Complex sentence: Pedro Santana, although President sporadically during the next decades, actually acted as the country's first dictator, and while he ranched near the Haitian border this eastern province was one of his strongholds.
Split into simpler sentences: Pedro Santana, although President sporadically during the next decades, actually acted as the country's first dictator. While he ranched near the Haitian border, this eastern province was one of his strongholds.