Víctor Manuel Camacho Solís (March 30, 1946 – June 5, 2015) was a Mexican politician who served in the cabinets of
presidents
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
*President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Film and television
*''Præsidenten ...
Miguel de la Madrid
Miguel de la Madrid Hurtado (; 12 December 1934 – 1 April 2012) was a Mexican politician affiliated with the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) who served as the 59th president of Mexico from 1982 to 1988.
Inheriting a severe economic an ...
and
Carlos Salinas. Born in
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 Manuel Camacho López and Luz Solís, he belonged to the . At first he was affiliated with the
PRI, later with the
Party of the Democratic Center and then with 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 ...
.
Political career
Camacho Solís joined the
Institutional Revolutionary Party
The Institutional Revolutionary Party (, , PRI) is a List of political parties in Mexico, political party in Mexico that was founded in 1929 as the National Revolutionary Party (, PNR), then as the Party of the Mexican Revolution (, PRM) and fin ...
(PRI) in 1965, and in 1988 he became that party's general secretary.
Camacho met
Carlos Salinas at the
National Autonomous University of Mexico
The National Autonomous University of Mexico (, UNAM) is a public university, public research university in Mexico. It has several campuses in Mexico City, and many others in various locations across Mexico, as well as a presence in nine countri ...
(UNAM), where they became close friends. Camacho followed
Salinas's trajectory in the Planning Ministry under the administration of
Miguel de la Madrid
Miguel de la Madrid Hurtado (; 12 December 1934 – 1 April 2012) was a Mexican politician affiliated with the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) who served as the 59th president of Mexico from 1982 to 1988.
Inheriting a severe economic an ...
. In 1985 he was elected to 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 ...
, and in 1986 he was appointed to the cabinet as Minister of Urban Development. When
Salinas took over the
presidency
A presidency is an administration or the executive, the collective administrative and governmental entity that exists around an office of president of a state or nation. Although often the executive branch of government, and often personified b ...
in 1988, Camacho was appointed
Head of Government of the Federal District (1988–1993), an important political post with jurisdiction over the nation's capital.
In 1997, the post became elective. He was a contender within the PRI to be the presidential candidate, but Salinas chose Colosio instead. Salinas told Camacho that he would be appointed the
Head of Government of the Federal District, a powerful post, but Camacho sought to be Minister of the Interior. Before he accepted the appointment, he made demands: complete control of the district attorney's office and the police, the right to participate in political reforms, and complete authority over the city, which Salinas acceded to. According to political scientist
Jorge G. Castañeda, "Salinas ... perhaps did not realiz
the danger of being suddenly left without an effective minister of the interior and with an overqualified mayor in charge of the country's main city." He became famous because he delivered 9000 millions (old pesos ) to Andrés Manuel López Obrador in order to take away the protest on the zocalo in 1992 in Mexico City. This money never was clarified by Andrés Manuel López Obrador, he took the decision for the final destination for this money.
The Zapatista uprising
On November 13, 1993, Camacho was designated
Secretary of Foreign Affairs. Due to the
Zapatista uprising,
Luis Donaldo Colosio
Luis Donaldo Colosio Murrieta (; 10 February 1950 – 23 March 1994) was a Mexican politician, economist, and Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) President of Mexico, presidential candidate, who was assassinated at a campaign rally in Tiju ...
's assassination in March 1994, and Camacho's failed attempt to clinch the party's presidential nomination, Camacho broke with the PRI. The complicated relationship between Camacho,
Salinas, Colosio and
Ernesto Zedillo
Ernesto Zedillo Ponce de León (; born 27 December 1951) is a Mexican economist and politician. He was the 61st president of Mexico from 1994 to 2000, as the last of the uninterrupted 71-year line of Mexican presidents from the Institutional Re ...
(who was selected to replace Colosio as the PRI's presidential candidate) was the source of many rumors surrounding Colosio's assassination. Salinas appointed Camacho as the negotiator for the government in peace talks with the Zapatistas. He resigned as Chiapas Peace Commissioner on 16 June 1994 claiming that the PRI presidential candidate, Zedillo, sabotaged his efforts.
Later career
During Zedillo's presidency, Camacho stayed away from politics until 1999 when he announced his candidacy for the presidency for the
Party of the Democratic Center, a party that he had co-founded with
Marcelo Ebrard
Marcelo Luis Ebrard Casaubón (; born 10 October 1959) is a Mexicans, Mexican politician who has served as the Secretariat of Economy, secretary of economy since 2024. He previously served as Secretary of Foreign Affairs (Mexico), Secretary of ...
.
In 2003 he became a federal deputy in the Chamber of Deputies representing 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 ...
.
He was selected to serve as a plurinominal deputy through an indirect election. In 2012 he was elected to the Senate.
In 2004 he joined
Andrés Manuel López Obrador
Andrés Manuel López Obrador (; born 13 November 1953), also known by his initials AMLO, is a Mexican former politician, political scientist, public administrator and writer who served as the 65th president of Mexico from 2018 to 2024. He se ...
's political campaign. He wrote a column in the Mexico City daily ''
El Universal''.
He died in
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 ...
on 5 June 2015, after a long battle with
brain cancer.Fallece Manuel Camacho Solís
/ref>
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Camacho Solis, Manuel
1946 births
2015 deaths
Secretaries of foreign affairs of Mexico
Mexican people of Asturian descent
Mexican people of Basque descent
Candidates in the 2000 Mexican presidential election
Politicians from Mexico City
Institutional Revolutionary Party politicians
Party of the Democratic Revolution politicians
Deaths from brain cancer in Mexico
20th-century Mexican politicians
Members of the Senate of the Republic (Mexico)
Deputies of the LIX Legislature of Mexico