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Finding Aid for the Collection of Material about Partido Social Cristiano (Venezuela), 1955-1967
LSC.1235
LSC.1235
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Title: Collection of Material about Partido Social Cristiano
Identifier/Call Number: LSC.1235
Contributing Institution:
UCLA Library Special Collections
Language of Material:
English
Physical Description:
1.5 linear feet
(3 boxes)
Date (inclusive): 1955-1967
Abstract: A collection of political material representing the Venezuelan third-way political party, the Partido Social Cristiano de
Venezuela. The collection documents circulated political materials leading up to the election of its party founder and head,
Rafael Caldero, to the Venezuelan presidential office in 1968. It includes both public propaganda and internal organizational
reports.
Physical Location: Stored off-site at SRLF. All requests to access special collections material must be made in advance using the request button
located on this page.
COLLECTION STORED OFF-SITE AT SRLF: Open for research. All requests to access special collections material must be made in
advance using the request button located on this page.
Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use
Property rights to the physical object belong to the UCLA Library Special Collections. Literary rights, including copyright,
are retained by the creators and their heirs. It is the responsibility of the researcher to determine who holds the copyright
and pursue the copyright owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where The UC Regents do not hold the copyright.
[Identification of item], Collection of Material about Partido Social Cristiano (Venuezuela), (Collection Number 1235). UCLA
Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, UCLA.
Provenance/Source of Acquisition
Gift of Ms. Lois Smith Bupp, July 1979.
Processed by Jesse Erickson in the Center for Primary Research and Training (CFPRT), with assistance from Megan Hahn Fraser,
August 2011.
UCLA Catalog Record ID:
4232774
The Comité de Organización Política Electoral Independiente ("Political Electoral Independent Organization Committee"), or
Copei, otherwise called the Partido Social Cristiano de Venezuela, is a political party in Venezuela. The party's stated 1948
principals call for the repudiation of totalitarianism in the name of democracy, and the goal of encouraging social justice
and national liberty through an embrace of Christian ideals, community ethics, and family values. The party was officially
established on January 13, 1946 by founding member Rafael Caldera. Caldera, who taught sociology and law at various universities
early in his career before becoming a politician, had a failed run for Venezuelan presidency in 1947, but he succeeded in
winning the election in 1968. He was sworn into office in 1969, and this election became the first peaceful transition of
political in Venezuela's post-colonial history. Before Caldera's split from the party, Copei was one of the two dominant Venezuelan
parties for the greater part of the late twentieth century. Luis Herrera Campins was the only other Copei member to preside
over Venezuela. His presidency lasted from 1979 to 1973. Some of the party's more notable leaders include Lorenzo Fernández,
Eduardo Fernández, and Oswaldo Álvarez Paz.
Collection consists mostly of printed, typeset, and mimeographed political materials circulated by the Christian Socialist
Party (Copei) of Venezuela between 1955 and 1967, and includes some items dating back to the party's founding in 1946. The
materials encompass a wide range of political literature such as official party information, position pamphlets, conference
proceedings and transcripts, monographic essays, and political propaganda. Organizational reports also constitute a large
portion of the collection. The collection includes speeches and essays of Rafael Caldera from various publishers. The collection
also has a number of short works from such intellectuals and political figures as Ruben Gonzales, Godfredo Gonzales, Rafael
Fernandez, Carlos Molina Camacho, and Luis Herrera Campins.
The collection has been arranged mostly according to document type and format, maintaining some chronological arrangement
within its sub-divisions.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Caldera, Rafael, 1916-2009 -- Archives.
COPEI (Political party) -- Archives.
Venezuela--Politics and government--1935-1958.
Venezuela--Politics and government--1958-1974.