César Trelles Lara (born May 3, 1936) is a

Peruvian Peruvians ( es, peruanos) are the citizens of Peru. There were Andean and coastal ancient civilizations like Caral, which inhabited what is now Peruvian territory for several millennia before the Spanish conquest of Peru, Spanish conquest in th ...

dental surgeon and politician who is the current president of the

Peruvian Aprista Party The Peruvian Aprista Party ( es, Partido Aprista Peruano, PAP) () is a Peruvian political party and a member of the Socialist International. The party was founded as the American Popular Revolutionary Alliance (APRA) by Víctor Raúl Haya de l ...

since October 2019. He served as Governor of Piura from 2003 to 2010, and as member of the now abolished Peruvian Chamber of Deputies from 1980 to 1992, representing the constituency of Piura.

Early life and education

César Trelles Lara was born on May 3, 1936, in Morropón District,

Morropón Province The Morropón Province is one of eight provinces of the Piura Region in Peru. The province was created in 1936.Peru Ley n.º 8174 (1936) Its administrative center is in the town of Chulucanas. Boundaries *North Ayabaca Province *East Huanca ...

, Piura Region, Peru. He belonged to the ranks of the

from a very young age. Trelles studied dentistry at the

National University of San Marcos The National University of San Marcos ( es, Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, link=no, UNMSM) is a public research university located in Lima, the capital of Peru. It is considered the most important, recognized and representative educ ...

, graduating in 1960 as a dental surgeon. Likewise, between 1978 and 1982, he taught dentistry at the Universidad Nacional Federico Villarreal, and simultaneously served as National Secretary of Popular Urbanizations within his party.

Political career

Trelles was elected to the lower house of the

Peruvian Congress The Congress of the Republic of Peru ( es, Congreso de la República) is the unicameral body that assumes legislative power in Peru. Congress' composition is established by Chapter I of Title IV of the Constitution of Peru. Congress is compose ...

for Piura in 1980. He was reelected in 1985 and 1990. His last term in office was interrupted by the

self-coup A self-coup, also called autocoup (from the es, autogolpe), is a form of coup d'état in which a nation's head, having come to power through legal means, tries to stay in power through illegal means. The leader may dissolve or render powerless ...

led by president

Alberto Fujimori Alberto Kenya Fujimori Inomoto ( or ; born 28 July 1938) is a Peruvian politician, professor and former engineer who was President of Peru from 28 July 1990 until 22 November 2000. Frequently described as a dictator, * * * * * * he remains a ...

on April 5, 1992. In 2000, he was elected Secretary General of the

in Piura, a position he would later resign to run as a candidate for the first gubernational election in Piura. In November 2002 he was elected Governor of Piura, a position he officially took on January 1, 2003. His tenure was not without criticism, many of which arose from within his party. In November 2004, a former manager in the region denounced to the media that Trelles was filling up positions in the regional government with party members, and that this was leading to great inefficiency in the administration. In July 2006, party congressman José Carrasco Távara emphasized his criticism of Trelles and accepted an internal resolution by his party's electoral body, declaring a nullification of his candidacy for the 2006 regional elections for having pending with the

Peruvian State {{unreferenced, date=January 2014 The Peruvian State, which is conceptually the Peruvian nation legally organized, is the entity that holds the government in the Republic of Peru. The state's structure is defined in the Constitution of Peru approve ...

. Despite this, his re-election prospered amid internal strife, attaining 24.71% of the popular votes, 18,000 votes over his main opponent, Javier Atkins. Subsequently, he unsuccessfully sought his second reelection in the 2010, 2014 and 2018 regional elections. On April 19, 2019, Trelles and a group of party leaders from Piura were involved in a deadly car-accident while traveling to

Lima Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of the central coastal part of ...

to attend the wake of

Alan García Alan Gabriel Ludwig García Pérez (; 23 May 1949 – 17 April 2019) was a Peruvian politician who served as President of Peru for two non-consecutive terms from 1985 to 1990 and from 2006 to 2011. He was the second leader of the Peruvian Apris ...

at the party headquarters. He was taken by helicopter to a Lima hospital in critical condition. The accident left him incapacitated due to his age.

Presidency of the Peruvian Aprista Party (2019–)

On October 27, 2019, Trelles was elected president of the

, defeating former congressman Carlos Roca Cáceres. The leadership election was controversial, amid with accusations of fraud and favoritism towards Trelles' list, which involved former congressman Mauricio Mulder as Chairman of the Political Commission, and current secretary-generals Elías Rodríguez and Benigno Chirinos. His accident was brought to light by the losing side as they suggested that Trelles was not even aware of him running for the position due to his medical condition. Pundits view his election as an intent by Mulder, Rodríguez and Chirinos to continue manipulating the party's leadership, as the presidency is a more honorific position for the late

. Following the

's failure to gain congressional seats in the 2020 parliamentary snap election, Roca Cáceres, criticized the controversial congressional nominations selected by the party's executive committee, blaming the poor results on the current leadership.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Trelles, Cesar 1936 births Living people People from Piura Region National University of San Marcos alumni American Popular Revolutionary Alliance politicians 20th-century dentists Federico Villarreal National University faculty 20th-century Peruvian politicians 21st-century Peruvian politicians Members of the Chamber of Deputies of Peru Governors of regions of Peru