The president of Paraguay (), officially known as the president of the Republic of Paraguay (), is the head of the

executive branch The executive branch is the part of government which executes or enforces the law. Function The scope of executive power varies greatly depending on the political context in which it emerges, and it can change over time in a given country. In ...

of the government of Paraguay, serving as both

head of state A head of state is the public persona of a sovereign state.#Foakes, Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representative of its international persona." The name given to the office of head of sta ...

and

head of government In the Executive (government), executive branch, the head of government is the highest or the second-highest official of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presid ...

according to the

Constitution of Paraguay The Republic of Paraguay is governed under the constitution of 1992, which is the country's sixth since independence from Spain in 1811. Independence The recorded history of Paraguay began in 1516 with the failed expedition of Juan Díaz de S ...

. His honorific title is ''Su Excelencia''. The incumbent president of Paraguay is

Santiago Peña Santiago Peña Palacios (; born 16 November 1978) is a Paraguayan politician and economist who is the 52nd and current president of Paraguay since 2023. In addition to his political career, Peña has served on leadership boards for the Central ...

, who took office on 15 August 2023. The presidential seat is the Palacio de los López, in

Asunción Asunción (, ) is the capital and the largest city of Paraguay. The city stands on the eastern bank of the Paraguay River, almost at the confluence of this river with the Pilcomayo River. The Paraguay River and the Bay of Asunción in the north ...

. The presidential residence is the Mburuvichá Roga, also in Asunción. Once presidents leave office, they are granted by the Constitution of Paraguay the speaking-but-non-voting position of senator for life.

Features of the office

Requirements

Article 228 of the

Constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed. When these pri ...

establishes that the president must be a naturalized citizen, be at least 35 years old, and have full political and civil rights.

Election

Article 230 of the Constitution establishes that the president and the

vice president A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...

must be elected in a joint

ticket Ticket or tickets may refer to: Slips of paper * Lottery ticket * Parking ticket, a ticket confirming that the parking fee was paid (and the time of the parking start) * Toll ticket, a slip of paper used to indicate where vehicles entered a to ...

by a single round of direct vote, in an election taking place between 90 and 120 days before the expiration of the previous presidential term (per Article 229, August 15). Article 229 also establishes that the president serves a single term of 5 years and is forbidden to be re-elected under any circumstances, and that the vice president must resign from their role 6 months before the election, if they decide to run for the presidency. The re-election ban dates back to the aftermath of the Alfredo Stroessner dictatorship, in which

Stroessner Alfredo Stroessner Matiauda (; 3 November 1912 – 16 August 2006) was a Paraguayan politician, army general and military dictator who ruled as the 42nd president of Paraguay from 15 August 1954 until his overthrow in 1989. Known there as '' ...

was re-elected without term limits. An attempt by the Senate to abolish term limits on 1 April 2017 resulted in protests; it was ultimately rejected.

Powers and duties

According to Article 238 of the Constitution, the president's duties are: #Representing the State and direct the general administration of the country. #Comply with and enforce the Constitution and its laws. #Participating in the formation of laws. #Veto laws passed by Congress. #Issue decrees that require the endorsement of the Minister of the branch. #Appoint and remove by itself the ministers of the Executive Branch, the Attorney General of the Republic and the officials of the Public Administration. #The management of the foreign relations of the Republic. #Report to Congress of the efforts carried out by the Executive Branch, as well as report on the general situation of the Republic and plans for the future. #Being the Commander in Chief of the Nation's

Armed Forces A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a ...

. #Pardon or commute sentences imposed by the judges and courts of the Republic, and with a report from the Supreme Court of Justice. #Convene extraordinary sessions of Congress. #Proposing bills to Congress. #Prepare and present the annual project of the General Budget of the Nation

Succession

Article 234 of the Constitution establishes that in the event of impediment or absence of the offices of the President and Vice President, the Presidency of the Republic shall be assumed by, in order of succession, the

President of the Senate President of the Senate is a title often given to the presiding officer of a senate. It corresponds to the Speaker (politics), speaker in some other assemblies. The senate president often ranks high in a jurisdiction's Order of succession, succes ...

, the President of the Chamber of Deputies, and the President of the Supreme Court of Justice.

Residence

The Mburuvicha Róga in

is the

official residence An official is someone who holds an office (function or mandate, regardless of whether it carries an actual working space with it) in an organization or government and participates in the exercise of authority (either their own or that of th ...

of the president. It was first built in 1930. The Palacio de los López is the president's workplace, located in the center of Asunción. It was first built in orders of Paraguay's first president

Carlos Antonio López Carlos Antonio López Ynsfrán (November 4, 1792 – September 10, 1862) was leader of Paraguay from 1841 to 1862. Under his presidency, he undertook a process of economic and political modernization for Paraguay, and ended the isolationist poli ...

in 1844, and was planned to be handed to his son and designated successor,

Francisco Solano López Francisco Solano López Carrillo (24 July 1827 or 1826 – 1 March 1870) was a Paraguay, Paraguayan statesman, Officer (armed forces), military officer and politician who served as President of Paraguay between 1862 and 1870, of which he serve ...

. It was completed in 1867, in the midst of the

Paraguayan War The Paraguayan War (, , ), also known as the War of the Triple Alliance (, , ), was a South American war that lasted from 1864 to 1870. It was fought between Paraguay and the Triple Alliance of Argentina, the Empire of Brazil, and Uruguay. It wa ...

, and thus it was never used by Solano López. The Palace was heavily damaged in the war, and it was not until 1894 that it was finally restored and repaired by Juan Bautista Egusquiza, who was the first president to establish the Palace as his official workplace. File:Mburuvicha Róga Asunción Paraguay.jpg, Mburuvicha Róga, the official residence File:Palacio de López 2023.jpg, Palacio de los López, the official workplace

Latest election

References

External links

Presidency of the Republic of Paraguay
{{DEFAULTSORT:President Of Paraguay Paraguay, President of Presidents of Paraguay Presidents Presidents 1844 establishments in Paraguay