Reforming Batllismo

the Liberal Economic Proposals of Lista 15 in the 1966 Elections

Abstract

Ever since the term “viraje” was coined in the 1980s to designate the changes in the economic program of Lista 15, it has been argued that this sector of the Partido Colorado shifted towards liberal economic ideas from 1966 onwards. This paper seeks to carefully analyze the proposals put forward in that year’s elections by the Lista 15 sector, already identified with Unidad y Reforma, under the leadership of Jorge Batlle Ibáñez. Approaches to government, inflation and economic sectors stand out, as they show evidence of ruptures with the statist and dirigiste tradition of the two precedent decades. Finally, Batlle Ibáñez’s liberal economic thought, based on his links with Argentine referents of that tradition, is analyzed to explain the programmatic renewal of Lista 15.