Waging Peace:  Nicaragua

Monitoring Elections

A decade of war and economic disintegration created deep divisions in the 1980s among Nicaraguans who supported the Sandinistas and those who supported their opposition. The Sandinista government's failed socialist policies had more than quadrupled the country's foreign debt and failed to lift Nicaraguans out of poverty. As the 1990 presidential election grew close, the international community was leery of another Sandinista win, and tensions within Nicaragua increased. In turn, the government and electoral authorities welcomed international election observers, including The Carter Center, to help ensure an election that represented the will of the people.

1990 Presidential Election
Opposition candidate Violeta Barrios de Chamorro emerged as the president-elect after a campaign in which she and President Daniel Ortega were tied in opinion polls. The Center found the election to be fair and open, and former U.S. President Jimmy Carter brokered an agreement for a transition of power.

President Carter wrote of this election: "For the first time in Nicaragua, power was transferred peacefully from the incumbent to a rival after a free and fair election. And for the first time in the world, a revolutionary regime that came to power through armed struggle turned over control of the government to its adversaries as a result of voters' choice. The elections in Nicaragua were truly a historic moment for democracy."

1996 Elections
The Center observed elections again in October 1996 – a critical test of the new democracy. Despite considerable administrative challenges and disputes over election results, the process concluded peacefully with the election of Arnoldo Aleman as Nicaragua's new president. The Center's observers were impressed with the high voter turnout and the many party poll-watchers.

Fall 2000 Observation Mission
At the invitation of the Supreme Electoral Council, or CSE, The Carter Center undertook a three-part election observation mission in fall 2000. In September, a small study team evaluated preparations for Nicaragua's municipal elections, then observed the Nov. 5 municipal elections as well as preparations for the presidential election the following year. The team found electoral procedures, overall, met international standards but cited flaws in voter registration, low turnout, slow progress in reporting results, and serious election problems in the North Atlantic coast's indigenous region.

The Center commended the presence of party poll-watchers at almost all polling sites and noted only minor claims of irregularities had been made.

Nonetheless, several technical improvements were suggested, including:

1. Correct inaccurate voter lists prior to the 2001 national elections;
2. Better inform voters about where they should vote;
3. Distribute permanent voter identification cards prior to the election; and
4. Refine counting procedures.

2001 Legislative Elections
In late 2001, President Aleman's term in office was coming to a close. He was one of the most unpopular presidents in Nicaragua's history, dogged by widespread accusations of corruption during his term.

Elections were set for November with Aleman's vice president, Enrique Bolanos, running against former President Daniel Ortega. Bolanos sought to distance himself from Aleman during his campaign by pledging to clean up government and prosecute offenders. Ortega vowed his belief in a market economy after his failed socialist policies in the late 1980s left the economy in shambles.

The Center's delegation, led by former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and former Costa Rica President Oscar Arias, found the November presidential and legislative elections to be generally smooth and fair, but behind-the-scenes politicking to determine party eligibility to be on the ballot revealed institutional weaknesses in the decade-old democracy. Observers saw that Nicaragua needs to refine its political institutions, including the CSE.

A year later, President Bolanos' anti-corruption efforts bore results. Former President Aleman was convicted of looting almost $100 million in public funds. He was sentenced to 20 years imprisonment for funneling the money into his personal accounts overseas.

2006 Elections
The Carter Center returned to Nicaragua to observe the 2006 election process at the invitation of the CSE and the government of Nicaragua.

The 62-member international observation delegation was led by former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, former Panama President Ardito Barletta, and former Peru President Alejandro Toledo.

The delegation found the election climate to be competitive and the election administration to be adequate, with improvements over past electoral processes. The 2006 elections had five political parties competing energetically in a campaign free of violence. The military and police played a positive and nonpartisan role supporting the elections.

In the week leading up to the election, The Carter Center voiced concern about reports of political bias in the distribution of voting documents, including cedulas and documentos supletorios. Both The Carter Center and other international and domestic observers noted evidence of this phenomenon in several places in the country. A number of voting documents were not delivered prior to election day, possibly denying some citizens the opportunity to vote.

Importantly, despite these and other concerns, five presidential candidates went forward with the election, all persuaded that they stood a chance of winning under the current rules and conditions.

FSLN leader Daniel Ortega won an undisputed victory, although with a plurality rather than a majority of the vote. Four parties gained representation in the legislature, and the results of only one legislative race were questioned. The results were recognized by the international community, and the new president and legislature were inaugurated in January 2007.