{{Short description|Upper house of Venezuela's legislature}} [[File:LegislativoCentro.jpg|thumb|Palacio Federal Legislativo]] The '''Senate of Venezuela''' was the upper house of Venezuela's legislature under its 1961 constitution. Under the 1999 constitution, the bicameral system was replaced by the unicameral National Assembly of Venezuela. However, since 1999 the former chamber of senators has been used by the National Assembly for solemn meetings and other special functions.
In Venezuela, lifetime Senate seats existed from 1961 to 1999. The former Presidents who held this position were: Rómulo Betancourt (1964–1981), Raúl Leoni (1969–1972), Rafael Caldera (1974-1994 and 1999–2000), Carlos Andrés Pérez (1979–1989, 1989–1993, 1993-1997 and 1999–2000), Luis Herrera Campins (1984–2000) and Jaime Lusinchi (1989–1999).
At the Senate's last election in 1998, it had 54 elected members (48 elected two per state plus 6 additional to get a more proportional result) and 3 lifetime senators.
== Presidents of the Senate == Primary sources:<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TBMWAQAAIAAJ |title = 25 Años de legislación democrática|author1 = Venezuela|year = 1983}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EdYpAQAAMAAJ |title = 5 siglos de historia de Venezuela: Desde 1492 hasta 1996 : Guía para estudiantes|last1 = Sereno|first1 = Herminia Cristina Méndez|date = January 1997}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable" ! colspan="2" |President !Tenure !Party |- | |Carlos R. Travieso |1958-1959 |Independent |- |style="background-color:white" | |Raúl Leoni |1959-1962 |Acción Democrática |- |style="background-color:white" | |Luis Beltrán Prieto Figueroa |1962-1965 |Acción Democrática |- |style="background-color:white" | |Luis Augusto Dubuc |1965-1968 |Acción Democrática |- |style="background-color:green" | |Armando Vegas |1968-1969 |COPEI |- |style="background-color:green" | |José Antonio Pérez Díaz |1969-1974 |COPEI |- |style="background-color:white" | |Gonzalo Barrios |1974-1979 |Acción Democrática |- |style="background-color:green" | |Godofredo González |1979-1984 |COPEI |- |style="background-color:white" | |Reinaldo Leandro Mora |1984-1989 |Acción Democrática |- |style="background-color:white" | |Octavio Lepage |1989-1990 |Acción Democrática |- |style="background-color:white" | |David Morales Bello |1990-1991 |Acción Democrática |- |style="background-color:white" | |Pedro París Montesinos |1991-1993 |Acción Democrática |- |style="background-color:white" | |Octavio Lepage |1993-1994 |Acción Democrática |- |style="background-color:orange" | |Eduardo Gómez Tamayo<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=by4KPAZWokAC |title = Bulletin of the Inter-parliamentary Union|year = 1994}}</ref> |1994-1996 |Movimiento al Socialismo |- |style="background-color:orange" | |Cristóbal Fernández Daló<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=G2GF7MLtfvYC |title = Bulletin of the Inter-parliamentary Union|year = 1995}}</ref> |1996-1998 |Movimiento al Socialismo |- |style="background-color:green" | |Pedro Pablo Aguilar<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GMtD_tvpoF0C |title = Bulletin of the Inter-parliamentary Union|year = 1998}}</ref> |1998-1999 |COPEI |- |style="background-color:{{party color|United Socialist Party of Venezuela}}" | |Luis Alfonso Dávila |1999 |Movimiento V República |- |}
==References== {{reflist}}
==See also== * National Assembly (Venezuela), Unicameral legislature of Venezuela since 2000 * Venezuelan Chamber of Deputies, Lower house of Venezuela 1961-1999
{{National upper houses}} {{Legislative leaders of Venezuela}}
Category:Legislative branch of the Government of Venezuela Category:Defunct upper houses Category:1961 establishments in Venezuela Category:1999 disestablishments in Venezuela
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