The Dominican Republic is the second largest country in the Carribbean region of the world. The Dominican Republic lies to the east of the Caribbean Islands and is bounded by the Atlantic Ocean in the north and the Caribbean Sea in the south. The Dominican Republic enjoys a representative democracy similar to that in the U.S. The history of the republic dates back to over 5,000 years. Christopher Columbus explored it in 1492. He named the new colony, La Española. Taino Indians were the inhabitants of the island at that time. The capital city of Santo Domingo was founded in 1496. History saw the Spanish ruling the country in the era preceding 1795. The French took over that year. The French lost their possessions to the Haitians who ruled it from 1804 to 1808. Spain gained control of the colony and ruled it until 1821. The country fell to the Haitians again in 1822, and they ruled until 1844. The Spanish empire again took possession of the country from 1861 to1865.
The United States occupied the country between 1916 and 1924. From 1930 to 1961, a military dictator by name Rafael Leónidas Trujillo Molina ruled the country. Joaquín Balaguer, the leader of PRSC (Partido Reformista Social Cristiano), was the president of the country from 1966 to 1978. The country became stable in his regime. He was defeated by Salvador Jorge Blanco of the Dominican Revolutionary Party in 1982. He was re-elected in 1990. Since 1996, competitive presidential elections have been conducted on a regular basis.
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