Aló Presidente

It's been a wild 12 years in power for Hugo Chávez, one of South America's most unforgettable leaders.

JUNE 28, 2011

Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, wearing the national colors, leads a march toward the National Assembly in Caracas on Jan. 23, 2002. The march commemorated the 44th anniversary of the end of Venezuela's last dictatorship under Marcos Pérez Jiménez (1952-1958) and the advent of Venezuelan democracy.

JUAN BARRETO/AFP/Getty Images