1984 Nicaraguan general election

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1984 Nicaraguan general election
Flag of Nicaragua.svg
  1974 4 November 1984 (1984-11-04) 1990  
Presidential election
Turnout75.42%
  Felipe Gonzalez comparece en rueda de prensa con el presidente de Nicaragua. Pool Moncloa. 26 de abril de 1989 (cropped).jpeg 3x4.svg
Candidate Daniel Ortega Clemente Guido
Party FSLN PCD
Running mate Sergio Ramírez Merceditas Rodriguez de Chamorro
Popular vote735,967154,327
Percentage66.97%14.04%

President before election

Daniel Ortega
FSLN

Elected President

Daniel Ortega
FSLN

Parliamentary election

90 of 96 seats in the National Assembly
46 seats needed for a majority
PartyLeader%Seats+/–
FSLN Daniel Ortega 66.7861New
PCD Clemente Guido14.0013New
PLI Virgilio Godoy 9.668New
PPSC Mauricio Díaz5.635New
Communist Allan Zambrana1.481New
PSN Domingo Sánchez1.401New
MAP-ML Isidro Téllez 1.041New
This lists parties that won seats. See the complete results below.
President of the National Assembly after
Carlos Núñez
FSLN

General elections were held in Nicaragua on 4 November 1984, to elect a president and parliament. Approximately 1.2 million Nicaraguans voted, [1] representing a 75% turnout, with 94% of eligible voters registered. [2] Impartial observers from international groupings such as the European Economic Community, religious groups sent to monitor the election, and observers from democratic nations such as Canada and Ireland concluded that the elections were generally free and fair. [3] [4]

Contents

The election date, 4 November was selected so that Nicaragua would have a legitimate, elected government in place before the anticipated reelection of U.S. president Ronald Reagan on 6 November. "The Sandinistas hoped that a competitive election with heavy turnout would deter a U.S. military intervention and reassure the FSLN's defenders. So the Sandinistas' decision to hold elections in 1984 was largely of foreign inspiration". [5]

Between 1982 and 1984 the FSLN negotiated with the opposition on the proposed Political Parties Law and Electoral Law, and ultimately these were modified "in response to several of the opposition's most significant demands." [6] Similarly, multiple extensions of the deadline for candidate registration were granted whilst talks with the Coordinadora continued. [7]

Coordinadora Democrática participation

It has been argued that "probably a key factor in preventing the 1984 elections from establishing liberal democratic rule was the United States' policy toward Nicaragua." [8] The Reagan administration was divided over whether or not the rightwing coalition Coordinadora Democrática Nicaragüense should participate in the elections, which "only complicated the efforts of the Coordinadora to develop a coherent electoral strategy." [8] Ultimately the US administration public and private support for non-participation allowed those members of the Coordinadora who favoured a boycott to gain the upper hand. [8]

A coalition of right-wing parties including the Social Christians, Social Democrats, and the Constitutional Liberal Party, calling itself the 'Democratic Coordinating Committee' (Coordinadora), decided to abstain from the elections on the grounds that the opposition parties had been given insufficient 'guarantees,' and not enough time to prepare for the elections. The Coordinadora's abstentionism was publicly supported by the US government, which hoped to challenge the legitimacy of the November elections by alleging that opposition sectors were not able to participate. But despite US intervention and the Coordinadora abstention seven political parties took part in the November elections. The three center-right/right-wing parties which put forward candidates were the PCDN, PLI, and PPSC. The three opposing left-wing parties were the PSN, PC de N and MAPML." [9]

Aftermath

The Reagan administration denounced the 1984 vote as a 'Soviet-style sham', despite contrary opinions from external observers such as Baron Chitnis, the Latin American Studies Association, [10] and the international press. It escalated its diplomatic and propaganda campaign against the Sandinista government and increased military aid to the Contras. "This undercut the new regime's legitimacy abroad and frustrated its hopes that the 1984 vote might smooth the way at home." [11] May 1985 saw a trade embargo imposed, followed by $27m of "non-lethal" aid to the Contras, supplemented by $37m of secret "lethal" aid. [2] This led to the October 1985 reimposition of a State of Emergency in Nicaragua. [2]

Results

President

CandidatePartyVotes%
Daniel Ortega Sandinista National Liberation Front 735,96766.97
Clemente Guido Chavez Democratic Conservative Party 154,32714.04
Virgilio Godoy Reyes Independent Liberal Party  105,5609.61
Mauricio Díaz Dávila Popular Social Christian Party 61,1995.57
Allan Zambrana Salmerón Communist Party of Nicaragua 16,0341.46
Domingo Sánchez Salgado Nicaraguan Socialist Party 14,4941.32
Isidro Téllez Toruño Marxist–Leninist Popular Action Movement 11,3521.03
Total1,098,933100.00
Valid votes1,098,93393.91
Invalid/blank votes71,2096.09
Total votes1,170,142100.00
Registered voters/turnout1,551,59775.42
Source: Nohlen

National Assembly

All parties except the FSLN were awarded an additional seat for the party's unsuccessful presidential candidate.

Asamblea Nacional de Nicaragua 1985.svg
PartyVotes%Seats
Sandinista National Liberation Front 729,15966.7861
Democratic Conservative Party 152,88314.0014
Independent Liberal Party 105,4979.669
Popular Social Christian Party 61,5255.636
Communist Party of Nicaragua 16,1651.482
Nicaraguan Socialist Party 15,3061.402
Marxist–Leninist Popular Action Movement 11,3431.042
Total1,091,878100.0096
Valid votes1,091,87893.31
Invalid/blank votes78,2246.69
Total votes1,170,102100.00
Registered voters/turnout1,551,59775.41
Source: Nohlen

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    References

    1. Williams, Philip J. "Elections and democratization in Nicaragua: the 1990 elections in perspective." Journal of Interamerican Studies 32, 4:13-34 (winter 1990). p15
    2. 1 2 3 Williams (1990:19)
    3. "1984: Sandinistas claim election victory" BBC News, November 5, 1984
    4. "NICARAGUAN VOTE: 'FREE, FAIR, HOTLY CONTESTED'" The New York Times
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    6. Williams (1990:17-18)
    7. Williams (1990:18)
    8. 1 2 3 Williams, Philip J. "Elections and democratization in Nicaragua: the 1990 elections in perspective." Journal of Interamerican Studies 32, 4:13-34 (winter 1990). p16
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