Ángel Eduardo Maza (born 18 December 1954) is an

Argentine Argentines, Argentinians or Argentineans are people from Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical, or cultural. For most Argentines, several (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their ...

Justicialist Party The Justicialist Party (, ; abbr. PJ) is a major political party in Argentina, and the largest branch within Peronism. Following the 2023 presidential election, it has been the largest party in the opposition against President Javier Milei. Fo ...

(PJ) politician. He was the governor of La Rioja Province during several terms, until he was ousted by impeachment in 2007. His sister, Ada Maza, is a national senator. Maza was educated at the

National University of Córdoba The National University of Córdoba (), is a public university located in the city of Córdoba, Argentina. Founded in 1613, the university is the oldest in Argentina, the third oldest university of the Americas, with the first university being ...

and graduated as a

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the structure, composition, and History of Earth, history of Earth. Geologists incorporate techniques from physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics, and geography to perform research in the Field research, ...

, later earning a doctorate. He worked in the geological and mining services of the

Government of Argentina The government of Argentina, within the framework of a federal system, is a presidential system, presidential Representative democracy, representative democratic republic. The president of Argentina is both head of state and head of government. ...

and of La Rioja Province.

Political career

From 1985, Maza served as a minister in the provincial government of La Rioja under then governor

Carlos Menem Carlos Saúl Menem (2 July 1930 – 14 February 2021) served as the 50th president of Argentina for ten years, from 1989 to 1999. He identified as Peronism, Peronist, serving as President of the Justicialist Party for 13 years (from 1990 to 200 ...

, continuing until 1992, when Menem, by now

President of Argentina The president of Argentina, officially known as the president of the Argentine Nation, is both head of state and head of government of Argentina. Under Constitution of Argentina, the national constitution, the president is also the Head of go ...

, appointed Maza as minister for mining, a position which he held until 1995. That year he was elected governor of his province, taking office on 9 December. He was re-elected in 1999 and 2003. Maza served as minister and collaborator of former President and La Rioja governor Carlos Menem, whose family dominated local politics. However Maza switched to support the Front for Victory faction of fellow

Peronist Peronism, also known as justicialism, is an Argentine ideology and movement based on the ideas, doctrine and legacy of Juan Perón (1895–1974). It has been an influential movement in 20th- and 21st-century Argentine politics. Since 1946, Pe ...

President

Néstor Kirchner Néstor Carlos Kirchner Ostoić (; 25 February 195027 October 2010) was an Argentine lawyer and politician who served as the president of Argentina from 2003 to 2007. A member of the Justicialist Party, he previously served as Governor of Sa ...

. In 2006, Maza won the primary elections to head the Justicialist Party of La Rioja, defeating the Menemist candidate. This was seen as a final defeat against Carlos Menem by Kirchner.

Impeachment

In mid-2006 a political conflict between Maza and his vice governor Luis Beder Herrera erupted, as the legislature, dominated by supporters of Herrera, heavily modified the budget, restricted certain powers of the governor, and admitted

impeachment Impeachment is a process by which a legislative body or other legally constituted tribunal initiates charges against a public official for misconduct. It may be understood as a unique process involving both political and legal elements. In Eur ...

accusations against Maza. Later, as Maza contradicted a previous agreement with Herrera regarding his willingness to step aside and forfeit re-election, the legislature amended the provincial constitution to forbid re-election. On 13 March 2007 the legislature suspended Maza while impeachment procedures were followed. The impeachment commission resolved to oust Maza on 12 April, charging him with not fulfilling his duties and illegally bypassing the legislative branch in the case of an expropriation operation in 2004.Clarín, 12 April 2007
Destituyeron al suspendido gobernador Ángel Maza
Beder Herrera assumed the governor's office ''

pro tempore ''Pro tempore'' (), abbreviated ''pro tem'' or ''p.t.'', is a Latin phrase which best translates to 'for the time being' in English. This phrase is often used to describe a person who acts as a '' locum tenens'' ('placeholder'). The phrase is ...

'' and announced upcoming elections.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Maza, Angel 1954 births Living people People from La Rioja Province, Argentina National University of Córdoba alumni Argentine geologists Governors of La Rioja Province, Argentina Justicialist Party politicians Government ministers of Argentina Impeached governors removed from office Impeached Argentine officials