The Radical Liberal Party ( es, Partido Liberal Radical, PLR) was a

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology ...

Paraguay Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...

. It was the largest legal opposition group during the Stroessner regime, but disappeared soon after he was overthrown.

History

The party was established in 1963 after a split in the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

. After the Renovation Group faction of the Liberal Party returned to Paraguay to become the "official" opposition to the Stroessner regime, the remainder of the party was renamed the Radical Liberal Party. Nohlen, D (2005) ''Elections in the Americas: A data handbook, Volume II'', p415 In 1967 members of the PLR also returned to Paraguay to participate in the Constitutional Assembly elections that year.Nohhlen, p416 They won 29 of the 120 seats, overtaking the Liberal Party to become the largest of the opposition groups. In the 1968 general elections the party won nine of the 30 Senate seats and 16 of the 60 seats in the Chamber of Deputies. The 1973 elections saw the party lose one Senate seat, but retain all 16 in the Chamber. The party did not contest the 1977 Constitutional Assembly elections, and after the constitution was amended to allow Stroessner to remain in power indefinitely, a majority of members left the party to establish the

Authentic Radical Liberal Party The Authentic Radical Liberal Party ( es, Partido Liberal Radical Auténtico or ''PLRA'') is a centrist liberal political party in Paraguay. The party is a full member of Liberal International. The ''liberales'', as they are known, are the le ...

. The party retained its 16 Chamber seats in the 1978 elections, but was reduced to 13 in 1983. After winning 13 seats again in the 1988 elections, the party saw a huge loss of support after Stroessner was overthrown. In the 1989 elections the party's vote share fell from 7.2% to 1.3% and won just a single seat. It did not contest any further elections.Nohlen, p428

Electoral history

Presidential elections

Chamber of Deputies elections

Senate elections

References

{{Authority control Defunct political parties in Paraguay Defunct liberal political parties Liberal parties in South America Political parties established in 1963 Radical parties