de la Madrid Hurtado, Miguel [key], 1934–2012, Mexican public official, president of Mexico (1982–88). As minister of planning and budget in the cabinet of José López Portillo, he was influential in planning the utilization of Mexico's oil wealth to promote economic growth. Known as a conservative technocrat, he was chosen (1981) as the candidate of the ruling Institutional Revolutionary party (PRI) and was elected in 1982. His presidency was marked by economic difficulties but also by free-market reforms. His government was criticized for its slow response to the 1985 earthquake that caused significant damage to the capital. He participated in the blatant vote fraud by the PRI that assured the election of his successor, Carlos Salinas de Gortari.
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