Emilio Ochoa (born Emilio Ochoa y Ochoa; July 4, 1907 – June 27, 2007) was a

Cuban Cuban may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Cuba, a country in the Caribbean * Cubans, people from Cuba, or of Cuban descent ** Cuban exile, a person who left Cuba for political reasons, or a descendant thereof * Cuban citizen, a perso ...

dentist and politician. Believed to be the last living signatory of Cuba's 1940 Constitution, he served as Senator (1940–1948) and became part of the opposition against both Fulgencio Batista and

Fidel Castro Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (; ; 13 August 1926 – 25 November 2016) was a Cuban revolutionary and politician who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, serving as the prime minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976 and president from 1976 to 200 ...

, ultimately going into exile in the 1960s.

Biography

Speaker-designate Marco Rubio with 99-year-old Dr

Dr. Ochoa was one of seven children in a poor family. He studied dentistry in

Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

and graduated in 1937. During this time he became involved in politics and was one of the delegates of the

Partido Auténtico The Cuban Revolutionary Party – Authentic ( es, Partido Revolucionario Cubano – Auténtico, PRC-A), commonly called the Authentic Party ( es, Partido Auténtico, PA), was a political party in Cuba most active between 1933 and 1952. Although th ...

to the constitutional convention which wrote the Cuban Constitution of 1940. Dr. Ochoa helped found two political parties: the Partido Autentico in 1934 and the

Partido Ortodoxo The Party of the Cuban People – Orthodox ( es, Partido del Pueblo Cubano – Ortodoxos, PPC-O), commonly shortened to the Orthodox Party ( es, Partido Ortodoxo), was a Cuban populist political party. It was founded in 1947 by Eduardo Chibás in ...

in 1947. Ochoa was first elected as a Senator in 1940 and served in that office until 1948. He was opposed to Fulgencio Batista, who suspended the Cuban Constitution of 1940 following a coup d'état in 1952. Dr. Ochoa was arrested 32 times because of his political beliefs and went into exile in 1960, following the takeover of the country by

, who had formerly been a member of the Partido Ortodoxo. However, he returned to Cuba in 1961, hoping that Cuba's 1940 Constitution would be reinstituted following the

Bay of Pigs invasion The Bay of Pigs Invasion (, sometimes called ''Invasión de Playa Girón'' or ''Batalla de Playa Girón'' after the Playa Girón) was a failed military landing operation on the southwestern coast of Cuba in 1961 by Cuban exiles, covertly fina ...

. However, the revolutionary government stayed in power and Ochoa left Cuba for good years later. He first went to

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

where he practiced dentistry until 1965 when he went to the United States. During the academic years beginning in fall of 1968 and 1969, Dr. Ochoa taught Spanish at Pender Public High School in Pender Nebraska. He also taught at

Wayne State College Wayne State College is a public college in Wayne, Nebraska. It is part of the Nebraska State College System and enrolls 4,202 students. The college opened as a public normal school in 1910 after the state purchased the private Nebraska Normal Co ...

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the southwe ...

and then at a

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

school in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. In 1971, he moved to Miami and lived in government-subsidized apartment. In the 1980s, he practiced dentistry with the

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

Medical Team that traveled to

Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the cou ...

to help the

Contras The Contras were the various U.S.-backed and funded right-wing rebel groups that were active from 1979 to 1990 in opposition to the Marxist Sandinista Junta of National Reconstruction Government in Nicaragua, which came to power in 1979 fol ...

fighting the

Sandinistas The Sandinista National Liberation Front ( es, Frente Sandinista de Liberación Nacional, FSLN) is a socialist political party in Nicaragua. Its members are called Sandinistas () in both English and Spanish. The party is named after Augusto Cé ...

. In 1933, he married Domitila Nunez (died 1969) and they had two children, Pura America and Carlos Emilio Ochoa Nunez (died 1996). In 1986 he married Martha Herrera. Ochoa died of

cardiac arrest Cardiac arrest is when the heart suddenly and unexpectedly stops beating. It is a medical emergency that, without immediate medical intervention, will result in sudden cardiac death within minutes. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and possib ...

at his home in Miami on June 27, 2007, one week short of his 100th birthday. He is buried at Flagler Memorial Park.

References

* ''The Miami Herald'' "Last Surviving Signer of Cuban Constitution Dies at 99"; June 28, 2007. * ''Directorio Social de la Habana 1948'' (Havana, Cuba: P. Fernandez y Cia, 1948) * ''Libro de Ora de la Sociedad Habanera 1949'' (Havana, Cuba: Editorial Lex, 1949) * ''Libro de Ora de la Sociedad Habanera 1950'' (Havana, Cuba: Editorial Lex, 1950) * ''Libro de Ora de la Sociedad Habanera 1953'' (Havana, Cuba: Editorial Lex, 1953) * ''Anuario de Familias Cubanas 1988'' (Costa Rica: Trejos Hermanos Sucrs.,Inc., 1988) * ''Directorio Internacional de Familias Cubanas – Volumen XI – 1996–1997'' (Miami, Florida, 1997)

External links

Legacy.com: Emilio OchoaEl Último Constituyente: El Desarrollo Político de Emilio "Millo" Ochoa
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ochoa, Emilio 1907 births 2007 deaths People from Holguín Cuban people of Basque descent Partido Auténtico politicians Partido Ortodoxo politicians Cuban senators Cuban exiles Cuban emigrants to the United States People of the Cuban Revolution Exiles of the Cuban Revolution in the United States