Republic

The Chronology of Cuban Politics, 1890s – 1950s and Gallery of Cuban Heads of State, 1902-1959 were created to complement Cuba Project’s seminars on Democracy and Revolution in Cuba: the Republic (February 5, 2016) and The Struggle for Democracy in Cuba: The Republic (October 30, 2015).

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	May 20, 1902	Tomás Estrada Palma	Moderate Party
	Dec 1, 1905	Tomás Estrada Palma (resigns)	Moderate Party
	Sept 28, 1906	William Howard Taft (Provisional Governor)	US Occupation of Cuba
	Oct 13, 1906	Charles Edward Magoon (Provisional Governor)	US Occupation of Cuba
	Jan 28, 1909	José Miguel Gómez	Liberal Party
	May 20, 1913	Mario García Menocal	Conservative Party
	Apr 17, 1921	Alfredo Zayas y Alfonso	Cuban Popular Party-National League
	May 20, 1925	Gerardo Machado	Liberal Party
	Aug 12, 1933	Carlos Manuel de Cespedes y Quesada	ABC Revolutionary Society
	Sept 10, 1933	Ramón Grau San Martín	Authentic Cuban Revolutionary Party
	Jan 15, 1934	Carlos Mendieta (Provisional President)	National Union
	Dec 13, 1935	José Agripino Barnet	National Union
	May 20, 1936	Miguel Mariano Gómez	National Union
	Dec 24, 1936	Federico Laredo Brú	National Union
	July 14, 1940	Fulgencio Batista	Democratic Socialist Coalition
	Oct 10, 1944	Ramón Grau San Martín	Authentic Cuban Revolutionary Party
	Oct 10, 1948	Carlos Prío Socarrás (deposed)	Authentic Cuban Revolutionary Party
	Mar 10, 1952	Fulgencio Batista (coup d’état)	Progressive Action Party
	Jan 3, 1959	Manuel Urrutia Lleó	Independent
	July 18, 1959	Osvaldo Dorticós Torrado	Integrated Revolutionary Organizations, United Party of the Cuban Socialist Revolution, Communist Party of Cuba

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Chronology of Cuban Politics, 1890s-1950s

1892	Organization of the Partido Revolucionario Cubano (PRC); goals are to gain independence and establish republican government.
1895-1898	War for independence. Battle at Havana Harbor [1989] and defeat of Spain.
1898-1902	Cuba under U.S. military rule.
1901	Cuban Constitution drafted at the Constitutional Convention. Consists of 115 articles including the Platt Amendment, which keeps the island under U.S. protection and jurisdiction, and grants the U.S. a permanent naval base at Guantanamo Bay.
1902	Tomás Estrada Palma is elected president (former leader of PRC in exile in the U.S.)
1903	Reciprocity Treaty of 1903 ties the Cuban and U.S. economies.
1904	Congressional elections marred by sporadic violence and voter fraud.
1905	Estrada Palma seeks reelection. Alfredo Zayas and José Miguel Gómez join forces and run against him. Elections held December 1st indicate voter fraud. Zayas and Gómez drop out in protest and Estrada wins the election.
1906-1909	Uprisings against the elections lead President Estrada Palma to resign. With no government U.S. forced to intervene, leaving Charles Edward Magoon in charge until January 1909.
1907	Afro-Cubans agitated by a lack of compensation from the Independence War form The Independent Party of Color, the first political party based on race.
1908	Municipal elections. The Conservatives, formerly under Estrada Palma’s leadership, are successful in 28 municipalities. The Historic Liberals, under the leadership of José Miguel Gómez, win 35 municipalities and the Liberals, under the leadership of Alfredo Zayas, win 18. After uniting the Historic Liberal Party and the Liberal Party, Gomez and Zayas win the presidency and vice presidency respectively.
1909	Magoon transfers power to newly elected President Gómez and troops are withdrawn on March 31.
1910	The Independent Party of Color grows in numbers and importance. The “Morua Law” forbids the creation of political parties based on race or color.
1912	Approximately 6,000 Blacks rebel causing U.S. intervention. Gómez supports presidential nominee Mario García Menocal, a Conservative associated with American sugar interests. Menocal defeats the Liberals.
1913	President Menocal is sworn into office.
1914	Municipal elections with different parties now represented in government. Introduction of the Partido Liberal Unionista (PLU) and the Partido Liberal Provincial (PLP).
1916	President Menocal wins reelection.
1917	Ex-president Gómez and the Liberal party rebel after voter fraud is revealed. The Chambelona Uprising forces supplementary elections and Conservatives win.
1918	Partido Liberal Unionista, Partido Liberal Independiente and Partido Liberal Provincial gain seats in the legislature during midterm elections. Women’s suffrage becomes a rallying point for feminists and politicians from the Liberal and Popular parties.
1919	American General Crowder back in Cuba to amend laws and enforce voting practices.
1920	President Menocal hands presidency over to ally, Alfredo Zayas causing the U.S. to intervene.
1921	General Crowder returns to Cuba and holds a meeting with Zayas, Gómez and Menocal. Not able to appease all three groups, the U.S. recognizes Zayas as President.
1922	Midterm elections; Crowder loses faith in Zayas’ cabinet members.
1923	Different sections of society organize to denounce the government. The first Cuban National Women’s Congress held in Havana on April 1st.
1924	Zayas loses support of the Conservatives as they choose ex-President Menocal. Alfredo Zayas supports Liberal nominee, Gerardo Machado, who wins on a platform of nationalism, transparent governance and cooperation between major political parties.
1925	The Partido Communista de Cuba (PCC) forms and is quickly outlawed.
1926	Midterm elections show the dominance of the Liberal, Conservative and the Popular Party.
1927	Machado extends his presidential term.
1928	Constitutional reforms allow Machado to stay in power until 1935. His “Ley de Emergencia Electoral” prohibits presidential nominations from parties other than the main three. He is the chosen nominee of all three.
1929	Arrest of many protestors and death of a student leader; growing opposition.
1930	State of siege declared.
1931	Violence from various political groups trying to create conditions for revolution deepen economic crisis; many people unemployed. Machado suspends several news sources.
1932	Violence increases; new groups sabotage and kill government officials. The police respond with harsh repressive measures.
1933	The Revolution of 1933. Political and economic stress contribute to daily bombings, kidnappings, urban and rural violence. Machado steps down. Céspedes becomes provisional president. Céspedes restores the Constitution of 1901, removing the alterations Machado added. A “Sergeant’s Revolt” planned by Fulgencio Batista takes control of the island’s military forces. Student groups select Ramón Grau San Martín as provisional president. This administration abrogates the Platt Amendment, encourages unionizing, grants female suffrage, redistributes land and nationalizes the labor force.
1934	Grau San Martín resigns in January 1934 and Mendieta becomes president. Elections are scheduled for the winter. The US abandons its right to intervene in Cuba’s internal affairs, revises Cuba’s sugar quota and changes tariffs to favor Cuba.
1935	The Mendieta government collapses and Secretary of State José Barnet becomes provisional President. Batista controls government through him.
1936	Miguel Mariano Gómez is elected President and his party wins a majority of Congressional seats. Later Gómez is overthrown and Federico Laredo Brú becomes president.
1937	Different factions of the opposing Auténtico party unite.
1938	The Communist Party becomes legal.
1940	The Constitutional Assembly of 1939 features two coalitions vying for power. Controlled by Batista, one includes the Democratic Socialists, Unión Nacionalista, and Liberal Party. The other one, PRC (A), or Auténticos, includes the ABC, Menocal supporters and other minority parties. The latter “favored government control of the sugar industry, establishment of a Tribunal of Accounts and a National Bank, a budget law, tax reforms, a civil service system, creation of a merchant marine, the expansion of education…” (Gil 378). The Constitution of 1940 acknowledges universal suffrage, limits presidential power, strict term limits, grants political and civil liberties.
1942	Batista defeats opposition bloc in partial elections, increasing his majority in Congress.
1944	Civilian Ramón Grau San Martín, of the PRC (A), elected president.
1945	Auténticos establish a policy of stabilization of sugar prices and distribution of wealth. Sought to reduce the dangers of a one-crop economy, gave impulse to a social security system, and financed a vast educational program (Gil 378).
1946	Auténtico Party wins majority of both Houses. Accused of corruption and dishonesty leads to the formation of the Party of the Cuban People (Orthodox). “The break with the Auténticos was justified by three factors: first, corruption; second, slowness in the reform program; and third, the belief that the party leader, Grau San Martín, intended to handpick his successor” (Gil 341).
1947	Alliance between the Auténticos and the Communists is broken.
1948	Carlos Prío Socarrás wins the presidential election as the Auténtico candidate.
1950	The Ortodoxos, led by Senator Chibás, argue for clean and efficient government.
1951	Chibás commits suicide but many say would have won the 1952 election.
1952	Batista launches a coup and dissolves all political parties.
1953	Student and urban guerilla organizations revolt against the Batista regime. Leaders of the Auténticos and the Ortodoxos sign The Montreal Charter, which specified cooperation and restoration of the 1940 Constitution (Ameringer 335).
1954	Batista runs for office unopposed.
1955	Political groups and leaders opposed to Batista form the Sociedad de Amigos.
1956	Violence between students and the police prompts Batista to close University of Havana. Fidel Castro lands in eastern Cuba and wages a guerrilla war.
1958	Rebel forces have control of the island. Batista flees on December 31st.
1959	Castro becomes the new leader of Cuba.