Colorado Party (Paraguay)

History

1887–1989

The party, though founded only in 1887 as an answer to the foundation of the Liberal Party in that same year, already informally existed from the late 1870s onward, as a political group centered around Bernardino Caballero, Cándido Bareiro and José Segundo Decoud.

It formally ruled the country from its foundation until 1904, when it was overthrown in the Revolution of 1904. It became the dominant political force in the country when it rejoined the government in 1947, following the conclusion of the 1947 civil war, during Higinio Moríñigo's rule as president. During this time, the party operated multiple paramilitary wings. From 1947 until 1962, the Colorado Party ruled Paraguay as a one-party state; all other political parties were illegal. In 1962, all national parties were nominally legalized; the Communist Party being deemed "international" remained illegal and its adherents repressed by the Paraguayan state. In practice, however, Paraguay remained a one-party military dictatorship, with the Colorado Party serving as one of the "twin pillars" of Alfredo Stroessner's rule, who had assumed the presidency following a coup in 1954 and lasted until 1989, one of the longest in history by a non-royal leader. During Stroessner's rule, all members of the armed forces and government employees were required to be members of the Colorado Party. Dissident groups within the party were purged, and two (Movimiento Popular Colorado and Asociación Nacional Republicana en el Exilio y la Resistencia) acted as opposition groups in exile until the 1980s. In 1987, there was a rift in the party between a hardliner faction supportive of Stroessner's rule and a traditionalist faction. This rift was primarily over the issue of Stroessner's succession and was a large contributor to the 1989 coup d'état led by General Andrés Rodríguez, himself a traditionalist, which ousted Stroessner from power.

Since 1989

In 2002, the National Union of Ethical Citizens split from the party.

During the 2003 Paraguayan general election, at the legislative elections the party won 35.3% of the popular vote (37 out of 80 seats) in the Chamber of Deputies of Paraguay and 32.9% (16 out of 45 seats) in the Senate. Its candidate at the presidential elections on the same date, Nicanor Duarte, was elected with 37.1% of the popular vote.

On 20 April 2008, for the first time in 61 years, the Colorado Party lost the presidential elections to an opposition candidate from the centre-left, Fernando Lugo, a Roman Catholic bishop, a first on both accounts (free election of an opposition candidate and of a bishop to the office of president in Paraguay). The Colorado Party was represented in these elections by Blanca Ovelar, the first woman to run for the presidency. Fernando Lugo, who had renounced the cloth before the elections so that he could become eligible under Paraguayan law, was formally released from his vows by the Vatican before his inauguration as president on 15 August 2008.

According to Antonio Soljancic, a social scientist at the Autonomous University of Asunción, "in order to get a job, you have to show you are a party member. The problem Paraguay has is that, although Stroessner disappeared from the political map, he left a legacy that no one has tried to bury".

Electoral history

Presidential elections

Note: From 1947 until 1962, the Colorado Party was the sole legal party. Free and fair elections did not take place until 1993.

Vice presidential election

Chamber of Deputies elections

Note: From 1947 until 1962, the Colorado Party was the sole legal party. Free and fair elections did not take place until 1993.

Senate elections

Note: free and fair elections did not take place until 1993.

References

References

1. Ramirez, Jose. (18 March 2021). "Sobre «Mapa Genético ANR», de Carola González Alsina. Tercera parte.".
2. (2022-09-11). ""La ANR se sustenta en el nacionalismo y el patriotismo", expresa Darío Filártiga".
3. (1 May 2023). "Paraguay's Taiwan ties safe as ruling party retains presidency". The Guardian.
4. "Paraguay's Colorados back in office; opposition admits defeat; observers praise election process".
5. Nicas, Jack. (2023-05-01). "Paraguay Voters Elect Conservative Economist as President". [[The New York Times]].
6. (4 October 2022). "ANR vuelve a habilitar su padrón con 2.616.424 afiliados que pueden votar".
7. (February 2018). "Members".
8. "Partidos Miembros".
9. Lambert, Peter. (2000). "A decade of electoral democracy: continuity, change and crisis in Paraguay". Bulletin of Latin American Research.
10. Nickson, Andrew. (2025). "The Legacies of the Stroessner Dictatorship in Paraguay". Current History.
11. "Paraguay: Opposition Parties". [[Library of Congress Country Studies]].
12. "Paraguay: The Twin Pillars of the Stroessner Regime". [[Library of Congress Country Studies]].
13. Smith, James F.. (1989-02-04). "Military Coup Topples Paraguay's Stroessner : Incoming President Promises Democracy, Respect for Rights".
14. "Paraguay: Potential Successors to Stroessner".
15. (19 April 2013). "Horacio Cartes: Millionaire. Criminal. Business titan. Homophobe. The next president of Paraguay?". The Independent.