ABSTRACT
A democratic inauguration in Uruguay can lead either to a stable and strong regime or to a weak democracy prone to constant unmanageable pressures. Political parties will play a determining role in the consolidation, but they must cope with some problems of their own. Renovation and restoration in the Partido National affirmed the leadership of Ferreira Aldunate, already established in 1971, and led to the decline of party leaders close to the military regime. The restoration of a party system based on the predominance of the traditional parties (TPs) and the element of renovation within the restoration framework proposed by the military suggest that the link between traditional parties and Uruguayan society was stronger than anticipated. Restoration seemed to occur indeed in 1976 as a result of a military decision to discard the diagnosis that forecast the death of the TPs.
