Ion Mihalache

Ion Mihalache (3 March 1882, Topoloveni – probably 1953) was a Romanian politician and the founder and leader of the Peasants' Party.

Mihalache founded in the Romanian Old Kingdom the Peasants' Party in 1918. His party had much success in the elections of November 1919, forming a coalition government with the Transylvanian National Party.

He proposed some land reforms which were not liked by king Ferdinand of Romania and the conservative factions and this lead to the royal coup d'état of March 1920 and to the instauration of conservative general Alexandru Averescu as Prime Minister of Romania.

Mihalache became vice-president of the National Peasants' Party, which resulted from the fusion of the Peasants' Party and of the National Party. He served as Minister of Agriculture in the Iuliu Maniu's government of 1928-1930, then between 1930 and 1933 he was the Ministre of Internal Affairs.

He did not participated in the royal dictatorship of Charles II of Romania and during World War II he opposed Ion Antonescu by joining a underground liberation movement.

The Communist regime which was installed by the Red Army in 1945 saw him with Iuliu Maniu trying to make a Romanian government in exile, but he was captured and sent to prison for political reasons, where he died.