Agrarian Labor Party

The Agrarian Labor Party (Spanish: "Partido Agrario Laborista", PAL) was a Chilean party supporting the candidacy of Carlos Ibáñez del Campo for the 1952 presidential election. Formed in 1945, it was dissolved in 1958.

It was formed in 1945 from the merger of the Agrarian Party, the Popular Freedom Alliance (an off-shoot of the National Socialist Movement of Chile), the "Movimiento Nacionalista de Chile" and the "Unión Nacionalista" [ Garay, Cristián. 1990. "El Partido Agrario Laborista. 1945-1958". Editorial Andrés Bello. Santiago. ISBN 956-13-0889-3 (pages 133-135) ] . Its foundational program, based on law and order, asserted the needs to "reach public order in the country, on the functional basis that labour has not obligations but also indiscussables civil rights."

The PAL proclaimed at its candidate the former dictator Carlos Ibáñez del Campo in 1951, who had, since his first term, somehow changed political orientation. After his election in 1952, it took part to his first cabinet, along with the Popular Socialist Party formed of dissidents of the Socialist Party. Starting in 1954, the PAL's influence on Ibáñez's cabinet declined, leading to an internal crisis and to the subsequent use of the PAL label by two different organizations.

Legally, the ownership of the PAL label was among the faction opposing Ibáñez, led by the senator Julio von Mühlenbrock. New divisions split the PAL for the 1958 presidential election, with the official sector supporting the candidate of the Christian Democrat Party, Eduardo Frei Montalva, while activists from Cautín and Biobío and dissidents who formed the "Partido Agrario Laborista Recuperacionista" (Recover Agrarian Labor Party) supported the right-wing candidate of Jorge Alessandri, upheld by the United Conservative Party and the Liberal Party. The PAL subsequently dissolved itself in October 1958, merging with the National Party to create the PANAPO ("Partido Nacional Popular", National Popular Party).

The PANAPO itself was dissolved in 1961, a faction joining the Christian Democracy, while another merged with the PADENA ("Partido Democrático Nacional", National Democratic Party) which integrated the left-wing FRAP coalition. Finally, a third tendency attempted to maintain the original unity, without any success.

A group tried to revive the PAL for the 1965 legislative election under the label of "Partido Democracia Agrario Laborista", but did not manage in obtaining any political representation.

Electoral results

*1949 (147 deputies in total) 14 deputies elected 38.742 voices 8,3% of the votes Cruz-Coke, Ricardo. 1984. "Historia electoral de Chile. 1925-1973." Editorial Jurídica de Chile. Santiago]
*1953 (147 deputies in total) 26 deputies elected 118.483 voices 15,2% of the votes
*1957 (147 deputies in total) 10 deputies elected 68.602 voices 7,8% of the votes
*1965 (147 deputies in total) 0 deputies elected 23.634 voices 1.0% of the votes

References

See also

*Agrarian Party
*Presidential Republic Era