ABSTRACT
The regime that arose in Panama after the National Guard takeover in 1968 moved into the political vacuum left by the chaos and disorganization of the ruling elite. The regime, consolidated in the hands of Omar Torrijos after some internal power jousting among the officers of the National Guard had the characteristics that Marxist analysts have labeled bonapartist and that pluralist political analysts call inclusionary authoritarian. Torrijos took political control in 1968 and for a period of years had enough autonomy to enact and institute policies clearly bypassing the interest of the traditional ruling groups. Apart from the four identifiable groups, there were many individuals who held important posts in the Torrijos government, who were of lower and middle-class background, and who for the first time gained entry into the governmental bureaucracy. A further important consideration was the successful blending of the National Guard with the new coalition and the maintenance of this relationship in the face of obvious incongruences.
