Erwin Arturo Frei Bolívar (18 November 1939 – January 2022) was a Chilean politician who was a

senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...

and presidential candidate in the 1999 election.

Life and career

Arturo Frei was born in

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Regi ...

on 18 November 1939, as the son of Arturo Frei Montalva and Marcela Bolívar Le Fort. His uncle was

Eduardo Frei Montalva Eduardo Nicanor Frei Montalva (; 16 January 1911 – 22 January 1982) was a Chileans, Chilean political leader. In his long political career, he was Minister of Public Works, president of his Christian Democratic Party (Chile), Christia ...

, who would become

President of Chile The president of Chile (), officially the president of the Republic of Chile (), is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of Chile. The president is responsible for both Government of Chile, government administration and s ...

in 1964. Frei studied at the ''Colegio de los Sagrados Corazones'' in Concepción and Santiago. Later he studied law at the

Pontifical Catholic University of Chile The Pontifical Catholic University of Chile (UC Chile; ) is a traditional private university based in Santiago, Chile. It is one of the thirteen Catholic universities existing in Chilean university system and one of the two pontifical univ ...

, graduating as a lawyer. As a student, he joined the Christian Democrat Party in 1957. Frei married María Beatriz Ruitort Barrenechea, and they have a son: Arturo Eduardo. For a few years he was assistant professor of tax law, while also working as a lawyer for the

Minister of Finance A ministry of finance is a ministry or other government agency in charge of government finance, fiscal policy, and financial regulation. It is headed by a finance minister, an executive or cabinet position . A ministry of finance's portfolio ...

. At the same time he participated in the 1964 election that was won by his uncle. After the

1973 Chilean coup d'état The 1973 Chilean coup d'état () was a military overthrow of the democratic socialist president of Chile Salvador Allende and his Popular Unity (Chile), Popular Unity coalition government. Allende, who has been described as the first Marxist ...

, he retired from politics and dedicated himself to private practice, and also to running the ''Irene Frei Montalva'' foundation, which provided free daycare for children of poor families. In 1969, he was elected deputy for Concepción, being reelected in 1973, with one of the highest majorities at the national level. After the return of the democracy, Frei was elected senator in 1989 and served as chairman of the Armed Forces Committee where he developed strong links with the military. After Chilean dictator

Augusto Pinochet Augusto José Ramón Pinochet Ugarte (25 November 1915 – 10 December 2006) was a Chilean military officer and politician who was the dictator of Military dictatorship of Chile, Chile from 1973 to 1990. From 1973 to 1981, he was the leader ...

's arrest in the United Kingdom, Frei visited him in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

and his independent presidential campaign to succeed his cousin

Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle Eduardo Alfredo Juan Bernardo Frei Ruiz–Tagle (; born 24 June 1942) is a Chilean politician and civil engineering, civil engineer who served as president of Chile from 1994 to 2000. He was also a Senate of Chile, Senator, fulfilling the role of ...

as President was seen as a maneuver by the general to prevent

Ricardo Lagos Ricardo Froilán Lagos Escobar (; born 2 March 1938) is a Chilean lawyer, economist and social-democratic politician who served as president of Chile from 2000 to 2006. During the 1980s he was a well-known opponent of the Chilean military di ...

from winning the election. The Progressive Union of the Centrist Center presented Frei as their candidate for the 1999 presidential elections, where Frei fared disastrously, gaining only 0.35% of the vote, the lowest percentage of any candidate since the end of the

military dictatorship A military dictatorship, or a military regime, is a type of dictatorship in which Power (social and political), power is held by one or more military officers. Military dictatorships are led by either a single military dictator, known as a Polit ...

. His death was reported on 13 January 2022, at the age of 82.

References

External links

Official presidential campaign website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Frei Bolivar, Arturo 1939 births 2022 deaths Politicians from Santiago, Chile Arturo Frei Chilean people of Swiss descent Chilean Roman Catholics Christian Democratic Party (Chile) politicians Union of the Centrist Center politicians Deputies of the XLVI Legislative Period of the National Congress of Chile Deputies of the XLVII Legislative Period of the National Congress of Chile Senators of the XLVIII Legislative Period of the National Congress of Chile Senators of the XLIX Legislative Period of the National Congress of Chile Candidates for President of Chile Pontifical Catholic University of Chile alumni

Life and career

See also

References

External links