Vice President Nicaragua

The current Political Constitution of January 9, 1987 defines the procedure for the election and functions of the Vice President in Articles 145-149. The Vice-President is elected together with the President of the Republic by a relative majority of votes by universal, equal, direct, free and secret ballot (Article 146). Only a citizen of Nicaragua (Article 147.I) who is at least 25 years old (Article 147.III), who has full civil and political rights (Article 147.II) ^[1], can be elected Vice President.

The Vice-President shall perform the functions entrusted to him by the President of the Republic, and shall replace him at the post in the event of temporary or permanent absence (Article 145) ^{[2] [1]} .

In the case of a temporary absence of the president, the vice president receives his authority only for the period of absence ^[1] . In accordance with article 144 of the 1987 Constitution, at this time he exercises executive power, "is the head of state, government and supreme commander of the defense and security forces of the nation" ^{[2] [1]} .

If the President’s absence is permanent, the Vice President shall act before the President’s constitutional term expires, and the National Assembly shall elect a new Vice President. In the case of a simultaneous absence of the president and vice president, the functions of the head of state are transferred to the chairman of the National Assembly or to the next official in status. If the absence of the vice president is permanent, the National Assembly will elect a new vice president. If both senior officials of the state are permanently absent, the functions of the president will be transferred to the chairman of the National Assembly, and the parliament should elect new president and vice president within 72 hours, who will have to complete the constitutional term of their predecessors (Article 149) ^[1] .

The term of office of the vice president, like the president, is 6 years. This period starts on January 10 of the year following the election. The entire constitutional period of the duties of the Vice President shall be inviolable ^[2] ) ^[1] .

Predecessors

For the first time in this region, the post of vice president was established in the United Provinces of Central America (1823-1840), of which Nicaragua was also a part. The Constitution of the Federation of Central America of November 22, 1824 provided for the post of vice president of the Federation, who was elected by the people and acted as head of state during the absence of the president (Article 107). The vice president was supposed to be a secular person no younger than 30 years old and possess citizenship rights for at least 7 years (Article 110). He was elected for 4 years and could be re-elected for a second term (Art. 111). In the absence of the president and vice-president, the National Congress elected from among its members a senator who temporarily headed the country (Article 108) ^[3] .

Vice-Hefe (1826-1838)

During this period, in Nicaragua itself, the post of vice president corresponded to the position of Deputy Head of State ( Vice-hefe - Vicegefe del Estado ). According to the first Nicaraguan Constitution of April 8, 1826, the vice-hefe was elected together with the Head (Hefe, Head) of the state by the people's assemblies of the districts and departments (Article 47, Article 101) for a term of 4 years without the right to re-election (Article 105). Upon assuming office, both took the oath of allegiance to the Federal Constitution of Central America and their state (Article 152). The Vice-Hefe acted as the Head of State during his absence, exercising executive power (Art. 100). He also assumed executive power if the Head of State assumed command of the armed forces for the period of hostilities (Article 109.5). According to the Constitution, the vice-hefe was also chairing the Council of Representatives (Consejo Representativo) (Article 97). In the event of a temporary absence of the first and second Heads of State, they were replaced by the current chairman of the Council of Representatives; in the event of a permanent absence, an Extraordinary Assembly was convened to elect new rulers of the country (Article 106). Like other officials, the vice-hef was responsible for treason, bribery, failure to fulfill obligations, usurpation of power and criminal offenses (Articles 153-162). According to Article 108, the Head of State, after the expiration of his term of office, was deprived of the right to leave the country for 3 months without the permission of Parliament. In relation to the vice-hefe, this condition was not stipulated ^[4] .

The first vice-hefe of Nicaragua on November 22, 1825 was Juan Arguello, who soon became the head of state and on August 13, 1826 took his place. The last in this position was Joaquin del Cosio, who in 1839 was to take the post of Director (as the highest public office became known) of Nicaragua.

Deputy Senator (1838-1893)

During the Third Civil War, the United Provinces of Central America disintegrated and Nicaragua became an independent state. The new Nicaraguan Constitution, adopted on November 12, 1838, did not provide for a permanent post of deputy head of state. In the absence of the Director, a senator (Senador Sustituto) was elected in his place, who replaced him (Art. 125-129) ^[5] . After 15 years, the Constitution of April 30, 1854 introduced the post of President of Nicaragua (Article 47), but the post of vice president has not yet been established. In the event of his temporary absence, the President could appoint one of the senators in his place, or such a senator was elected by Congress in the event of a permanent absence of the President (Art. 50). The deputy senator could complete the constitutional period of the absent president (Article 52). Article 51 of the Constitution provided for the procedure for appointing a deputy senator and in the absence of Congress, he became the first in the list of senators ^[6] .

The Constitution adopted by the conservatives of August 19, 1858 repeated the provisions of the constitution of 1854, while maintaining the debate on the procedure for replacing the president with one of the senators appointed by the head of state, elected by Congress or the first in the list of senators (Articles 51-52) ^[7] . According to this Constitution, in 1860, the ill president, General Thomas Martinez, transferred the powers of the head of state to Senator General Fernando Chamorro Alfaro for four months.

However, the next time the substitution turned into a crisis of the entire conservative regime. In 1889, Senator Roberto Sakasa and Sarria was appointed interim president instead of the deceased Colonel Evaristo Caraso, and secured re-election to the presidency. This caused discontent among liberals as well as among conservatives, which resulted in the Liberal Revolution of 1893, during which the Constitution of 1858 was repealed.

Vice President

First period (1893 −1896)

The liberal constitution on December 10, 1893 first introduced the post of Vice President (Vicepresidente) of Nicaragua (Article 93). He, like the president, was supposed to be a capable secular person no younger than 25 years old, a native of Nicaragua or another country in Central America (Article 94) and was elected by direct universal suffrage (Article 95) for 4 years. The president who had just completed his constitutional term (art. 96) could not be elected vice-president. In the absence of the President, the Vice-President assumed power until the end of his constitutional period (Article 98) ^[8] . The first vice president was General Anastasio Ortiz , who was appointed to this post by the Constituent Assembly on September 15, 1893. The fate of the first vice president was tragic - he was removed from office on September 1 of the following year, led a rebellion against President Jose Santos Zelaya , was defeated and died in exile in Honduras. His successor, Juan Francisco Baka, was removed from office in 1896 and also joined the armed opposition. A new vice president was not appointed, and the new constitution of 1898 no longer provided for such a post. The Constitution of 1905 did not mention the vice president, according to which the president could appoint one of the three ministers approved by the parliament as acting president (Article 76).

Second period (1910 −1939)

The post of vice president was restored only after the fall of Jose Santos Zelaya. The constitution of April 4, 1910 made him the second most important in the state hierarchy (Article 5), but it did not enter into force. Nevertheless, on August 29 of that year, Adolfo Diaz was appointed vice president. On January 12, 1912, the new Political Constitution was adopted, which also provided for the post of vice president, remaining the second person in the state (Article 84.9.1). He should have all political rights, be a native of Nicaragua, a secular person at least 30 years old (Article 102), and replace the President in his absence (Articles 101, 106). In the case of a permanent absence of the president, and before the vice president entered into his rights, the functions of the head of state were performed by the Minister of the Interior (Article 107). The vice president, like the president, was elected by direct and open universal suffrage (Article 103) by an absolute majority of votes, or was elected by the Congress of the two candidates with the largest number of votes (Article 84.2). Relatives of the president of the republic could not be elected to this post (Article 105). The term of office of the president and vice president was 4 years and began on January 1 (Article 104). If the vice president could not complete the current constitutional term, the issue of succession of power was decided by Congress (Article 106). According to Article 108, the President was deprived of the right to leave the country during his term of office without the permission of the parliament. In relation to the vice president, this condition was not stipulated ^[9] .

This time the position lasted 27 years, and during this period 9 vice presidents were replaced in the country. Of these, three became presidents: Adolfo Diaz, who was elected to this post, Bartolome Martinez, succeeding the dead Diego Chamorro, and Juan Bautista Sacasa, first proclaimed president in exile, and then winning the presidential election.

The Constitution, adopted after General Anastasio Somosa came to power on March 22, 1939, abolished the post of vice president. The question of the temporary replacement of the president or the continuity of power was referred to the Congress of Nicaragua. They did not provide for the post of vice president and the Constitution of 1948 and 1950.

Third Period (1963 −1972)

In September 1956, when Anastasio Somosa died as a result of an assassination attempt, the urgently convened National Congress appointed Colonel Luis Somosa , the president of the Chamber of Deputies, as interim president of Nicaragua. In 1962, completing his presidential term, he carried out constitutional reform, which restored the post of vice president. At the same time, on May 1, 1963, together with the new president, Rene Schick Gutierrez , three vice presidents took over at once. In 1966, after the death of Schick Gutierrez, the number of vice-presidents was reduced to two, while vice-president of Lorenzo Guerrero Gutierrez became president. The third representative of the Somos dynasty, General Anastasio Somosa Debeillet , assuming the presidency on May 1, 1967, also appointed two vice presidents ^[10] .

The next, nine-year, period of existence of the post of vice president ended in 1972. On August 31, 1971, the Nicaraguan Congress repealed the 1950 constitution; on May 1, 1972, President Anastasio Somosa handed over power to the interim Triumvirate and was no longer appointed as vice president. The Constitution of March 14, 1974 did not mention such a post; Article 86 determined that in the event of his absence, the President transferred power to the Minister of the Interior ^[11] . However, this provision of the Constitution was not binding. When Somosa was forced to resign during the 1979 Sandinista Revolution , he handed over power to the President of the Chamber of Deputies, Francisco Urquio, who was one of the vice presidents from 1967-1972.

Introduced by the Sandinists on August 21, 1979, the Organic Statute (Basic Law) abolished the 1974 Constitution and abolished the presidency itself (Article 3) ^[12] . All the powers of the executive and legislative powers up to the adoption of a new political constitution were transferred to the Governing Council of the Government of National Revival and the State Council (Article 10) ^[13] . .

Fourth period (since 1985)

For the third time, the Sandinista Political Constitution of January 9, 1987, which is still in force, reinstated the post of vice president. However, the vice-president, who became the famous writer and politician Sergio Ramirez, was elected long before its adoption - November 6, 1984 and took up his duties on January 10, 1985, along with President Daniel Ortega. Since that day, 9 vice presidents representing various political forces have been replaced in Nicaragua. One of them, Enrique Bolaños, became President of Nicaragua for the period 2002-2007. In 1995-97, for the first time in the history of the country, the vice president was held by a woman, Julia de la Cruz Mena Rivera.

^[ten]

• Krasnov S.N. New Constitution of the Republic of Nicaragua. // Jurisprudence. - M. , 1988. - Vol. Number 6 . - S. 77 - 85 .
• Collection. Sandino's ideological heritage. - M .: Progress, 1982.
• Clemente Guido Martínez. Historia del Poder Ejecutivo de Nicaragua 1527-2007. - Managua: Lea Grupo Editorial., 2007.

• Vicepresidentes de Nicaragua (Spanish) . Vicepresidencia de la República de Nicaragua. Date of treatment January 26, 2014.