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Getúlio Dornelles Vargas (Portuguese pronunciation: [ʒeˈtuliu doɾˈnɛliz vaɾɡɐs]; April 19, 1882 – August 24, 1954) served as President of Brazil from 1930 to 1945 and from 1951 until his suicide in 1954. Vargas was born in São Borja, Rio Grande do Sul, on April 19, 1883, to Manuel do Nascimento Vargas and Cândida Dornelles Vargas. The scion of a traditional family of "gaúchos", he embarked on a military career at first, then turned to the study of law.
Entering Republican politics, he was elected to the Rio Grande do Sul state legislature and later to the federal Chamber of Deputies, where he became the floor leader for his state's delegation in Congress. He served briefly as Secretary of the Treasury under President Washington Luís from which post he resigned to enter the gubernatorial race in his home state. Once elected Governor of Rio Grande do Sul, he became a leading figure in the opposition, urging the end of electoral corruption through the adoption of the universal and secret ballot. He and his wife Darcy Lima Sarmanho, whom he married in March 1911, had five children.