Revolutionary Politics: Mexico
I. Backdrop: from Tumult to “Order & Progress” (1821-1910)
II. The Mexican Revolution (1910-1940)
III. Theories of Revolution and the Mexican Revolution
IV. The PRI & the Mexican “Miracle” (1940-1982)
I. Backdrop: from Tumult to “Order & Progress”
‹Political Instability (1821-76)
• 75 changes in the chief executive in 55 years
– 4 interim or provisional presidents for every 1 president chosen constitutionally
• regional warlords (caudillos) resisted national authority when they were not fighting to
gain control of the government
• bitter conflict over church-state relations
– liberals (led by Juarez) want a secular state
– conservatives back the Catholic Church
• French invasion & occupation (1861-67) defeated militarily, thus paving way for a return
to electoral politics
– Porfirio Díaz is hero of the 1862 victory at Puebla
‹The Porfiriato (1876-1911):
•
authoritarian modernization under Díaz
– establish order via strong-arm tactics
– work to build infrastructure & attract foreign capital in commodity exports
• GDP growth rate is 2x population growth
– railroads expand from 400mi to 15,000mi.
– mining & oil extraction welcomed
– 1883 land law led to massive concentration
• most smallholders lost their land
• 134 million acres of fertile land titled to approximately 300 families
• middle class kept out of politics
– Díaz controlled politics through fraud & repression from 1884 onward
– no cabinet members under 60 by 1910
– his friends grew rich in cabinet & as state governors
• many more landless peasants than ever before
– the end to traditional communal lands (ejidos) left many at brink of starvation and
many more w/ no path out of poverty
• these 2 forces will push Díaz into exile by 1911…
II. The Mexican Revolution (1910-1940)
‹The Civil War (1910-1920)
• 2 revolutions fought simultaneously & violently
– POLITICAL: “no reelection”(Francisco Madero)
– SOCIAL: “land for all”(Emiliano Zapata)
• → social, not socialist
• Zapata wants traditional ejido lands returned
• a series of bloody conflicts led by different leaders in different regions at different times
• roughly 1 in 10 Mexicans died in the conflict
‹Constitution of 1917:
•
•
re: POLITICAL REVOLUTION:
– U.S. system w/o reelection & w/ strong president
re: SOCIAL JUSTICE:
– land reform
– labor laws
– government ownership of natural resources
‹The Rise of Plutarco Calles (1920-34)
• More moderate generals become presidents:
– Alvaro Obregón (1920-24)
– Plutarco Calles (1924-28)
– Obregón assassinated after reelection in 1928
• PNR established in 1929:
– elite, cadre party w/ PEC as “jefe máximo”
• Calles is the key figure behind the PNR candidates
– effort to avoid future assassinations & strife
‹Lázaro Cárdenas(1934-40)
• Mobilized & organized masses (incl. “militia”)
• SOCIOECONOMIC REFORMS:
– land reform
– wage hikes & union rights
– social services
– nationalization of oil & railroads
• MASS PARTY created:
– PNR becomes PRM w/ CNC, CTM, military, & “popular” branches
• w/ diverse support & conflicting policy priorities
• PRESIDENT rules, uses dedazo to pick successor, & steps down
III. Theories of Revolution & the Mexican Revolution
‹Q: Which of these theories applies to this revolution?
IV. The PRI & The Mexican “Miracle” (1940-82)
‹CORPORATISM:
•
•
inclusive cooptation
selective coercion
‹PATRON-CLIENTELISM:
•
the PRI ties access to resources to support for the government
‹EXECUTIVE CENTRALISM:
• President can remove governors
• has majority w/in a weak legislature
• approves all PRI candidates
IV. (cont.)
‹ “PENDULUM” THEORY:
• if you stay in, your ideological wing will get its shot...
Pendulum Politics in Mexico
‹STATE CAPITALISM:
•
•
state control over key resources & sectors along w/ protectionism led several importsubstituting industrialization (ISI) successes:
– 6% average annual GDP growth for 40 years
– low inflation during 1941-1970
NEGATIVE SIDE of Mexican “miracle”:
– rising inequality & continuing absolute poverty