MAPU was first formed as a splinter group of the
Christian Democratic Party of Chile on May 19, 1969. At the time, Christian Democrats were in the government and many party members, especially among the youth, became critical of the party's policies that they regarded as pro-American and pro-imperialist. It joined the
Unidad Popular coalition of
Salvador Allende and participated in his government. The party's ideological line was not clearly defined at first. In fact, the party leaders were encouraged by Allende and
Fidel Castro (whom the MAPU delegation met in 1972 when visiting Cuba) not to embrace
Marxism officially, since there were such parties in Chile already, and the Unidad Popular coalition wished to claim a Christian Left niche, too (the newly founded
Izquierda Cristiana was considered too small). During the Second Congress of the party, held in 1972, the forces led by and Eduardo Aquevedo gained prominence. They adhered to
Marxism-Leninism, had become more radicalized and oriented themselves towards
non-aligned countries. A group of politicians (
Jacques Chonchol,
Rafael Agustín Gumucio,
Alberto Jerez Horta and
Julio Silva Solar) left to join the Izquierda Cristiana. On 7 March 1973, the MAPU split into two feuding groups: one organization, led by Oscar Guillermo Garretón and Eduardo Aquevedo embraced Marxism-Leninism and militant leftist positions. This group was supported by the Socialist Party, the
MIR and the Izquierda Cristiana. The other faction, led by
Jaime Gazmuri and
Enrique Correa criticized the former for
ultraleftism and formed a new party,
MAPU Obrero Campesino, that was close to
PCCh and followed more moderate tactics. Both groups remained in the Unidad Popular until it was overthrown. == Presidential candidates ==