Former President of Uruguay
Born on July 13, 1941, in Montevideo, he joined Uruguay's National Party in 1958 and graduated in 1961 from the University of the Republic with training in law and social sciences. After Uruguay returned to democracy in 1984, he was elected to senior parliamentary leadership roles. He served as President of Uruguay from March 1990 to March 1995.
During his term, he submitted a tax reform bill to parliament, which was quickly passed with support from other political forces. The value-added/sales tax was raised from 21% to 22%, and income tax and several other taxes were also increased. He encouraged free-market policies, participated in the Brady Plan to ease foreign-debt obligations, and, together with the presidents of Paraguay, Brazil, and Argentina, co-founded Mercosur, which took effect through the 1991 Treaty of Asunción.