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| Acción Nacional | |
|---|---|
| Name | Acción Nacional |
| Native name | Partido Acción Nacional |
| Founded | 1939 |
| Founder | Manuel Gómez Morin |
| Headquarters | Mexico City |
| Ideology | Christian democracy, conservatism, Christian humanism |
| Position | Centre-right to right-wing |
| International | Centrist Democrat International, International Democrat Union |
| Colours | Blue |
| Country | Mexico |
Acción Nacional is a Mexican political party founded in 1939 that has played a central role in twentieth- and twenty-first-century Mexican politics. The party emerged as a response to political developments following the Mexican Revolution (1910–1920), positioning itself as an alternative to parties such as the Institutional Revolutionary Party and later competing with the Party of the Democratic Revolution and National Regeneration Movement. Over decades it has held presidential, gubernatorial, and legislative offices at national and state levels.
Acción Nacional was created by figures including Manuel Gómez Morin, Álvaro Macías, José Gorostiza, and Efraín González Luna amid tensions after the Cristero War and during the administration of Lázaro Cárdenas. The party developed networks in Jalisco, Nuevo León, and Guanajuato and contested mid-twentieth-century elections against the dominant PNR and later the PRM. During the 1980s and 1990s leaders such as Miguel de la Madrid, though associated with other currents, interacted electorally with Acción Nacional as the party capitalized on economic crises like the Mexican debt crisis and the aftermath of the 1986 Mexico City earthquake to expand representation in the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate of the Republic. The party achieved the presidency with Vicente Fox in 2000, ending decades of single-party rule, and secured a second presidential victory with Felipe Calderón in 2006 amid contested results and national debates over the 2006 Mexican general election. In subsequent cycles the party faced challenges from the National Regeneration Movement and internal realignments during the administrations of Enrique Peña Nieto and later political realignments leading into the 2020s.
The party's platform blends Christian democracy and conservative positions, emphasizing free market policies tied to social welfare framed in Catholic-informed social doctrine. Key policy stances have included support for free trade agreements such as the North American Free Trade Agreement, fiscal austerity measures associated with neoliberalism, and security policies targeting organized crime exemplified during Felipe Calderón's presidency. The party has articulated positions on issues like education reform enacted under presidents who allied with Acción Nacional legislators, energy policy debates involving Petróleos Mexicanos, and judicial reforms in response to rulings by the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation.
National governance of the party is exercised through organs including the National Executive Committee led by a party president, state committees in entities like Chihuahua and Baja California, and municipal organizations in cities such as Guadalajara, Monterrey, and Querétaro City. The party maintains affiliated groups such as youth wings and women's councils that interact with institutions like the Federal Electoral Tribunal and the National Electoral Institute during candidate selection and internal primaries. Alliances with parties such as the Party of the Democratic Revolution (in local contexts) and coalition formations with the Institutional Revolutionary Party have occurred for gubernatorial and congressional contests, reflecting strategic federal and state-level coordination.
Acción Nacional has competed in presidential elections from the mid-twentieth century onward, achieving landmark victories in 2000 and 2006 with candidates Vicente Fox and Felipe Calderón respectively. The party has held governorships in states including Guanajuato, Querétaro, and Baja California and has varied representation in the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate of the Republic across legislative periods. Electoral cycles such as the 2012 and 2018 general elections saw shifts in vote share toward rivals like Enrique Peña Nieto's Institutional Revolutionary Party and Andrés Manuel López Obrador's National Regeneration Movement, affecting coalition strategies for municipal and federal midterms as documented by the National Electoral Institute.
Prominent founders and politicians associated with the party include Manuel Gómez Morin, Miguel de la Madrid Hurtado (linked historically through policy circles), presidents Vicente Fox and Felipe Calderón, and long-serving legislators such as Marina del Pilar Ávila (state-level), Gustavo Madero, and Ricardo Anaya who led party reform efforts and presidential campaigns. Other influential figures encompass state governors like Juan Manuel Oliva and party presidents who have presided over internal shifts, as well as intellectuals and activists connected to Acción Nacional's policy development.
The party has faced controversies including disputes over the legitimacy of the 2006 Mexican general election, critiques of security strategies during the Mexican Drug War under Felipe Calderón, and internal scandals involving campaign financing scrutinized by the Federal Electoral Institute. Critics from opponents such as Andrés Manuel López Obrador and Cuauhtémoc Cárdenas have challenged Acción Nacional's policy legacy on social inequality, privatization of public assets tied to debates over Petróleos Mexicanos and energy reform, and alliances with business groups like the Confederation of National Chambers of Commerce in policy formation. Debates over the party's stance on abortion law and LGBT rights in Mexico have generated tensions with civil society organizations and religious institutions.