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Porfirio Ricardo José Luis Daniel Oduber Quirós served as President of Costa Rica from 1974 to 1978. Early in his career he worked as a lawyer. In 1945 he went to Canada to study philosophy at MacGill University, graduating with a Master of Arts. In 1948 he returned to Costa Rica and participated in the revolution led by José María Figueres. When their faction won, he wa named Secretary General of the Second Republic of Costa Rica. Some time later he travelled to Paris, where he continued his philosophical studies at the Sorbonne. While in France he married Marjorie Elliot Sypher, daughter of Canadian diplomats.
After returning to Costa Rica, he worked in national politics, working with the Figueres presidency campaign and becoming an ambassador in Europe.
He was elected president in 1974. His government was very socially focused, dealing heavily with working class issues. He worked on raising the quality of life of rural areas and bettered pricing for agricultural products. A lot of attention was given to reforestation and the preservation of natural resources. On the international front, his government was popular amongst the Central American nations. During his term in office, Oduber granted legal status to the communist party (1975) and restored consular relations with Cuba (1977). He sided and worked with Presidents Jimmy Carter and Omar Torrijos to defend Panama's sovereignty.