Danilo Medina

Danilo Medina
Danilo Medina, 2017
53rd President of the Dominican Republic
In office
16 August 2012 – 16 August 2020
Vice PresidentMargarita Cedeño de Fernández
Preceded byLeonel Fernández
Succeeded byLuis Abinader
Secretary of State of the Presidency
In office
16 August 2004 – 8 November 2006
PresidentLeonel Fernández
Preceded bySergio Grullón
Succeeded byCésar Pina Toribio
In office
16 August 1996 – 16 August 1999
PresidentLeonel Fernández
Preceded byRafael Bello Andino
Succeeded byAlejandrina Germán
President of the Chamber of Deputies
In office
16 August 1994 – 16 August 1995
Preceded byNorge Botello
Succeeded byRamón Fadul
President pro tempore of CELAC
In office
28 January 2016 – 26 January 2017
Preceded byRafael Correa
Succeeded bySalvador Sánchez Cerén
Personal details
Born (1951-11-10) 10 November 1951 (age 72)
Bohechío, Dominican Republic
Political partyDominican Liberation Party
SpouseCándida Montilla (m. 1987)
RelationsLucía Medina (sister)
Francisco Caamaño (second-cousin)
Alma materSanto Domingo Institute of Technology
Signature
WebsitePersonal website

Danilo Medina Sánchez (Spanish pronunciation: [daˈnilo meˈðina ˈsantʃes] : born 10 November 1951) is a Dominican politician who was President of the Dominican Republic from 2012 to 2020.

Medina previously served as Chief of Staff to the President of the Dominican Republic from 1996 to 1999 and from 2004 to 2006, and is a member of the Dominican Liberation Party (PLD). He won the May 2012 Dominican presidential election, defeating Hipòlito Mejía with 51% of the votes. On 15 May 2016, Danilo Medina leading a coalition of parties won the 2016 Dominican presidential election, defeating the leader of the opposition and PRM candidate Luis Abinader with 61.8% of the votes, the highest percentage received by a president elected in free elections since 1924 when Horacio Vásquez won the presidency with 69.8% of the ballots—surpassing Juan Bosch's record of 59.5% obtained in 1962, and Leonel Fernández's 57.1% of the votes obtained in 2004.

Medina's second term has been characterized as humane, transparent and goal-driven by its supporters.[1][2] With a penchant for performing weekly visits to impoverished rural sections of the country, President Medina finished his second term with a 65% approval rate.[3] However, during his second term there were attempts to seek a third term which was frustrated after a call from the US Department of State secretary Mike Pompeo.[4]

Medina's family, including two of his brothers, are currently being investigated under allegations of corruption, involving traffic of influence by which they benefited under Medina presidency, obtaining multiple contracts and business with the State. As of November 2020, the investigation process had entered a new phase following the arrests of two of Medina's brothers.[5]

  1. ^ Guerrero, Jose (10 March 2018). "Danilo Medina y su excelente obra de Gobierno" [Danilo Medina and his excellent Government work]. El Nuevo Diario (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 6 March 2022. Retrieved 23 August 2023.
  2. ^ "Danilo Medina y su balance de gobierno" [Danilo Medina and his balance of government]. Revista Mercado (in Spanish). 28 February 2020. Archived from the original on 4 December 2021. Retrieved 23 August 2023.
  3. ^ Guzmán Then, Abel (4 July 2019). "Resaltan popularidad de Danilo Medina, quien se acerca a jóvenes influencers" [Danilo Medina's popularity stands out as he takes an interest in young influencers]. Diario Libre (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 9 June 2022. Retrieved 26 August 2023.
  4. ^ "Secretario de Estado de Estados Unidos advierte a Danilo Medina sobre modificar la Constitución" [U.S. Secretary of State warns Danilo Medina about amending Constitution]. Diario Libre (in Spanish). 11 July 2019. Archived from the original on 26 August 2023. Retrieved 26 August 2023.
  5. ^ "Attorney General arrests two brothers of former Dominican Republic President Danilo Medina". DominicanToday. 29 November 2020. Retrieved 18 December 2020.