MORENA was established in 1981, and was forced to operate illicitly in Gabon as the country was a one-party state at the time.
[1] Its leaders in Gabon were arrested in 1981 and 1982 for handing out leaflets calling for the restoration of multi-party democracy.
[1] By the early 1990s, several breakaway factions had been formed, including MORENA–Woodcutters (later renamed National Woodcutters' Rally) and MORENA–Unionist; the original party went under the name MORENA–Original.
Prior to the 1998 presidential elections the party joined the High Council of the Resistance, an alliance that supported the candidacy of Pierre Mamboundou of the Union of the Gabonese People.
The party nominated two candidates for the 2011 parliamentary elections,[3] but failed to win a seat.