Madrid - Manuel Fraga Iribarne, who founded Spain’s ruling conservative party and ignited divisive reactions as the last surviving minister from Franco’s right-wing government, died Sunday at his home here. He was 89.

His death was reported by the Spanish news agency Europa Press, citing a family member.

In a career spanning 60 years, Mr. Fraga served as Franco’s information and tourism minister and as Spain’s interior minister after Franco died in 1975. He was also the president of Galicia, his native region, from 1990 to 2005.

The job he coveted most, prime minister of Spain, eluded him. But his influence on the country was lasting.

Most Franco ministers quickly faded into obscurity after democracy was restored in 1978, but Mr. Fraga soldiered on.

He helped write the country’s democratic post-Franco Constitution, which was passed in 1978. He also nudged Franco loyalists toward the political center, founded what is now the Popular Party and groomed José María Aznar, who later became prime minister, to replace him as leader of the Spanish right in 1989.

After serving as president of Galicia for 15 years, Mr. Fraga settled into a seat in the Spanish Senate.

To the Spanish left, Mr. Fraga was a reviled reminder of a right-wing government that kept Spain isolated from Europe and the rest of the world for decades. Defenders, however, note that he promulgated a Franco-era law that did away with media censorship, seen as a hint of change in the hard-line government. As tourism minister, he worked to open Spain to the outside world. A famous tourism slogan, “Spain is different,” was coined on his watch.

Mr. Fraga is also credited with transforming northwestern Galicia, traditionally one of Spain’s poorest regions, by building modern roads, bridges and other infrastructure, much of it paid for with European Union funds. He bolstered tourism and promoted Galicia’s separate language and culture during his time as president.

Manuel Fraga Iribarne was born on Nov. 23, 1922, in the northwestern town of Villalba. He married Carmen Estevez in 1948. They had five children. She died in 1996.

After earning a law degree, Mr. Fraga held several midlevel positions in the Franco government before becoming minister of information and tourism in 1962.

In September 2011, 60 years after beginning his career, Mr. Fraga announced his retirement from politics, saying he would not seek another term in the Senate.