alternation

The alternation is he act and consequence of alternating. East verb, which comes from the Latin word alternate, has several meanings, generally linked to the variation or distribution of something.

For example: "The alternation between slow songs and other moving ones makes the album have different climates", "We cannot allow indefinite re-elections: without alternation in power, democracy does not exist", "The coach announced that he will not choose a single captain, but will choose to alternate so that several players can wear the ribbon".

The idea of ​​alternation appears in the field of biology with reference to the succession of asexual and sexual generations when plant or animal species reproduce. In sexual reproduction, the nuclear phases alternate. Meiosis results in a haploid phase, while the gametes then fuse to form the diploid phase.

The crop alternationOn the other hand, it refers to the practice of growing different plants in the same space through a series of cycles. In this way, the soil is not depleted. In addition, since plants have different needs and characteristics, the diseases or pests.

In the field of politics, we speak of alternation to refer to the change of government. If the same political party governs during several consecutive electoral periods, or because there are no direct elections, there is no alternation: power is always held by the same sector. On the other hand, if he governs for four years the Conservative Party, then four the Liberal Party and later the Conservative Party, the alternation in power occurs.

Precisely a perfect example of political alternation of this type is found in Spain. In this country, at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th, a two-party system was established with alternation in the government of the Restoration. The two parties that took turns leading the country were the Liberal Party, led by Práxedes Mateo Sagasta, and the Conservative Party, whose head was Antonio Cánovas del Castillo from Malaga.

This stage, which was inspired by the existing model in the United Kingdom, put an end to the existing political pluralism and was also called turnismo. During this process, the person in charge of deciding which party should lead the country was the king, Alfonso XII. And it did so taking into account the wear and tear that the political group in question or the needs of the people might have at that time.

It is considered that with this measure of taking turns in power, to a certain extent, riots and all kinds of pronouncements came to a standstill.

In this process, what was called the Pact of El Pardo also plays an important role. It seems that it was an agreement that Sagasta and Cánovas reached at the time when the imminent death of the monarch was expected. In order to avoid that when he died a situation of instability would occur, they certified the need to reach consensus between both formations in favor of the country. That is, to establish a match shift.