José Rafael Abinader Wasaf (; 2 March 1929 – 4 November 2018) was a politician, lawyer and writer from the

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. It shares a Maritime boundary, maritime border with Puerto Rico to the east and ...

and Vice-President of the Dominican Revolutionary Party. He founded the '' Universidad Dominicana O&M'', in which he was rector. Abinader as a businessman was president of Grupo Abicor, and at the time of his death he was worth US$600 million. Jose Rafael Abinader was the son of José S. Abinader, a Lebanese immigrant from Baskinta,

Mount Lebanon Mount Lebanon (, ; , ; ) is a mountain range in Lebanon. It is about long and averages above in elevation, with its peak at . The range provides a typical alpine climate year-round. Mount Lebanon is well-known for its snow-covered mountains, ...

, who arrived to the country in 1898, and Esther Wassaf, born in Monte Cristi to Lebanese parents from Baskinta as well. When he was 11 years old, his family moved from the town of Tamboril to the hamlet of Gurabito (located on the outskirts of

Santiago de los Caballeros Santiago de los Caballeros ("James, son of Zebedee, Saint James of the Knights"), often shortened to Santiago, is the second-largest city in the Dominican Republic and the fourth-largest city in the Caribbean by population. It is the capital of ...

). He studied

law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a science and as the ar ...

, and got a doctorate. He married Rosa S. Corona Caba, and had 3 children, among them the businessman and politician

Luis Abinader Luis Rodolfo Abinader Corona (; born 12 July 1967) is a Dominicans, Dominican economist, businessman, and politician who has served as the 54th president of the Dominican Republic since 2020. He was the Modern Revolutionary Party candidate for ...

. Later, he separated from his wife, without getting divorced, and had a

concubinage Concubinage is an interpersonal relationship, interpersonal and Intimate relationship, sexual relationship between two people in which the couple does not want to, or cannot, enter into a full marriage. Concubinage and marriage are often regarde ...

with Romina C. León (born 1971), who later became Dominican Republic consul to

Valencia Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...

, and had one daughter with her. Abinader was a member of the National Executive Committee () of the Dominican Revolutionary Party starting in 1963. He was Minister of Finance of the Dominican Republic in 1965 and from 1982 to 1984. He founded the Dominican Social Alliance party (ASD; now the Modern Revolutionary Party or PRM); in 1998 he was elected Senator for the Santiago Province in an alliance with the Dominican Revolutionary Party. Abinader was the ASD's presidential candidate for three times: 1982, 1990 and 1996. Thirty-four years after Abinader's first

presidential campaign A political campaign is an organized effort which seeks to influence the decision making progress within a specific group. In democracies, political campaigns often refer to electoral campaigns, by which representatives are chosen or referen ...

, his son

became the presidential candidate of that party (although renamed to the PRM) for the 2016 general election. and the 2020 general election, winning the latter.

Works

* "Ideas económicas y sociales" * "Comentarios acerca del ahorro" * "Bosquejo de un estudio económico" * "La corrupción administrativa en América Latina" * "La sociedad bajo escrutinio" * "Poemas antiguos"

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Abinader, Jose Rafael 1929 births 2018 deaths Finance ministers of the Dominican Republic People from Santiago Province (Dominican Republic) Dominican Republic people of Lebanese descent 20th-century Dominican Republic lawyers Dominican Revolutionary Party politicians Members of the Senate of the Dominican Republic Candidates for President of the Dominican Republic Dominican Republic Roman Catholics