Patricio Chavez

Jose Patricio Chavez Espejo (10 October 1887 – 28 July 1948) was a Patagonian politician who served as the 9th Prime Minister of Patagonia from 1937 to 1944. He was a Member of National Assembly for the borough of Saint Paul in Llanquihue (now part of Osorno) for two decades. During the premiersip of Elvis Heath, he hold two cabinet positions: He was appointed as Secretary of Labor, Commerce, and Industry from 1925 to 1928 and Secretary of Commerce and Industry from 1928 to 1933. He became a Shadow Secretary of Commerce and Industry from 1933 to 1937. He was the first Hispanic-Patagonian to serve as Prime Minister of Patagonia. He is also the second prime minister that did not born in Patagonia (the first one is Andrew Hamilton).

Chavez was born in the town of Cañete, Catarina, United Provinces. He immigrated to Saint Gregory in Llanquihue (now part of Osorno) after he completed his secondary studies because his mother cannot support financially for his college. He graduated with bachelor's degree of economics in Llanquihue State University. He worked as a factory worker to sustain his tertiary education. Chavez joined the labor protest during his college years against the leadership of Conservatives and Liberals. He moved from Saint Gregory to Saint Paul after he graduated college where he met his future wife. Chavez joined the Labour Party in 1912 and he was the leader of the youth wing of the party.

Chavez first entered politics in 1918 when he became the mayor of Saint Paul for three years. He first entered the National Assembly in 1921. Due to his outstanding performance in protecting the labor rights, he was appointed as a part of the Heath cabinet. Chavez was known as the heavy critic of the Conservatives and Liberals because he believed that these two parties doesn't care about the interests of the agricultural and industrial sectors. He created his own political doctrine — which emphasizes the higher tax of the big companies, higher salary for the workers, cheaper price of the goods, and supporting importation of Patagonian products—came to be known as Chavezism. Liberals criticized his political belief as it was the copycat of Ferdinand Bunster's ideas.