Roque Sáenz Peña

For other uses, see Roque Sáenz Peña (disambiguation).

Roque Sáenz Peña
President of Argentina
In office October 12, 1910 – August 9, 1914
Vice President	Victorino de la Plaza
Preceded by	José Figueroa Alcorta
Succeeded by	Victorino de la Plaza
Personal details
Born	(1851-03-19)March 19, 1851 Buenos Aires
Died	August 9, 1914(1914-08-09) (aged 63) Buenos Aires
Nationality	Argentina
Political party	National Autonomist Party
Spouse(s)	Rosa González Delgado
Profession	Lawyer

Roque Sáenz Peña Lahitte (March 19, 1851 – August 9, 1914) was President of Argentina from 12 October 1910 to 9 August 1914, when he died in office. He was the son of former President Luis Sáenz Peña.

He was responsible for passing Law 8871, known as "Sáenz Peña Law", which greatly reformed the Argentine electoral system, making the vote secret, universal and compulsory for males. This effectively ended the rule by electoral fraud of the conservative Argentine oligarchy, and paved the way for the rise of the Radical Civic Union in the first free elections of the country. President Roque Sáenz Peña Avenue in Buenos Aires is named after him.

He also participated in the War of the Pacific as a lieutenant colonel of the Peruvian Army, and was made prisoner by Chile for six months following the Battle of Arica.

His daughter married Carlos Saavedra Lamas, academic and politician, and the first Latin American Nobel Peace Prize recipient.

Reference

• index.html La presidencia de Roque Sáenz Peña 1910-1914.
• Accidente de Roque Sáenz Peña en 1905 (Lima).
• Discurso del Dr. Roque Sáenz Peña (1898), en Wikilivres.

Political offices
Preceded by José Figueroa	President of Argentina 1910–1914	Succeeded by Victorino de la Plaza