Constitutionalists in the Mexican Revolution

Constitutionalists, or Carrancistas were the third faction in the Mexican Revolution consisting of mainly middle-class urbanites, liberals, and intellectuals who desired a constitution under the guidelines "Mexico for Mexicans". After the revolution they would dominate Mexican politics as the PRI until the late 1970s.

Although not as visible as the two other main factions in the Mexican Revolution because of their lack of a highly charismatic leader like Emiliano Zapata or Pancho Villa, there was a third group vying for power during the fighting in Mexico, and they played a critical role mainly because in the end, they won. This faction was known as the Constitutionalists, and consisted of predominately of liberal intellectuals and middle-class citizens – in other words, Mexicans who were not of purely indigenous backgrounds but also not of the elite class, and who therefore did not benefit all that much from the foreign investment boom of the Díaz reign. The Constitutionalists differed from the Zapatistas and Villa's men, who were fighting for a mostly singular cause. They did call for ejidos (or common lands) to be returned to villages and for large estates to be divided up, although not to the extent that Zapata wanted, as this was his primary goal in the Revolution. They also demanded a nationalization of all Mexican land and resources under foreign control, which is something all Mexicans wanted. However, these liberals also realized that the Mexican prosperity of the Diaz period had sacrificed many rights of the Mexican citizen, and also left law and order in the hands of a dictator who could bend it at his will. They sought to end Mexico's struggle with a constitution that had only Mexico's Hacienda owners interests at heart.

The rise of the Constitutionalists actually began at the end of the 19th century, before an official "revolution" broke out. Porfirio Díaz was still in power, but the nation of Mexico was beginning to brim with rebellious sentiments. By 1900, a small group had actually formed that officially labeled themselves as anti-Diaz. With this groups' formation, the Mexican peoples' resentment for the Diaz regime began to make itself apparent. More and more uprisings began to take place, especially in areas where foreign businesses owned interests. In 1904, three liberal brothers, Jesús, Enrique, and Ricardo Flores Magón, published a liberal journal in which they issued a call to revolution. With this publication came an unexpected ally – Francisco Madero, who was the son of a wealthy hacienda owner. Madero began to publicly denounce Díaz and tour the country to talk of free elections, democracy and social change. Because of harassment by Díaz, he joined the Flores Magón brothers and other Mexican liberals in El Paso, Texas, where he continued to fuel the fires of revolution from afar.

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