Juan Peron

About Juan Peron

The Argentine president who founded the Peronist movement. Peron and his wife Eva Duarte (Evita) created a powerful political movement combining labor rights, nationalism, and personal charisma. Peron was overthrown in 1955 and went into exile. He returned in 1973 and was elected president again, dying in office in 1974. His third wife Isabel Martinez de Peron became president after his death, the first female head of state in the Americas. Peronism remains a dominant force in Argentine politics, claimed by both left and right wing politicians.