Carlos Andrés Pérez

Carlos Andrés Pérez was a Venezuelan politician who served as president from 1974 to 1979 and 1989 to 1993. His two administrations spanned an oil-funded expansion and a period of austerity, unrest, and political crisis.

Caracazo: A wave of riots and protests in Venezuela in February 1989, followed by a deadly military crackdown. The unrest erupted soon after Pérez introduced austerity measures in his second presidency.
Nationalization of the Venezuelan oil industry: The 1976 transfer of Venezuela’s oil industry from private companies to state ownership. Pérez’s first government carried out nationalization through the creation of Petróleos de Venezuela.
Acción Democrática: A Venezuelan social-democratic political party founded in 1941 and a major force in the country’s modern politics. Pérez rose through its ranks and won both presidential nominations as its candidate.
Rafael Caldera: A Venezuelan politician who served as president from 1969 to 1974 and again from 1994 to 1999. Caldera succeeded Pérez in 1994 after campaigning against the established parties’ political order.
Venezuelan general election, 1988: The election in which Carlos Andrés Pérez won a second, nonconsecutive presidential term. Pérez returned to office with a large electoral mandate despite the economic crisis.
Venezuelan coup attempts of 1992: Two failed military uprisings against Venezuela’s government in February and November 1992. The coups challenged Pérez amid recession, austerity, and declining confidence in his government.
Petróleos de Venezuela: Venezuela’s state-owned oil company, established in 1975 to manage the nationalized petroleum industry. The company became the central instrument of state control over oil production during his first term.
Rómulo Betancourt: A Venezuelan politician who helped found Acción Democrática and served as president from 1959 to 1964. Betancourt’s party and political network shaped the environment in which Pérez advanced.
Jaime Lusinchi: A Venezuelan politician who served as president from 1984 to 1989, immediately before Pérez’s second term. Lusinchi handed the presidency to Pérez amid a deepening economic crisis.
Venezuelan general election, 1978: The election that brought Luis Herrera Campins to the presidency after Pérez’s first term. Its result marked voters’ rejection of Acción Democrática after Pérez’s oil-funded government.

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Venezuelan oil industryRelated: His government established the state-owned company that took over the industry.