He founded and led the Alianza Popular Revolucionaria Americana (APRA), known as the Aprista Party (1924), which became the spearhead of radical dissent in Peru. He advocated social and economic reform, nationalization of land and industry, and an end to US domination of South American economies. After the Leguía regime fell he urged his APRA followers to overthrow the army-backed conservative oligarchy. He stood for President in 1931, but ballots were rigged and Colonel Sánchez Cerro was proclaimed victor. He was imprisoned 1931–33 and, after the latter’s assassination, was in hiding in Peru (1935–45), becoming widely known through his writings. In 1945 the Aprista Party took the name Partido del Pueblo (People’s Party) and supported José Luis Bustamante as President, but when he was overthrown in 1948 Haya took asylum in the Colombian Embassy in Lima until 1954, when he went into exile in Mexico until 1957. He contested the 1962 presidential election, but the army intervened and Terry Belaúnde was declared the winner. In 1979 Haya de la Torre drafted the new constitution which restored parliamentary democracy, but he died before his party came to power.