Itamar Augusto Cautiero Franco

Itamar Augusto Cautiero Franco graduated with a degree in civil engineering from the Federal University of Juiz de Fora (1954). In 1958, he unsuccessfully contested municipal elections as a candidate of the Brazilian Labor Party (Partido Trabalhista Brasileiro). In 1962 he was again defeated as a candidate for vice prefect of his native city, Juiz de Fora. The same year, Franco received a job in the prefecture. In 1967 he was elected prefect (mayor) of Juiz de Fora on the list of the Brazilian Democratic Movement (Movimento Democrático Brasileiro). He served the first term in 1967-1971 and after a brief interruption again chaired the prefecture of Juiz de Fora (1973-1974). In 1974 Franco resigned the office of prefect to be elected (1974) a senator for Minas Gerais (served in 1975-1987). A founding member of the Brazilian Democratic Movement Party (Partido do Movimento Democrático Brasileiro, PMDB), Franco campaigned as a PMDB candidate and was elected (1982) senator again. He had to break with PMDB (1986), when the party supported a different candidate at the election of Minas Gerais governor. Supported by the Democratic Progress Movement Coalition (Coligação Movimento Democrático Progressista) Franco lost the election to Newton Cardoso. In 1989 Franco was elected Vice President of the Republic on the ticket with Fernando Afonso Collor de Mello, leader of the National Reconstruction Party (Partido da Reconstrução Nacional, PRN). In the runoff election Collor and Franco emerged victorious and took their offices on 15 Mar 1990. Franco frequently disagreed with the president over a general course of the administration and ultimately quit PRN on 5 May 1992. When Collor was impeached and temporarily suspended from his office by the Chamber of Deputies on a charge of corruption, Franco assumed the presidency on 2 Oct 1992. He continued as a caretaker for almost three months, until Collor resigned the presidency and Franco was sworn in (29 Dec 1992) as the new head of state. The first year of Franco's presidency saw frequent changes in the cabinet membership. Four finance ministers were replaced until Fernando Henrique Cardoso took over the ministry (21 May 1993) and announced in December a definitive plan for economic stabilization. In a referendum of 21 Apr 1993, the voters supported the presidential form of government and rejected the plans for a restoration of the monarchy. Cardoso's skillful management of national finances and introduction of a new currency, the real, effectively reduced the inflation. In 1993-1994 the country was plagued by a series of corruption scandals involving political establishment. At the peak of ongoing scandals the president offered his resignation (18 Oct 1993), which was rejected by the Congress. Franco did not run for the presidency in the October 1994 elections and transferred the office to Cardoso on 1 Jan 1995. He was named ambassador to Portugal (1995-1996) and then served as a Brazilian representative in the Organization of American States in Washington, D.C. (1996-1998). In 1998 Franco was elected governor of Minas Gerais (1 Jan 1999 - 1 Jan 2003) on the ticket of PMDB.