Nationalist Republican Alliance

Nationalist Republican Alliance
Alianza Republicana Nacionalista
AbbreviationARENA
PresidentCarlos García Saade
FounderRoberto D'Aubuisson
Founded30 September 1981
Registered4 December 1981
HeadquartersProlongación Calle Arce, entre 45 y 47 av N. #2429. Col. Flor Blanca, San Salvador, El Salvador
Youth wingNationalist Republican Youth
Membership (2019)127,543
Ideology
Political positionCenter-right to right-wing
Historical:
Far-right
Regional affiliationUnion of Latin American Parties
International affiliationInternational Democrat Union
Colors
  • Blue
  • White
  • Red
Slogan
  • Peace, progress and freedom
  • (Spanish: «Paz, progreso y libertad»)
AnthemMarcha de ARENA
Seats in the Legislative Assembly
11 / 84
Municipalities
26 / 262
Seats in PARLACEN
3 / 20
Party flag
Flag of the Nationalist Republican Alliance
Website
https://arena.org.sv

The Nationalist Republican Alliance (Spanish: Alianza Republicana Nacionalista, abbreviated ARENA) is a conservative, center-right to right-wing political party of El Salvador. It was founded on 30 September 1981 by retired Salvadoran Army Major Roberto D'Aubuisson. It defines itself as a political institution constituted to defend the democratic, republican, and representative system of government, the social market economy system and nationalism.

ARENA controlled the National Assembly of El Salvador until 1985, and its party leader Alfredo Cristiani was elected to the presidency in 1989. ARENA controlled the presidency from 1989 until 2009. The party gained a plurality in the Legislative Assembly in 2012.

History

The Nationalist Republican Alliance was founded on 30 September 1981 during the Salvadoran Civil War. The party's membership at the time of its establishment consisted of primarily members of the Salvadoran Nationalist Movement [ru] (MNS) and the National Broad Front [ru] (FAN) who were dissatisfied with the government of the ruling Revolutionary Government Junta (JRG), as well of the preceding government of the National Conciliation Party (PCN). Its founding leader was Roberto D'Aubuisson, a former major in the Salvadoran Army who was most well-known for commanding various death squads and ordering the assassination of Archbishop Óscar Romero in 1980. At the time, ARENA was considered to be a far-right political party.

The party arose in response to "the insurgency of the Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front, FMLN, a group that united peasant farmers, unionists and intellectuals, which tried, through arms, to overthrow the dictatorship and to install a state regime inspired by the governments of revolutionary Cuba and Sandinista Nicaragua".[citation needed]

The ideology the party claims to believe in is a system of democratic and representative government, emphasizing individual rights, the family as the nucleus of society and the respect for private property.

In February 2007, three ARENA politicians were murdered in Guatemala, including Eduardo D'Aubuisson, the son of party founder Roberto D'Aubuisson, in what was considered by the police as a crime related to drugs.

In 2009, ARENA took out a full-page ad in a Salvadoran newspaper calling on President Mauricio Funes to recognise the interim Honduran government of Roberto Micheletti installed after the military had expelled President Manuel Zelaya.[citation needed]

On 21 July 2022, Gustavo López Davidson, the leader of ARENA from August 2019 to February 2020, committed suicide amidst an ongoing investigation against him for embezzlement and arms trafficking.

Structure

The highest authority of the party ARENA is the Comité Ejecutivo Nacionalista (COENA, "Nationalist Executive Committee"), which consists of 13 members. The members must be re-elected annually through the General Assembly of ARENA members.[original research?]

In addition to the COENA, there are 14 Directors-in-Chief, one for each department and departmental councils called "Juntas Directivas Conjuntas" to coordinate political work in their respective department. In each department, a director is chosen who works with a specific member of COENA. The director's role is to organize and co-ordinate electoral campaigns and help the councils form party structures in the municipalities of their departments.[original research?]

On 19 February 2013, Jorge Velado assumed the position as president of COENA, in a party leadership shake-up aimed at re-energizing a stale organization tainted by its association with the violent death squads of the 1980s, widespread corruption and the switch to the U.S. dollar as the national currency.

Electoral record

At the legislative elections held on 16 March 2003, the party won 32.0% of the popular vote and 27 out of 84 seats in the Legislative Assembly. ARENA's successful candidate in El Salvador's 2004 presidential election was Antonio Saca. On 21 March 2004, Saca defeated Schafik Hándal, the candidate of the left-wing Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMLN), by a margin of 58% to 36% with 70% turnout. He was sworn in as president the following 1 June.

In the 12 March 2006 legislative election, the party won 39.4% of the popular vote and 32 out of 84 seats. At the 18 January 2009 legislative elections, the party received 38.55% of the vote, and again won 32 of the 84 seats.

On 15 March 2009, ARENA candidate Rodrigo Ávila lost the presidential election to Mauricio Funes of the FMLN. After elections, the party president was changed to Alfredo Cristiani.[citation needed]

On 9 March 2014 Salvador Sánchez Cerén of FMLN narrowly defeated the ARENA candidate Norman Quijano by 0.2% in a run-off vote in a controversial election.

ARENA also lost both 2019 presidential election and 2021 legislative election dominated by Nuevas Ideas, the party of current president Nayib Bukele.

Electoral history

Presidential elections

Election Candidate First round Second round Result Ref.
Votes % Votes %
1982 Hugo César Barrera 17
32.08%
Lost Red XN
1984 Roberto D'Aubuisson 376,917
29.77%
651,741
46.41%
1989 Alfredo Cristiani 505,370
53.82%
Elected Green tickY
1994 Armando Calderón Sol 641,108
49.03%
818,264
68.35%
1999 Francisco Flores 614,268
51.96%
2004 Antonio Saca 1,314,436
57.71%
2009 Rodrigo Ávila 1,284,588
48.68%
Lost Red XN
2014 Norman Quijano 1,047,592
38.96%
1,489,451
49.89%
2019 Carlos Calleja 857,084
31.72%
2024 Joel Sánchez 177,881
5.57%

Legislative Assembly elections

Election Votes % Position Seats +/– Status in legislature Ref.
1982 430,205 29.28% Increase 2nd
19 / 60
Increase 19 Opposition
1985 286,665 29.70%
13 / 60
Decrease 6 Opposition
1988 447,696 48.10% Increase 1st
31 / 60
Increase 18 Opposition
1991 466,091 44.33%
39 / 84
Increase 8 Government
1994 605,775 45.03%
39 / 84
Steady 0 Government
1997 396,301 35.40%
28 / 84
Decrease 11 Government
2000 436,169 36.04%
29 / 84
Increase 1 Government
2003 446,233 31.90% Decrease 2nd
27 / 84
Decrease 1 Government
2006 620,117 39.40%
34 / 84
Increase 7 Government
2009 854,166 38.55%
32 / 84
Decrease 2 Opposition
2012 620,117 39.40%
34 / 84
Increase 2 Opposition
2015 885,374 38.90% Increase 1st
32 / 84
Decrease 2 Opposition
2018 886,365 41.72%
37 / 84
Increase 5 Opposition
2021 305,108 12.22% Decrease 2nd
14 / 84
Decrease 23 Opposition
2024 227,357 7.29 Steady 2nd
2 / 60
Decrease 12 Opposition

See also


This page was last updated at 2024-03-12 03:27 UTC. Update now. View original page.

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