Hugo de los Reyes Chávez (6 January 1933 – 9 April 2024) was a Venezuelan state politician and the father of the late Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez (1954–2013).

Political career

Chávez was a regional director of education and subsequently rose to prominence as a member of the Social Christian Party COPEI. He was governor of Barinas for three terms from 1998 to 2008.

Personal life

Chávez and his wife, Elena Frías de Chávez, started their careers as local schoolteachers. He dropped out of school after completing the sixth grade, later qualifying to teach. Chávez is best known as the father of President Hugo Chávez (1954–2013). His other sons included: Adán Chávez (born 1952), who succeeded him as governor of Barinas; Anibal José Chávez Frías (1956–2016), who served as mayor of Sabaneta, Barinas, from 2004 to 2016; and Argenis Chávez (born 1958), the governor of Barinas from 2016 to 2021. Chávez died on 9 April 2024, at the age of 91.