Pepe Mujica, Uruguay’s ‘Poorest President’ and Latin American Icon, Dies at 89

Montevideo, Uruguay – May 14, 2025 — Tributes have poured in across Latin America and beyond following the death of Jose “Pepe” Mujica, Uruguay’s former president (2010–2015), who passed away on May 13 at the age of 89.

Mujica, a former guerrilla fighter turned beloved statesman, succumbed to esophageal cancer, which he had been battling since May 2024. In January, he revealed the disease had spread and announced he would suspend further treatment.

“With deep sorrow, we announce the passing of our comrade Pepe Mujica. President, activist, guide, and leader. We will miss you greatly, old friend,” Uruguay’s current president Yamandu Orsi wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

Just minutes later, a cyclist riding past Uruguay’s government buildings echoed the sentiment:

“Pepe, eternal!”

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🌱 A President Like No Other

Mujica rose to global fame during his presidency for his austere lifestyle and progressive reforms. He famously donated most of his salary to charity, lived on his modest farm outside Montevideo with his wife — former guerrilla Lucia Topolansky — and a three-legged dog, and drove a beat-up 1987 Volkswagen Beetle.

Often dubbed the “world’s poorest president,” Mujica rejected the label, saying in a 2012 interview:

“I’m not poor. I live with little, just not with excess. That’s austerity.”

His presidency marked a transformative era for Uruguay, a country of 3.4 million, known largely for its football heritage and cattle ranching. Mujica legalized abortion, same-sex marriage, and made Uruguay the first country in the world to legalize recreational cannabis.

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🕊️ Three Days of National Mourning

The Uruguayan government has declared three days of national mourning, and Mujica’s body will lie in state at the Legislative Palace on Wednesday. His Movement of Popular Participation (MPP), the largest faction in the left-wing Broad Front coalition, led memorials with banners reading “Hasta siempre, viejo querido” (“Until forever, old friend”).

World leaders expressed admiration for Mujica’s humility, wisdom, and legacy:

• Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum called him “an example for Latin America and the entire world.”
• Brazil’s Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said Mujica’s “human greatness transcended borders and formed a true song of unity and fraternity for Latin America.”
• Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez remembered him as someone who lived for “a better world.”
• China’s foreign ministry praised him as a “renowned leader” and “good friend of the Chinese people.”

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🔥 From Guerrilla to President

Born in 1935, Mujica’s journey to the presidency was extraordinary. He co-founded the Tupamaros, a Marxist-Leninist guerrilla movement in the 1960s, known for robbing from the rich to aid the poor. Over time, their activities intensified to include kidnappings, bombings, and armed conflict.

Mujica was shot several times, arrested, and during Uruguay’s 1973–1985 dictatorship, spent over 12 years in prison, much of it in solitary confinement, and endured torture.

Freed with the return of democracy, he channeled his activism into politics, co-founding the MPP in 1989. He was elected to Congress in 1995, became a senator in 2000, and served as agriculture minister before winning the presidency in 2009.

As president, he earned praise for reducing poverty, though he faced criticism for rising public spending.

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🌿 Legacy of Humility and Progress

Even after his presidency, Mujica remained active in politics and was instrumental in the 2024 presidential campaign of his protégé, President Yamandu Orsi.

Despite being a lifelong leftist, Mujica wasn’t afraid to criticize authoritarianism within the movement, notably condemning regimes in Venezuela and Nicaragua for “messing things up.”

A humble icon until the end, Mujica reportedly requested to be buried on his farm, beside his dog. He is survived by his wife. The couple had no children.

“He felt and lived like ordinary people,” said Walter Larus, a café waiter in Montevideo who recalled Mujica stopping by for steak shortly after taking office.
“Not like today’s politicians who seem rich.”

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🕯 Farewell to a Revolutionary President

Jose Mujica leaves behind a legacy that defied the trappings of power and embodied a rare blend of radical compassion, political humility, and pragmatic idealism. His life — from prison to presidency — remains a powerful symbol of transformation, resilience, and the enduring quest for social justice.

Hasta siempre, Pepe.