1988 Paraguayan general election

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1988 Paraguayan general election
Flag of Paraguay.svg
  1983 14 February 1988 1989  
Turnout92.17%
Presidential election
  Alfredo Stroessner at desk (cropped) (cropped).jpg 3x4.svg
Candidate Alfredo Stroessner Luis María Vega
Party Colorado Radical Liberal
Popular vote1,187,73895,450
Percentage89.60%7.20%

President before election

Alfredo Stroessner
Colorado

President-elect

Alfredo Stroessner
Colorado

Chamber of Deputies election

All 60 seats in the Chamber of Deputies
31 seats needed for a majority
PartyLeader%Seats+/–
Colorado Alfredo Stroessner 89.60400
Radical Liberal Luis María Vega 7.20130
Liberal Carlos Ybarra 3.2070
This lists parties that won seats. See the complete results below.
Senate election

All 30 seats in the Senate
16 seats needed for a majority
Party%Seats+/–
Colorado 89.60200
Radical Liberal 7.2060
Liberal 3.2040
This lists parties that won seats. See the complete results below.

General elections were held in Paraguay on 14 February 1988. [1] Alfredo Stroessner of the Colorado Party won the presidential elections, whilst the Colorado Party won 20 of the 30 seats in the Senate and 40 of the 60 seats in the Chamber of Deputies. Voter turnout was 92%. [2]

These were the first elections held since Stroessner nominally lifted a state of siege in 1987. The state of siege had been in force since he took office in 1954. Despite this, the elections took place in an atmosphere that was little different from past elections during Stroessner's 34-year rule. Opposition leaders were arbitrarily arrested, and opposition meetings and demonstrations were broken up—often brutally. The Colorados were the only party allowed to campaign unhindered. By election day, the only independent media outlets that had not been shut down were those operated by the Catholic Church. Under these conditions, most opposition parties urged their supporters to either cast blank ballots or abstain from voting altogether. [3]

As it turned out, these were the last elections under Stroessner, who had won every election since 1954 with more than 70% of the vote. In February 1989, seven months after being sworn in for his eighth term, he was overthrown in a military coup. [4] Fresh elections were held in May 1989, the first time the opposition had been able to contest elections more or less unmolested for over thirty years. [4]

Results

PartyPresidential candidateVotes%Seats
Chamber+/–Senate+/–
Colorado Party Alfredo Stroessner 1,187,73889.60400200
Radical Liberal Party Luis María Vega 95,4507.2013060
Liberal Party Carlos Ferreira Ybarra 42,4303.207040
Total1,325,618100.00600300
Valid votes1,325,61899.41
Invalid/blank votes7,8180.59
Total votes1,333,436100.00
Registered voters/turnout1,446,67592.17
Source: Nohlen, IPU

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References

  1. Dieter Nohlen (2005) Elections in the Americas: A data handbook, Volume II, p425 ISBN   978-0-19-928358-3
  2. Nohlen, p426
  3. PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .Bruneau, Thomas C. (December 1988). "Government and Politics". In Hanratty, Dannin; Meditz, Sandra W. (eds.). Paraguay: A country study. Federal Research Division, Library of Congress. LCCN   89600299.
  4. 1 2 Nohlen, p416