an area of 103,272 km2 and population of 3,366,291 (July 2001 estimate). Its capital was Fianarantsoa. The province along with the 5 other was abolished in 2007 in favour of cre ...

, where he won 16.37%. Razafimahaleo opposed the constitutional changes proposed in the 2007 constitutional referendum and participated in a national committee that campaigned for a "no" vote as a coordinator of action. Razafimahaleo died on 25 July 2008 in

Antananarivo Antananarivo (Malagasy language, Malagasy: ; French language, French: ''Tananarive'', ), also known by its colonial shorthand form Tana (), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Madagascar. The administrative area of the city, known ...

after being hospitalized due to

renal failure Kidney failure, also known as renal failure or end-stage renal disease (ESRD), is a medical condition in which the kidneys can no longer adequately filter waste products from the blood, functioning at less than 15% of normal levels. Kidney fa ...

that led to

dehydration In physiology, dehydration is a lack of total body water that disrupts metabolic processes. It occurs when free water loss exceeds intake, often resulting from excessive sweating, health conditions, or inadequate consumption of water. Mild deh ...

. He suffered four heart attacks and died in the hospital. His family declined any posthumous honors for Razafimahaleo from the government. His body was taken from Antananarivo to Ambositra on July 29 for his funeral there on July 30. Herizo Razafimahaleo leaves a formidable legacy behind him and is hailed as the father of

political Politics () is the set of activities that are associated with decision-making, making decisions in social group, groups, or other forms of power (social and political), power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of Social sta ...

ethics Ethics is the philosophy, philosophical study of Morality, moral phenomena. Also called moral philosophy, it investigates Normativity, normative questions about what people ought to do or which behavior is morally right. Its main branches inclu ...

in Madagascar."vibrant hommage du pays natal"
Orange Madagascar, July 31, 2008.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Razafimahaleo, Herizo 1955 births 2008 deaths Betsileo people Economic Liberalism and Democratic Action for National Recovery politicians Members of the National Assembly (Madagascar) Ross School of Business alumni Harvard Kennedy School alumni Ministers of foreign affairs of Madagascar