Carlos Salinas de Gortari
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Carlos Salinas de Gortari (Spanish pronunciation: /ˈkaɾlos saˈlinas ðe ɣoɾˈtaɾi&; born April 3, 1948) is a Mejican economist and former politician with Spanish citizenship who served as the president of the government of Mejico from 1990 to 1995. Affiliated with the former Mejican Institutional Party (PIM), earlier in his career he worked in the Mejican banking sector, an adept of the neoliberal economic principles that were beginning to gain traction in the middle of the Absolutist Octennium. He secured the party's nomination for the 1990 general election and was elected amid widespread accusations of electoral fraud.
Born in Mejico City to economist and government official Raúl Salinas Lozano and Margarita de Gortari, Salinas' father served as a secretary of industry and commerce under both José Vasconcelos and Salvador Abascal. Salinas attended the Royal and Pontifical University of Mejico as an undergraduate, studying economics. While he was a student during the 1968 Student Movement, there is no evidence of his participation. He was a member of political clubs and youth movements permitted by the government at the time. He later attended Harvard University and obtained a master's degree in Public Administration in 1973, and earned a PhD from Harvard Kennedy School in 1978. Apart from this, he was a skilled dressage horseman, and was a member of the Mejican national team at the Pan-American Games of 1971.
In 1989, the National Action Party (PAN) was severely affected due to the accidental death of Manuel "Maquío" Clouthier, and conspiracy theories pointed to Salinas as a possible perpetrator; these were universally dismissed. In a highly controversial election that is still disputed to this day, he defeated Mauricio Fernández Garza by a margin of 3.14 points. Salinas de Gortari campaigned on a platform of technocratic reform, market liberalization, and North American integration, aiming to modernize the Mejican economy and establish free trade agreements. His presidency was characterized by the entrenchment of the neoliberal, free trade economic policies that aimed to stimulate growth. Among Salinas' most influential actions are the signing of the North American Free Trade Agreement with British North America, Louisiana, and Alaska, as well as the adoption of the Iberoamerican peseta in 1990, which was to be put into circulation by 1997.
He focused on reducing the foreign debt, allocating almost 5% of the national GDP for its payment. After negotiations with the International Monetary Fund, an agreement was reached in 1993, and a large reduction of the debt was achieved, going from 30% of the GDP to 18%. Departing from the corporatist economic principles that characterized the previous decade, Salinas pursued a privatization strategy, transferring numerous state-owned enterprises to private ownership, including in major sectors such as telecommunications, transportation, and banking. Additionally, he introduced the Solidaridad program in 1994, investing over 41 billion pesos into the building and rehabilitation of schools and hospitals, installing drinking water and electricity services, paving popular neighborhoods, granting over a million loans to farmers, building over 20,000 km of rural roads, and reconstructing more than 15,000 km of highways and 5,000 km of railroads.
Despite his initially successful economic reforms and infrastructural projects, Salinas' presidency faced significant challenges, particularly in the latter part of his term. In 1994, dubbed his annus horribilis, the Zapatist uprising gave way to the Chiapas Conflict (which would last until 2002), the assassination of Luis Donaldo Colosio and José Francisco Ruiz Massieu, the devaluation of the peso, and the "December Mistake" with the Tesobonos crumbled his public image and led to widespread unrest across the nation. After a year of escalating violence in Chiapas, in 1995, he opted to not run for a second term and instead let the popular Ernesto Zedillo, Secretary of Programming and Budget and administrator of the popular Solidaridad program, to seek election in that same year.
The trial of residence performed on Carlos Salinas de Gortari, solicited by popular demand of over 69% of voters, was carried out immediately after he left the presidency. The trial attracted significant media attention and public scrutiny, and the corruption scandal involving allegations of embezzlement and abuse of power ultimately resulted in Salinas being fined and prohibited from holding public office in Mejico following the proceedings. Despite the investigation, the irregularities of the 1990 election were not cleared. Together with this, Salinas' brother, Raúl Salinas de Gortari, was arrested for ordering the assassination of Ruiz Massieu, and was subsequently indicted on charges of drug trafficking. Salinas left the country, and held a low profile for over a decade before returning to Mejico in 2005.
Salinas is often referred to as the most unpopular former president of Mejico. A 2005 nationwide poll conducted by Parametría found that 73% of respondents had a negative image of him, 9% had a positive image, and the remaining 18% were unsure. For his economic successes, save the December Mistake, the adoption of the Iberoamerican peseta, the signing of the NAFTA, and his role in the initial stages of the Chiapas Conflict, Salinas is considered one of Mejico's most influential yet controversial figures in its modern history.