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Verhofstadt, Guy Maurice Marie-Louise

(Encyclopedia)Verhofstadt, Guy Maurice Marie-Louise, 1953–, Belgian political leader, prime minister of Belgium (1999–2008). A lawyer and member of the Flemish Party for Freedom and Progress (PVV; from 1991 the...

compulsive gambling

(Encyclopedia)compulsive gambling or pathological gambling, a psychological disorder characterized by a persistent inability to resist the impulse to gamble. The disorder is progressive and typically results in dif...

South Dakota

(Encyclopedia)CE5 South Dakota dəkōˈtə [key], state in the N central United States. It is bordered by North Dakota (N), Minnesota and Iowa (E), Nebraska (S), and Wyoming and Montana (W). ...

Abinader Corona, Luis Rodolfo

(Encyclopedia)Abinader Corona, Luis Rodolfo, 1967–, Dominican political leader. After studying at the Technological Institute of Santo Domingo, Harvard, and Dartmouth, he went into the family hotel business, the ...

dark horse

(Encyclopedia)dark horse, in U.S. politics, a person unexpectedly chosen by a major party as a candidate for public office, especially for the presidency. A presidential dark horse is usually chosen at a party nati...

Russell, Charles Edward

(Encyclopedia)Russell, Charles Edward, 1860–1941, American author, b. Davenport, Iowa. He was a prominent newspaper editor (1894–1902) in New York and Chicago. A member of the Socialist party before World War I...

Streicher, Julius

(Encyclopedia)Streicher, Julius yo͞oˈlyo͝os shtrīˈkhər [key], 1885–1946, German National Socialist (Nazi) leader. An early party member, originally a schoolteacher, he aired his sadistic and anti-Semitic ma...

Hollande, François Gérard Georges

(Encyclopedia)Hollande, François Gérard Georges, 1954–, French lawyer and politician, president of France (2012–17), b. Rouen. He attended the elite National School of Administration (ENA) and Paris Institute...

Howard, Michael

(Encyclopedia)Howard, Michael, 1941–, British politician, leader of the Conservative party (2003–5), b. Llanelli, Wales, as Michael Hecht. The son of immigrants (his father changed the family name after becomin...

Cripps, Sir Stafford

(Encyclopedia)Cripps, Sir Stafford, 1889–1952, British statesman. A brilliant and successful patent and corporation lawyer, he joined the Labour party in 1929 and became solicitor general in 1930, being knighted ...