A presidential election was held in Chile on 4 September 1970. A very narrow plurality was secured by Salvador Allende, the candidate of the Popular Unity coalition of leftist parties. Because he did not obtain an absolute majority, his election required (and received) a further vote by the National Congress of Chile which resulted in Allende assuming the presidency in accordance with the Chilean Constitution of 1925.
Results
Other sources give slightly different figures. See, for example:
- [1], [2]: 36.3%, 34.9%, 27.8%
- [3]: 36.5%, 34.9%, 27.8%. This source also says that 0.2% cast blank ballots and that 0.6% of ballots were annulled.
- In his memoirs (White House Years , 1979), Henry Kissinger credits Allende with "a bare 36.2 percent of the popular vote".
The International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IDEA) reports [4] that a total of 2,954,799 votes were cast, from a registered electorate of 3,539,747, giving a turnout of 83.5%. 3,539,747 registered voters is a noticeably low proportion of the total Chilean population of 9,720,000, of whom IDEA calculates that 5,346,000 (55.3%) were of voting age. Registration and turnout were reasonably consistent with earlier Chilean presidential elections, although both registration and participation have been considerably higher since the restoration of elections, beginning with the election of 1989.
Congressional confirmation
None of the candidates received an absolute majority of votes; according to the 1925 Constitution, the National Congress had to decide between the two candidates who had received the most votes, Allende and Alessandri. The precedent set on the three previous occasions this situation had arisen since 1932 was for Congress simply to choose the candidate with the highest number of votes; indeed, former president Alessandri had been elected in 1958 with 31.6% of the popular vote, defeating the same Allende.
In this case, however, there was an active campaign against Allende's confirmation by Congress, and his presidency was ratified only after he agreed to sign a "Statute of Constitutional Guarantees", promising not to undermine the Chilean Constitution.
Between the popular vote on 4 September, and the Congressional confirmation on 24 October, there were several attempts to derail the process. The most ominous one (in hindsight) was the assassination of Army Commander-in-Chief General René Schneider, on 22 October, in a botched kidnapping attempt organized by General Roberto Viaux.
Views of the election
There are generally two views of the voting in 1970. Those who opposed Salvador Allende point out that he received only a plurality of 36.3% of the vote. Those who supported him point instead to the fact that leftist forces clearly won a majority: in addition to Allende and the Unidad Popular (UP or Popular Unity) coalition he represented, Christian Democrat Radomiro Tomic won 27.9% with a very similar platform to Allende's. Conservative former president Jorge Alessandri received slightly under 35.8% of the vote.
It has been argued than given that less than the majority of the voters voted for him, Allende did not have a clear "mandate" to embark in the wide reforms put forward on his program. But the legality of the election itself is not in dispute.
Articles about Allende/Pinochet coup d'état in Chile
See also
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