Liberal Party (Paraguay)

Liberal Party Partido Liberal
Founded	1887
Dissolved	1947
Succeeded by	Radical Liberal Party
Headquarters	Asunción
Ideology	Liberalism
Political position	Centre
Party flag
Politics of Paraguay Political parties Elections

The Liberal Party (Spanish : Partido Liberal), commonly known as the Blue Party (Spanish : Partido Azul), ^[1] was a political party in Paraguay, ruling the country for most of the period between 1904 and 1940.

The party won the 1928 elections, the first fair and free elections in Paraguay history. ^[2]

History

The party was established in 1887 to represent the interests of landowners and middle class merchants. ^[3] The Colorado Party was established in the same year and was dominant until the Liberal Revolution in 1904, after which the Liberal Party remained in government for almost the entire period until 1940.

The party was dissolved by Higinio Morinigo in 1942, ^[4] and by the end of the 1947 revolution the Colorado Party was the only one left in the country. ^[5] The Liberal Party continued to exist abroad and in 1963 the Renewal Group faction returned to the country to become the "official" opposition to the Stroessner regime. ^[5] This caused a split in the party, with the remainder being renamed the Radical Liberal Party.

In the 1963 elections the party's candidate Ernesto Gavilan received 7.7% of the vote, whilst the party won 20 of the 60 seats in the Chamber of Deputies. ^[6] In the Constitutional Assembly elections in 1967 the party won just eight of the 120 seats, finishing third behind the Colorado Party and the Radical Liberal Party. After this defeat the party was reduced to being the third party in the Stroessner regime. They won only three Chamber seats in the 1968 elections. It regained a seat in the 1973 elections, and remained at four seats after the 1978 elections. The 1983 elections saw the party win seven seats, which they retained in the 1988 elections.

After the Stroessner regime was overthrown, support for the party rapidly dwindled. In the 1989 elections the party received just 0.5% of the national vote and failed to win a seat. They failed to regain any seats in the 1993 elections, and did not contest any further elections. ^[4]

Electoral history

Presidential elections

Election date	Party candidate	Votes	%	Result
1963	Ernesto Gavilan	47,750	7.7%	LostN
1968	Ruy Rufinelli	27,965	4.3%	LostN
1973	Carlos Levi Rufinelli	24,611	3.1%	LostN
1978	Fulvio Hugo Celauro	37,059	3.7%	LostN
1983	Fulvio Hugo Celauro	34,010	3.3%	LostN
1988	Carlos Ferreira Ybarra	42,430	3.2%	LostN
1989	Carlos Ferreira Ibarra	4,423	0.38%	LostN
1993	Abraham Zapag Bazas	881	0.08%	LostN

Chamber of Deputies elections

Chamber of Deputies

Election	Votes	%	Seats	+/–
1960	Boycotted		0 / 60
1963	47,750	7.7%	20 / 60	20
1968	27,965	4.3%	3 / 60	17
1973	24,611	3.1%	4 / 60	1
1978	37,059	3.7%	4 / 60
1983	34,010	3.3%	7 / 60	3
1988	42,430	3.2%	7 / 60
1989	5,544	0.5%	0 / 72	7
1993	23,275	2.1%	0 / 80

Senate elections

Senate

Election	Votes	%	Seats	+/–
1968	Not released	Not released	1 / 30	1
1973	24,611	3.1%	2 / 30	1
1978	Not released	Not released	10 / 30	8
1983	Not released	Not released	4 / 30	6
1988	Not released	Not released	4 / 30

References

1. Nohlen, D (2005) Elections in the Americas: A data handbook, Volume II, p413 ISBN   978-0-19-928358-3
2. Lewis, Paul H. (1991), Bethell, Leslie (ed.), "Paraguay since 1930" , The Cambridge History of Latin America: Volume 8: Latin America since 1930: Spanish South America, vol. 8, Cambridge University Press, pp. 233–266, doi:10.1017/chol9780521266529.005, ISBN   978-0-521-26652-9
3. Nohlen, p414
4. Nohlen, p428
5. Nohlen, p415
6. Nohlen, pp433-435