Domingo Mercante
| Domingo A. Mercante | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Governor of Buenos Aires | |
|
In office May 16, 1946 – June 4, 1952 |
|
| Deputy |
Juan Bautista Machado (1946 – 1950) José Luis Passerini (1950 – 1952) |
| Preceded by | Francisco A. Sainz Kelly (de facto) |
| Succeeded by | Carlos V. Aloe |
| Personal details | |
| Born | June 11, 1898 |
| Died | February 21, 1976 (aged 77) |
| Political party | Peronism |
| Spouse(s) | Elena Caporale |
| Religion | Catholic |
Juan Bautista Machado (1946 – 1950)
Domingo Mercante (June 11, 1898 – February 21, 1976) was an Argentine military officer and governor of the province of Buenos Aires. He stood out as one of the initiators of Peronism, organizing labor mobilizations that ended on 17 October 1945 with the release of Juan Domingo Perón.
Domingo Alfredo Mercante was born in the Flores section of Buenos Aires in 1898. His father was a locomotive engineer and senior member of La Fraternidad, the main railway workers' trade union at the time. He completed his secondary education in the National Military College in 1919 and received further training in the Superior War College, making him a career military officer. He married Elena Caporale and was transferred to the chief Argentine Army base, the Campo de Mayo, where he remained from 1924 to 1940. A lieutenant colonel in the Mountain Division, Mercante took part in the 1943 coup d'état against conservative President Ramón Castillo. This opportunity led labor leaders Ángel Borlenghi and Juan Atilio Bramuglia to seek allies in the new regime, which they first found in Mercante - familiar to the rail workers' unions through his father. Mercante became the liaison between labor and the amenable new Labor Minister, a colleague from the Mountain Division, Col. Juan Perón.
This role led to his appointment as comptroller of La Fraternidad and of its rival, the Unión Ferroviaria; as such, he proved central to Perón's achieving political dominance of the regime after October 17, 1945. Imprisoned days earlier by junta leaders wary of his popularity, Perón's fateful release was due greatly to Mercante, who was his chief negotiator and who helped Eva Duarte plan and lead successful mobilizations for his release (Mercante introduced "Evita" to the populist leader in 1944). Promoted to full colonel in December, Mercante was named to the powerful Labor Ministry and accepted Perón's offer of the nomination as his running mate; in January, however, Mercante asked to be dropped from the ticket - asking instead to stand for governor of the paramount Province of Buenos Aires.
...
Wikipedia