Born in
La Cocha,
Tucumán Province, in 1882, Bravo enrolled at the
University of Buenos Aires, and earned a Law Degree in 1905 after submitting his thesis on
labor legislation. He joined the
Socialist Party while a student, and in 1907, was named editor-in-chief of
La Vanguardia, one of the best-known socialist publications in Argentina, at the time. He also published numerous works of prose, poetry, and non-fiction, from 1909 onwards. Following Socialists' surprise victory in a 1913 Buenos Aires Senate seat race, Bravo was named second on the Socialist
party list for the
City of Buenos Aires delegation to the
Lower House of Congress, and in
1914, was elected to Congress with
cooperative movement leader
Nicolás Repetto and four others from the party. He was re-elected to Congress in 1918, and in 1923, was elected to the
Senate. A member of a minority party in a Congress dominated by the rivalry between the centrist UCR and conservatives, Bravo introduced numerous pieces of legislation, particularly bills advancing labor law reforms and
women's rights. He continued to write while in Congress, publishing poetry as well as political works. The Socialists entered a crisis ahead of the
1928 elections, when, during their 1927 convention, their party standard-bearer, Senator
Juan B. Justo, selected former
University of La Plata Director
José Nicolás Matienzo as his running mate. Justo died suddenly in January 1928, however, leaving Matienzo as the nominee. Viewed by Bravo's supporters as too conservative, the Matienzo pick led to a schism in which the latter ran for President on an Independent Socialist ticket, and Bravo ran on the official one. Matienzo, who received the support of much of the press, garnered far fewer votes; whereas Bravo, who staked his campaign on support from Buenos Aires, received no votes in the
electoral college; however, Matienzo received 3 as a result of support from
San Juan Governor
Federico Cantoni. The election resulted in a debacle for the Socialists, who were distantly outpolled by both UCR leader
Hipólito Yrigoyen, as well as by conservatives. Following the 1930 overthrow of President
Hipólito Yrigoyen, Bravo negotiated a Civil Alliance between the Socialist Party and the
PDP of the more conservative reformist,
Lisandro de la Torre, in 1931. The Alliance became the leading party in opposition to the ruling
Concordance following the deportation of
UCR leader
Marcelo Torcuato de Alvear; massive
voter fraud contributed to Alliance's defeat in the
1931 elections, however. Returned to the Senate by voters in 1932 (following Congress' suspension by a
coup d'état against President Yrigoyen in 1930), Bravo became known for his work on
arms control legislation. He was defeated in 1939, however, and resumed his post as editor-in-chief of
La Vanguardia, as well as of the news and commentary weekly
Argentina Libre. Elections in 1942 returned Bravo to public office, and he served as Congressman from Buenos Aires. His health had deteriorated, however, and he shortly afterwards donated his extensive library to the
University of Tucumán. Mario Bravo died in 1944, at age 61. ==Bibliography==