José Mujica, the World's 'Poorest' President

Almost 3 years ago, I published a post on Jose Mujica, the President of Uruguay. And with such a role-model for presidents, it's about time to post some more.

It's a common grumble that politicians' lifestyles are far removed from those of their electorate. Not so in Uruguay, where the president, who lives on a ramshackle farm gives away most of his pay.

President Mujica has shunned the luxurious house that the Uruguayan state provides for its leaders and opted to stay at his wife's farmhouse, off a dirt road outside the capital, Montevideo. The president and his wife work the land themselves, growing flowers.

Elected in 2009, Mujica spent the 1960s and 1970s as part of the Uruguayan guerrilla Tupamaros, a leftist armed group inspired by the Cuban revolution. He was shot six times and spent 14 years in jail. Most of his detention was spent in harsh conditions and isolation, until he was freed in 1985 when Uruguay returned to democracy. Those years in jail, Mujica says, helped shape his outlook on life.

"I may appear to be an eccentric old man... But this is a free choice."
Does it surprise you that Mujica's headgear of choice is a beret..?