On This Day

Adolfo López Mateos elected President of Mexico

Adolfo López Mateos was a Mexican politician and lawyer who served as President of Mexico from 1958 to 1964.

Adolfo López Mateos was a Mexican politician and lawyer who served as President of Mexico from 1958 to 1964. Previously, he served as Secretary of Labor and Social Welfare from 1952 to 1957 and a Senator from the State of Mexico from 1946 to 1952.

Beginning his political career as a campaign aide of José Vasconcelos during his run for president, López Mateos encountered repression from Plutarco Elías Calles, who attempted to maintain hegemony within the National Revolutionary Party (PNR). He briefly abandoned politics and worked as a professor at the Autonomous University of Mexico State, becoming a member of the PNR (renamed Party of the Mexican Revolution) in 1941.

Historical Significance

Adolfo López Mateos was a Mexican politician and lawyer who served as President of Mexico from 1958 to 1964.

Events Before

  1. Sputnik 1 Launch

    The Soviet Union launches Sputnik 1, the world's first artificial satellite, igniting the Space Age and the US-Soviet Space Race.

  2. An Irish Republican Army (IRA) unit attacks Brookeborough Royal Ulster Constabulary barracks in one of the most famous i

    An Irish Republican Army (IRA) unit attacks Brookeborough Royal Ulster Constabulary barracks in one of the most famous incidents of the IRA's Operation Harvest

  3. Aviator Howard Hughes marries 2nd wife actress Jean Peters

    Aviator Howard Hughes marries 2nd wife actress Jean Peters

  4. South African golfer Gary Player (21) weds childhood sweetheart Vivienne Verwey, until her death in 2021

    South African golfer Gary Player (21) weds childhood sweetheart Vivienne Verwey, until her death in 2021

  5. English-American actress Elizabeth Taylor's 2nd divorce from English actor Michael Wilding, after almost 5 years of marr

    English-American actress Elizabeth Taylor's 2nd divorce from English actor Michael Wilding, after almost 5 years of marriage

Events After

  1. Johnny Cash performs the first of many free concerts behind bars at San Quentin State Prison in California

    Johnny Cash performs the first of many free concerts behind bars at San Quentin State Prison in California

  2. Chad becomes an autonomous republic in the French Community

    The French Community (French: Communauté française) was the constitutional organization set up in October 1958 between France and its remaining African colonies, then in the process of…

  3. USSR's Luna 1 becomes the first spacecraft to escape Earth's gravity

    A gravity assist, gravity assist maneuver, swing-by, or generally a gravitational slingshot in orbital mechanics, is a type of spaceflight flyby which makes use of the relative movement (e.g.

  4. TV western "Rawhide," starring Clint Eastwood, premieres on CBS

    TV western "Rawhide," starring Clint Eastwood, premieres on CBS

  5. Plane crash known as "The Day the Music Died" kills musicians Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, J. P. Richardson (aka The Big

    Plane crash known as "The Day the Music Died" kills musicians Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, J. P. Richardson (aka The Big Bopper), and the pilot near Clear Lake, Iowa

More from the 1950s

Frequently Asked Questions

What happened on July 6, 1958?
Adolfo López Mateos was a Mexican politician and lawyer who served as President of Mexico from 1958 to 1964. Previously, he served as Secretary of Labor and Social Welfare from 1952 to 1957 and a Senator from the State of Mexico from 1946 to 1952. Beginning his political career as a campaign aide of José Vasconcelos during his run for president, López Mateos encountered repression from Plutarco Elías Calles, who attempted to maintain hegemony within the National Revolutionary Party (PNR).
Why is Adolfo López Mateos elected President of Mexico significant?
Adolfo López Mateos was a Mexican politician and lawyer who served as President of Mexico from 1958 to 1964.

Explore More