The National Party ( es, Partido Nacional, PN), also known as the White Party ( es, Partido Blanco), is a major

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 ideological or p ...

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

. It was founded in 1836 by

Manuel Oribe Manuel Ceferino Oribe y Viana (August 26, 1792 – November 12, 1857) was the 2nd Constitutional president of Uruguay and founder of Uruguay's National Party, the oldest Uruguayan political party and considered one of the two Uruguayan "tr ...

, making it the country's oldest active political party, and together with the Colorado Party, its origin dates back to the time of the creation of the Uruguayan State. Positioned on the centre-right of the political spectrum, the National Party is ideologically liberal,

nationalist Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: Th ...

, Pan-Americanist and

humanist Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential and agency of human beings. It considers human beings the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "human ...

. Considering the interim co-government of the '' Gobierno del Cerrito'' headed by Manuel Oribe, and the Defense Government from Montevideo led by the Colorado Joaquín Suarez, in the middle of the Uruguayan Civil War, and with the exception of the current administration of Luis Lacalle Pou, the PN has ruled the country for 35 years interruptedly throughout its history; This includes constitutional, interim, de facto presidents, and collegiate governments. Although General Manuel Oribe is recognized as its founder, Aparicio Saravia is considered its idealist. The National Party is a defender of decentralization, and its demographic base skews toward people living in rural areas.

History

Flag of the National Party (Uruguay) (1897-1904)

The identity of the National Party dates back to August 10, 1836 when the then president Manuel Oribe decreed the use of the white banner with the inscription "Defenders of the Laws", in the battle of Carpintería, Oribe faced the revolutionary army of

Fructuoso Rivera José Fructuoso Rivera y Toscana (17 October 1784 – 13 January 1854) was a Uruguayan general and patriot who fought for the liberation of Banda Oriental from Brazilian rule, twice served as Uruguay's President and was one of the instigators ...

and colored badges were used to distinguish between the parties. For this reason, the National Party is also known as the "White Party." On July 7, 1872, the first ''Program of Principles'' was approved, in which respect for freedoms, the maintenance of peace as the supreme good for the Nation, the representation of minorities, the decentralization of the country, the strengthening of justice, and the promotio of education and instruction. In March 2020, National Party’s

Luis Lacalle Pou Luis Alberto Aparicio Alejandro Lacalle Pou (; ''Luis Lacalle'' locally or ; born 10 August 1973) is a Uruguayan politician and lawyer serving as President of Uruguay since 1 March 2020. Son of former president Luis Alberto Lacalle, Lacalle P ...

was sworn as the new

President of Uruguay The president of Uruguay ( es, Presidente del Uruguay), officially known as the president of the Oriental Republic of Uruguay (), is the head of state and head of government of Uruguay. Their rights are determined in the Constitution of Urugu ...

, meaning Uruguay got the first conservative government after 15 years of left-wing leadership under the Broad Front coalition.

Electoral history

Presidential elections

Note

Under the electoral system in place at the time called Ley de Lemas system, each political party could have as many as three presidential candidates. The combined result of the votes for a party's candidates determined which party would control the executive branch, and whichever of the winning party's candidates finished in first place would be declared President this system was used form the 1942 election until the

1994 File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which sank in the Baltic Sea; Nels ...

election until in 1996, a

referendum A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a Direct democracy, direct vote by the Constituency, electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a Representative democr ...

amended the constitution to restrict each party to a single presidential candidate, effective from the 1999 elections.

Parliamentary elections

National Council of Administration and National Council of Government elections

Note

The

National Council of Administration The National Council of Administration ( es, Consejo Nacional de Administración) was part of the executive power in Uruguay between 1919 and 1933, ruling alongside the President of the Republic.President of the Republic between 1918 and 1933 and it was re-established as National Council of Government was the ruling body in

between 1952 and 1967

2004 elections

At the 2004 national elections, the National Party won 36 seats out of 99 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 Bourbon R ...

and 11 seats out of 31 in the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

. Its presidential candidate,

Jorge Larrañaga Jorge Washington Larrañaga Fraga (8 August 1956 – 22 May 2021) was an Uruguayan politician of the National Party (PN) who was Minister of the Interior from 1 March 2020 until his death. He also previously served as Intendant of Paysand� ...

, obtained the same day 35.1% of the valid, popular vote.

2009 elections

At the 2009 national elections, the National Party won 31 seats out of 99 in the

and 9 seats out of 31 in the

. Its presidential candidate,

Luis Alberto Lacalle Luis Alberto Lacalle de Herrera, GCMG (; ''Lacalle'' locally or ; born 13 July 1941), is a Uruguayan politician and lawyer who served as President of Uruguay from 1990 to 1995. Background His mother, María Hortensia de Herrera de Lacalle, ...

, obtained on 25 October 29.07% of the valid, popular vote.

2014 elections

At the 2014 elections, its presidential candidate was

2019 elections

In 2019, the National Party returns to lead the government after thirty years, when

defeated leftist Daniel Martínez in the second round, with the nationalist as leader of the so-called Coalición Multicolor (''Multicolor Alliance''). This will be the second occasion since the return of democracy and the first of the 21st century when the Party reaches the government.

Sectors and factions

National Alliance

The leader of National Alliance was

, until 2021, who ran for

in 2004. He was beaten by Tabaré Vázquez of the Broad Front. The new leader is still undefined until the next internal elections of the sector. The ideologies of the sector are

centrism Centrism is a political outlook or position involving acceptance or support of a balance of social equality and a degree of social hierarchy while opposing political changes that would result in a significant shift of society strongly to the ...

and

christian democracy Christian democracy (sometimes named Centrist democracy) is a political ideology that emerged in 19th-century Europe under the influence of Catholic social teaching and neo-Calvinism. It was conceived as a combination of modern democratic ...

Herrerismo

Herrerism is built on a foundation of

economic liberalism Economic liberalism is a political and economic ideology that supports a market economy based on individualism and private property in the means of production. Adam Smith is considered one of the primary initial writers on economic libera ...

and

liberal conservatism Liberal conservatism is a political ideology combining conservative policies with liberal stances, especially on economic issues but also on social and ethical matters, representing a brand of political conservatism strongly influenced by ...

, although earlier in its history it took on more anti-imperialist and traditionalist policies.

Wilsonist Current

The

Wilsonist Current The Wilsonist Current ( es, Correntada Wilsonista) is a social-liberal faction of the National Party of Uruguay. Founded in 2002 by Francisco Gallinal, its name comes from the Wilsonism, an important tendency of the Party, led by Wilson Ferre ...

is a social-liberal faction of the National Party of

. Founded in 2002 by Francisco Gallinal, its name comes from the Wilsonism, an important tendency of the Party, led by Wilson Ferreira Aldunate.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Political parties established in 1836 1836 establishments in Uruguay

History

Electoral history

Presidential elections

Note

Parliamentary elections

National Council of Administration and National Council of Government elections

Note

2004 elections

2009 elections

2014 elections

2019 elections

Sectors and factions

National Alliance

Herrerismo

Wilsonist Current

See also

References

External links