'Abelardo Luján Rodríguez' (
May 12 1889–
February 13 1967) was the interim
president of
Mexico from
1932-
1934, completing the term of
Pascual Ortiz Rubio after his resignation.
Born in
San Jose de Guaymas,
Sonora, to a poor family, he worked early in his life in a hardware store, in a
copper mine, and as a professional
baseball player. He did not finish his primary studies in
Nogales,
Sonora. He joined the
Mexican revolution in
1913 and began moving up the ranks soon after. He became a Colonel in
1916, and following his involvement in the
Plan de Agua Prieta, he was named Military Commander of Northern
Baja California in
1921. In
1923 he became Governor of Northern Baja California, and continued as both Military Commander and Governor until
1929. He continued one more year as Governor of Northern Baja California, and then in
1932, he held two different cabinet positions under president Ortiz Rubio.
Following Ortiz Rubio's resignation, Rodríguez took the presidency on
September 4,
1932. Some of his accomplishments included the establishment of several financial institutions, the restoration of public education, and the implementations of laws related to private charity and monopolies. He also lengthened the presidential term length from four to six years.
After his term ended on
November 30,
1934, Rodríguez returned to private life until
1943, when he was elected governor of Sonora, where he had a significant impact on education. He promoted university education, establishing Sonora's state university. He resigned from his governorship in April,
1948, citing health reasons. He returned to his work in business, in which he continued until his death in
La Jolla,
California, in
1967.
The
airport in
Tijuana is named after him.
References
★ Camp, Roderic A. Mexican Political Biographies.
Tucson,
Arizona:
University of Arizona,
1982.
★
English biography Accessed
April 16,
2005