Roque Sáenz Peña

Infobox_President | name=Roque Sáenz Peña

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nationality=Argentine
order=17th President of Argentina
term_start=October 12, 1910
term_end=August 9, 1914
predecessor=José Figueroa
successor=Victorino de la Plaza
birth_date=March 19, 1851
birth_place= Buenos Aires
death_date=August 9, 1914
death_place= Buenos Aires
spouse=Rosa González Delgado
party=National Autonomist Party
vicepresident=Victorino de la Plaza
profession=Lawyer

Roque Sáenz Peña Lahitte (March 19, 1851 - 9 August, 1914) was President of Argentina from 12 October 1910 to 9 August 1914, when he died in office.

He was responsible for passing the famous Law 8871, known as "Sáenz Peña Law", which greatly reformed the Argentine electoral system, making the vote secret, universal and compulsory for males. This effectively ended the rule by electoral fraud of the conservative Argentine oligarchy, and paved the way for the rise of the Radical Civic Union in the first free elections of the country. President Roque Sáenz Peña Avenue in Buenos Aires is named after him.

He has also participated in the War of the Pacific (1879-1883), as an officer of the Peruvian Army, and was made prisoner by Chile during six months.