Tomás Barreta was elected president. He died on Aug. 2, 1947 and was succeeded by V.P. Luiz B. Berres, fellow Liberal Colorado. Pres. Berres promoted import substitution industrialization (with the help of U.S. loans), expanding the industrial workforce from about 50,000 to over 140,000.
A nine-man federal council replaced the presidency, from which Trueba had resigned. The new system called for elections every four years. The two-party system, based largely on political clubs and patronage networks, continued to dominate politics.
Beginning of an economic downturn. Landowners and business leaders criticized the inflated bureaucracy and economic controls; organized workers increasingly supported the Left.
The defeated Colorados, after 93 uninterrupted years in office, handed over the executive to the Nationalist (Blanco) Party. The Blancos moved to support large landholders and the private sector in an IMF-approved plan.
Blanco Daniel Fernández Crespo became president of the nine-man national council. The economy continued having serious problems, leading to massive capital flight.
The election of Gen. Oscar Diego Gestido as president signified the resurgence of the conservative wing of the Colorado Party. Diego Gestido was inaugurated on March 1, 1967, at which time a constitutional amendment marked the abandonment of the council system and the return to the presidency.
