Arnoldo Martínez Verdugo (12 January 1925 – 24 May 2013) was a Mexican

socialist Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...

politician and democracy activist. A long-standing leader of the

Mexican Communist Party The Mexican Communist Party (, PCM) was a communist party in Mexico. It was founded in 1917 as the Socialist Workers' Party (, PSO) by Manabendra Nath Roy, a left-wing Indian revolutionary. The PSO changed its name to the ''Mexican Communist ...

and the

Unified Socialist Party of Mexico The Unified Socialist Party of Mexico (, PSUM) was a socialist political party in Mexico. It later became the Mexican Socialist Party () in 1988. History The PSUM was founded in November 1981 by the merger of four socialist parties: *The Mexican ...

(PSUM), Martínez promoted political self-criticism, refused to support regional

guerrilla Guerrilla warfare is a form of unconventional warfare in which small groups of irregular military, such as rebels, Partisan (military), partisans, paramilitary personnel or armed civilians, which may include Children in the military, recruite ...

movements, condemned the

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

invasion of

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

and promoted the unification of the political left.

Biography

Martínez was born in Pericos, a small town in

Mocorito, Sinaloa Mocorito () (From Cahita, meaning "place where people speak macuri (dialect of Mayo)" or "place of the dead") is the municipality seat of the Municipality of Mocorito in the Mexican state of Sinaloa. The city reported 5,926 inhabitants in t ...

, into a family of farmers. His parents were Yssac Martínez Ortega and Silvina Verdugo Verdugo. He started working in his teens and in 1943 he decided to move to

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

to take a job at the San Rafael Paper Co. and undertake studies in painting at National School of Painting and Sculpture (1944–46). In 1946 he joined Mexican Communist Party and soon started directing its Communist Youth's organizing committee (1948–50). After some years rising through its hierarchy, including spending some time in the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

studying Communism, he joined a faction that succeeded in overthrowing the long-time leadership of

Stalinist Stalinism (, ) is the totalitarian means of governing and Marxist–Leninist policies implemented in the Soviet Union (USSR) from 1927 to 1953 by dictator Joseph Stalin and in Soviet satellite states between 1944 and 1953. Stalinism in ...

, who had led the party from 1940 to 1960. He was chosen as General Secretary of the Mexican Communist Party's Central Committee in 1963 and remained in the post until 1981. He was one of the protagonists of the political negotiations that in 1978 resulted in the first electoral reform that permitted the PCM to obtain conditional registration, allowing the party to participate in the 1979 election, when it won 18 seats and one of its deputies served as Parliamentary Coordinator. In 1981, he directed the dissolution of the Mexican Communist Party and its fusion with other leftist forces, resulting in the

, which nominated him for the presidency in the 1982 elections. Before this, Martínez had been abducted and freed after the payment of a ransom. He served twice in the

Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourb ...

as a plurinominal legislator; first representing the Communist Party of Mexico (1979–82) and later representing the Unified Socialist Party of Mexico (1985–88). Subsequently, he joined with the forces of

Cuauhtémoc Cárdenas Solórzano Cuauhtémoc (, ), also known as Cuauhtemotzín, Guatimozín, or Guatémoc, was the Aztec ruler (''tlatoani'') of Tenochtitlan from 1520 to 1521, and the last Aztec Emperor. The name Cuauhtemōc means "one who has descended like an eagle", and ...

in his campaign for the presidency in the 1988 elections. Martínez was a member of the

Party of the Democratic Revolution The Party of the Democratic Revolution (, , PRD) is a state-level social democracy, social democratic political party in Mexico (previously national, until 2024). The PRD originated from the Democratic Current, a political faction formed in 198 ...

(PRD), a political institution he helped to found and finance in its early years. He was elected its emeritus advisor but his title was removed on 29 November 2009 on strategic grounds, as the result of political struggles inside the party. This maneuver was called "an act of moral amnesia, of disloyalty to its origins, of shabbiness" by Mexico's National Journalism Prize laureate

Miguel Ángel Granados Chapa Miguel Ángel Granados Chapa (March 10, 1941 – October 16, 2011) was a Mexican journalist writing for the ''Reforma'' newspaper. He was the recipient of the Premio Nacional de Periodismo in 2004 for his career, and again in 2006 for his column. ...

.cfr.

in , ''

Reforma Reforma, the Spanish word meaning reform, has the following meanings: Companies and organizations * ''Reforma'' (newspaper), a daily published in Mexico City :* Grupo Reforma, parent company of the newspaper :* Agencia Reforma, news wire agenc ...

'', p. 19 (1 December 2008). Quoted in Unzueta, 2008.

In Popular Media

In the

alternate history Alternate history (also referred to as alternative history, allohistory, althist, or simply A.H.) is a subgenre of speculative fiction in which one or more historical events have occurred but are resolved differently than in actual history. As ...

of the

Apple TV+ Apple TV+ is an American subscription over-the-top streaming service owned by Apple. The service launched on November 1, 2019, and it offers a selection of original production film and television series called Apple Originals. The service w ...

show '' For All Mankind'', Martínez was elected President of Mexico on 17 April 1986.

Publications

* (in ) Mexico City: , 1971. * (The Mexican Communist Party and the Political Reform) Mexico City: , 1977. * (Political crisis and Communist alternative) Mexico City: , 1979. * (The Creation of the Unified Socialist Party of Mexico) Mexico City: , 1982. * (March for Democracy) Mexico City: , 1982. * (The Socialist Project) Mexico City: , 1982. * (History of Communism in Mexico), Mexico City: Grijalbo, 1985.

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Martinez Verdugo, Arnoldo 1925 births Party of the Democratic Revolution politicians Politicians from Sinaloa Candidates in the 1982 Mexican presidential election Mexican democracy activists Mexican Communist Party politicians Unified Socialist Party of Mexico politicians Mexican communists 2013 deaths Politicians from Mexico City 20th-century Mexican politicians Deputies of the LI Legislature of Mexico Deputies of the LIII Legislature of Mexico Deputies of the LVI Legislature of Mexico