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]
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]
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]
Aftermathedit
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]
^Williams, Philip J. "Elections and democratization in Nicaragua: the 1990 elections in perspective." Journal of Interamerican Studies 32, 4:13-34 (winter 1990). p15
^"1984: Sandinistas claim election victory" BBC News, November 5, 1984
^"NICARAGUAN VOTE: 'FREE, FAIR, HOTLY CONTESTED'" The New York Times
^Cornelius, Wayne A. "The Nicaraguan elections of 1984: a reassessment of their domestic and international significance." Drake, Paul W. and Eduardo Silva. 1986. Elections and democratization in Latin America, 1980-85. La Jolla: Center for Iberian and Latin American Studies, Center for U.S.-Mexican Studies, Institute of the Americas, University of California, San Diego. Pp. 62.
^ abcWilliams, Philip J. "Elections and democratization in Nicaragua: the 1990 elections in perspective." Journal of Interamerican Studies 32, 4:13-34 (winter 1990). p16
^Smith, Hazel. Nicaragua: self-determination and survival. London : Pluto Press. 1993. Pp. 149.
^(PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 1 December 2015.
^Booth, John A. "Electoral observation and democratic transition in Nicaragua." Electoral observation and democratic transitions in Latin America. 1998. La Jolla: Center for U.S.-Mexican Studies, University of California, San Diego. Pp. 189.
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Alcántara Sáez, Manuel. Sistemas políticos de América Latina. Madrid: Tecnos. Two volumes. Volume two is "México. Los países del Caribe y de América Central." 1989.
Alcántara Sáez, Manuel. Sistemas políticos de América Latina. Madrid: Tecnos. Two volumes. Volume two is "México, América Central y el Caribe." Largely rewritten and updated second edition. 1999.
Anderson, Leslie. "Elections and public opinion in the development of Nicaraguan democracy." Seligson, Mitchell A. and John A. Booth. 1995. Elections and democracy in Central America, revisited. Chapel Hill: The University of North Carolina Press.
Booth, John A. "Electoral observation and democratic transition in Nicaragua." Electoral observation and democratic transitions in Latin America. 1998. La Jolla: Center for U.S.-Mexican Studies, University of California, San Diego.
Close, David. "The Nicaraguan elections of 1984." Electoral studies 4, 2:152-158 (August 1985).
Close, David. Nicaragua : the Chamorro years. Boulder: Lynne Reinner. 1999.
Cornelius, Wayne A. "The Nicaraguan elections of 1984: a reassessment of their domestic and international significance." Drake, Paul W. and Eduardo Silva. 1986. Elections and democratization in Latin America, 1980–85. La Jolla: Center for Iberian and Latin American Studies, Center for U.S.-Mexican Studies, Institute of the Americas, University of California, San Diego.
Dunkerley, James. 1988. Power in the isthmus: a political history of Central America. London: Verso.
Elections in the Americas A Data Handbook Volume 1. North America, Central America, and the Caribbean. Edited by Dieter Nohlen. 2005.
Fiallos Oyanguren, Mariano. "Nicaragua: sistema de elección de los diputados ante la Asamblea Nacional." Sistemas de elecciones parlamentarias y su relación con la gobernabilidad democrática. 2000. San José: Instituto Interamericano de Derechos Humanos.
Figueroa Ibarra, Carlos. "Centroamérica: entre la crisis y la esperanza (1978-1990)." Historia general de Centroamérica. 1994. San José: FLACSO. Volume six,
Goodman, Louis W., ed. Political parties and democracy in Central America. Boulder: Westview Press. 1992.
Hale, Charles R. "Institutional struggle, conflict and reconciliation: Miskitu Indians and the Nicaraguan state (1979-1985)." Ethnic groups and the nation state: the case of the Atlantic coast in Nicaragua. 1987. Stockholm: University of Stockholm, CIDCA.
Horton, Lynn. Peasants in arms: war and peace in the mountains of Nicaragua, 1979–1994. Athens: Ohio University, Center for International Studies. 1998.
Isbester, Katherine. Still fighting: the Nicaraguan women's movement, 1977–2000. Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press. 2001.
Luciak, Ilja A. After the revolution: gender and democracy in El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Guatemala. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. (Also published as Después de la revolución. San Salvador: UCA Editores). 2001.
Merrill, Tim L., ed. Nicaragua : a country study. Washington: Federal Research Division, Library of Congress. 1994.
Ortega Hegg, Manuel. "Participación y democracia en Nicaragua." Pasos hacia una nueva convivencia: democracia y participación en Centroamérica. 2001. San Salvador: FUNDAUNGO.
Payne, Douglas W. The 1996 Nicaragua elections: post-election report. Washington: Center for Strategic and International Studies. 1996.
Political handbook of the world 1984. New York, 1985.
Smith, Hazel. Nicaragua: self-determination and survival. London : Pluto Press. 1993.
Weaver, Eric and William Barnes. "Opposition parties and coalitions." Revolution and counterrevolution in Nicaragua. 1991. Boulder: Westview Press.
Williams, Philip J. "Elections and democratization in Nicaragua: the 1990 elections in perspective." Journal of Interamerican Studies 32, 4:13-34 (winter 1990).
Williams, Philip J. "Dual transitions from authoritarian rule: popular and electoral democracy in Nicaragua." Comparative politics 26, 2:169-185 (January 1994).
January 01, 1970
1984, nicaraguan, general, election, general, elections, were, held, nicaragua, november, 1984, elect, president, parliament, approximately, million, nicaraguans, voted, representing, turnout, with, eligible, voters, registered, impartial, observers, from, int. 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 1984 Nicaraguan general election 1974 4 November 1984 1984 11 04 1990 Presidential electionTurnout75 42 Candidate Daniel Ortega Clemente Guido Party FSLN PCD Running mate Sergio Ramirez Merceditas Rodriguez de Chamorro Popular vote 735 967 154 327 Percentage 66 97 14 04 Results by departmentPresident before election Daniel Ortega FSLN Elected President Daniel Ortega FSLNParliamentary election90 of 96 seats in the National Assembly46 seats needed for a majorityParty Leader Seats FSLN Daniel Ortega 66 78 61 New PCD Clemente Guido 14 00 13 New PLI Virgilio Godoy 9 66 8 New PPSC Mauricio Diaz 5 63 5 New Communist Allan Zambrana 1 48 1 New PSN Domingo Sanchez 1 40 1 New MAP ML Isidro Tellez 1 04 1 New This lists parties that won seats See the complete results below President of the National Assembly afterCarlos NunezFSLN 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 Contents 1 Coordinadora Democratica participation 2 Aftermath 3 Results 3 1 President 3 2 National Assembly 4 References 5 BibliographyCoordinadora Democratica participation editIt 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 Democratica Nicaraguense 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 editThe 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 editPresident edit CandidatePartyVotes Daniel OrtegaSandinista National Liberation Front735 96766 97Clemente Guido ChavezDemocratic Conservative Party154 32714 04Virgilio Godoy ReyesIndependent Liberal Party 105 5609 61Mauricio Diaz DavilaPopular Social Christian Party61 1995 57Allan Zambrana SalmeronCommunist Party of Nicaragua16 0341 46Domingo Sanchez SalgadoNicaraguan Socialist Party14 4941 32Isidro Tellez TorunoMarxist Leninist Popular Action Movement11 3521 03Total1 098 933100 00Valid votes1 098 93393 91Invalid blank votes71 2096 09Total votes1 170 142100 00Registered voters turnout1 551 59775 42Source Nohlen National Assembly edit All parties except the FSLN were awarded an additional seat for the party s unsuccessful presidential candidate nbsp PartyVotes SeatsSandinista National Liberation Front729 15966 7861Democratic Conservative Party152 88314 0014Independent Liberal Party105 4979 669Popular Social Christian Party61 5255 636Communist Party of Nicaragua16 1651 482Nicaraguan Socialist Party15 3061 402Marxist Leninist Popular Action Movement11 3431 042Total1 091 878100 0096Valid votes1 091 87893 31Invalid blank votes78 2246 69Total votes1 170 102100 00Registered voters turnout1 551 59775 41Source NohlenReferences edit Williams Philip J Elections and democratization in Nicaragua the 1990 elections in perspective Journal of Interamerican Studies 32 4 13 34 winter 1990 p15 a b c Williams 1990 19 1984 Sandinistas claim election victory BBC News November 5 1984 NICARAGUAN VOTE FREE FAIR HOTLY CONTESTED The New York Times Cornelius Wayne A The Nicaraguan elections of 1984 a reassessment of their domestic and international significance Drake Paul W and Eduardo Silva 1986 Elections and democratization in Latin America 1980 85 La Jolla Center for Iberian and Latin American Studies Center for U S Mexican Studies Institute of the Americas University of California San Diego Pp 62 Williams 1990 17 18 Williams 1990 18 a b c Williams Philip J Elections and democratization in Nicaragua the 1990 elections in perspective Journal of Interamerican Studies 32 4 13 34 winter 1990 p16 Smith Hazel Nicaragua self determination and survival London Pluto Press 1993 Pp 149 THE ELECTORAL PROCESS IN NICARAGUA DOMESTIC AND INTERNATIONAL INFLUENCES PDF Archived from the original PDF on 8 December 2015 Retrieved 1 December 2015 Booth John A Electoral observation and democratic transition in Nicaragua Electoral observation and democratic transitions in Latin America 1998 La Jolla Center for U S Mexican Studies University of California San Diego Pp 189 Bibliography editAlcantara Saez Manuel Sistemas politicos de America Latina Madrid Tecnos Two volumes Volume two is Mexico Los paises del Caribe y de America Central 1989 Alcantara Saez Manuel Sistemas politicos de America Latina Madrid Tecnos Two volumes Volume two is Mexico America Central y el Caribe Largely rewritten and updated second edition 1999 Anderson Leslie Elections and public opinion in the development of Nicaraguan democracy Seligson Mitchell A and John A Booth 1995 Elections and democracy in Central America revisited Chapel Hill The University of North Carolina Press Booth John A Electoral observation and democratic transition in Nicaragua Electoral observation and democratic transitions in Latin America 1998 La Jolla Center for U S Mexican Studies University of California San Diego Chomsky Noam and Edward S Herman 1988 Manufacturing Consent The Political Economy of the Mass Media New York Pantheon Books Chapter 3 focuses on the US media coverage of the 1984 Nicaraguan elections Close David The Nicaraguan elections of 1984 Electoral studies 4 2 152 158 August 1985 Close David Nicaragua the Chamorro years Boulder Lynne Reinner 1999 Cornelius Wayne A The Nicaraguan elections of 1984 a reassessment of their domestic and international significance Drake Paul W and Eduardo Silva 1986 Elections and democratization in Latin America 1980 85 La Jolla Center for Iberian and Latin American Studies Center for U S Mexican Studies Institute of the Americas University of California San Diego Dunkerley James 1988 Power in the isthmus a political history of Central America London Verso Elections in the Americas A Data Handbook Volume 1 North America Central America and the Caribbean Edited by Dieter Nohlen 2005 Fiallos Oyanguren Mariano Nicaragua sistema de eleccion de los diputados ante la Asamblea Nacional Sistemas de elecciones parlamentarias y su relacion con la gobernabilidad democratica 2000 San Jose Instituto Interamericano de Derechos Humanos Figueroa Ibarra Carlos Centroamerica entre la crisis y la esperanza 1978 1990 Historia general de Centroamerica 1994 San Jose FLACSO Volume six Goodman Louis W ed Political parties and democracy in Central America Boulder Westview Press 1992 Hale Charles R Institutional struggle conflict and reconciliation Miskitu Indians and the Nicaraguan state 1979 1985 Ethnic groups and the nation state the case of the Atlantic coast in Nicaragua 1987 Stockholm University of Stockholm CIDCA Horton Lynn Peasants in arms war and peace in the mountains of Nicaragua 1979 1994 Athens Ohio University Center for International Studies 1998 Isbester Katherine Still fighting the Nicaraguan women s movement 1977 2000 Pittsburgh University of Pittsburgh Press 2001 Luciak Ilja A After the revolution gender and democracy in El Salvador Nicaragua and Guatemala Baltimore Johns Hopkins University Press Also published as Despues de la revolucion San Salvador UCA Editores 2001 Merrill Tim L ed Nicaragua a country study Washington Federal Research Division Library of Congress 1994 Ortega Hegg Manuel Participacion y democracia en Nicaragua Pasos hacia una nueva convivencia democracia y participacion en Centroamerica 2001 San Salvador FUNDAUNGO Payne Douglas W The 1996 Nicaragua elections post election report Washington Center for Strategic and International Studies 1996 Political handbook of the world 1984 New York 1985 Ryan David US Sandinista diplomatic relations voice of intolerance London MacMillan Press Ltd 1995 Smith Hazel Nicaragua self determination and survival London Pluto Press 1993 Weaver Eric and William Barnes Opposition parties and coalitions Revolution and counterrevolution in Nicaragua 1991 Boulder Westview Press Williams Philip J Elections and democratization in Nicaragua the 1990 elections in perspective Journal of Interamerican Studies 32 4 13 34 winter 1990 Williams Philip J Dual transitions from authoritarian rule popular and electoral democracy in Nicaragua Comparative politics 26 2 169 185 January 1994 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title 1984 Nicaraguan general election amp oldid 1223172514, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
