Luis Echeverría Álvarez: 1922—: Lawyer, Politician Biography - Worked Way Up Through Ruling Party, Became Presidential Nominee, Struggled To Stabilize Economy, Maintain Control

Luis Echeverría Álvarez: 1922—: Lawyer, Politician.

When Luis Echeverría Álvarez took over as Mexico's president in 1970, he pledged to close the economic gap between the country's poor, rural peasants and its well-to-do urbanites. For six years Echeverría walked a political tight-rope as he tried to implement social programs to make life better for the have-nots, while at the same time trying not to worry capitalists with his socialist leanings. To this end, Echeverría spent staggering amounts of money on social and economic programs, creating a huge deficit. His policies, in the end, pleased no one and his administration went down in the history books as a failure. As one of the most unpopular men to ever serve as president of Mexico, Echeverría left office in 1976 amid mounting inflation, civil unrest, and a tumbling peso.