1984 Nicaraguan general election

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] Much of the opposition in Nicaragua boycotted the election.^[3] However, American and British observers concluded that the elections were generally free and fair.^[4]^[5]

Quick facts Turnout, Candidate ...

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4 November 1984 (1984-11-04)

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Presidential election

Turnout

75.42%


Candidate	Daniel Ortega	Clemente Guido
Party	FSLN	PCD
Running mate	Sergio Ramírez	Merceditas Rodriguez de Chamorro
Popular vote	735,967	154,327
Percentage	66.97%	14.04%

Results by department

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

	Leader	Vote %	Seats	+/–
FSLN	Daniel Ortega	66.78	61	New
PCD	Clemente Guido	14.00	13	New
PLI	Virgilio Godoy	9.66	8	New
PPSC	Mauricio Díaz	5.63	5	New
Communist	Allan Zambrana	1.48	1	New
PSN	Domingo Sánchez	1.40	1	New
MAP-ML	Isidro Téllez	1.04	1	New

This lists parties that won seats. See the complete results below.

Results by constituency

	President of the National Assembly after
	Carlos Núñez FSLN

Close

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".^[6]

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."^[7] Similarly, multiple extensions of the deadline for candidate registration were granted whilst talks with the Coordinadora continued.^[8]

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."^[9] 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."^[9] 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.^[9]

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."^[10]

Results

President

More information Candidate, Party ...


Candidate		Party	Votes	%
	Daniel Ortega	Sandinista National Liberation Front	735,967	66.97
	Clemente Guido Chavez	Democratic Conservative Party	154,327	14.04
	Virgilio Godoy Reyes	Independent Liberal Party	105,560	9.61
	Mauricio Díaz Dávila	Popular Social Christian Party	61,199	5.57
	Allan Zambrana Salmerón	Communist Party of Nicaragua	16,034	1.46
	Domingo Sánchez Salgado	Nicaraguan Socialist Party	14,494	1.32
	Isidro Téllez Toruño	Marxist–Leninist Popular Action Movement	11,352	1.03
Total			1,098,933	100.00

Valid votes			1,098,933	93.91
Invalid/blank votes			71,209	6.09
Total votes			1,170,142	100.00
Registered voters/turnout			1,551,597	75.42
Source: Nohlen

Close

National Assembly

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

More information Party, Votes ...



Party		Votes	%	Seats
	Sandinista National Liberation Front	729,159	66.78	61
	Democratic Conservative Party	152,883	14.00	14
	Independent Liberal Party	105,497	9.66	9
	Popular Social Christian Party	61,525	5.63	6
	Communist Party of Nicaragua	16,165	1.48	2
	Nicaraguan Socialist Party	15,306	1.40	2
	Marxist–Leninist Popular Action Movement	11,343	1.04	2
Total		1,091,878	100.00	96

Valid votes		1,091,878	93.31
Invalid/blank votes		78,224	6.69
Total votes		1,170,102	100.00
Registered voters/turnout		1,551,597	75.41
Source: Nohlen

Close

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,^[11] 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."^[12] May 1985 saw a trade embargo imposed by the US, 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]

References

Bibliography

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Political handbook of the world 1984. New York, 1985.
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President

National Assembly

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