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In Chile's 1970 presidential election, in accordance with the constitution, Congress resolved the 3-way split — between Salvador Allende (with 36.3% of the vote), conservative (and former president) Jorge Alessandri Rodríguez (35.8%), and the Christian Democrat Radomiro Tomic (27.9%) — by voting to approve Allende's narrow plurality. Various sectors of Chilean society still opposed his presidency, as did the United States, which placed diplomatic and economic pressure on the government. On September 11, 1973 the Chilean armed forces overthrew Allende, who died during the coup. A junta led by Augusto Pinochet assumed power.
Those who favor the coup d'état argue that it was essential for preserving democracy and prosperity in Chile. They claim that Salvador Allende wanted to establish a Cuban-style dictatorship, which in their view would have destroyed human rights as well as economic prosperity, and therefore they insist that the forcible removal of the elected president was a necessary and justified course of action.
Those who oppose the coup argue that it represented an unprecedented and inexcusable outrage against democracy. They cite several thousand documented cases of tortureTorture is the infliction of severe physical or psychological pain as a means of cruelty, intimidation, punishment, for the extraction of a confession or information or simply for the entertainment of the perpetrator. Signatories of the Third Geneva Conve as well as " disappearForced disappearance Disappear (as a transitive verb, as in "to disappear someone") is a doublespeak euphemism for the murder of political opponents. Typically, the murder is surreptitious, and the body disposed where it will (hopefully) never be found.ances." They often point to the rise of unemployment and the fall of real wages (as well as the growing rich/poor divide) under Pinochet, to support their assertion that the coup damaged Chile's economic prosperity, rather than strengthening it as Pinochet's supporters allege. Finally, they argue that the notion of preserving democracy by instituting a dictatorship is ridiculous and hypocritical, pointing out that Allende won the presidency in a free and fair election.
When Allende came to power in 1970, Chilean society was already racked by economic difficulties. Problems such as slow growth, inflation, maldistribution of income and the concentration of economic power remained stubborn and intractable. The majority of the Chilean population were at the lower end of the socioeconomic spectrum and had grown weary of perennial problems that were affecting the country.
Main article: 1970 Chilean presidential 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, running with the Unidad Popular (UP or Popular Unity) coalition, 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.
| Candidate | Votes | % |
|---|---|---|
| Allende | 1,066,372 | 36.29% |
| Alessandri | 1,050,863 | 35.76% |
| Tomic | 821,350 | 27.95% |
| Total | 2,943,561 | Source: PDBA |
According to the constitution, Congress had to decide between the two candidates who had received the most votes. The precedent set on the three previous occasions this situation had arisen since 19321932 is the leap year starting on Friday. see link for calendar) Events January-February January 3 British arrest and intern Mohandas Gandhi and Vallabhbhai Patel January 8 In Britain the Archbishop of Canterbury forbids church remarriage of divorcees Jan was for Congress simply to choose the candidate with the largest number of votes; indeed, former president Alessandri had been elected in 1958Events January January 1 Treaty of Rome founding the EU is implemented January 4 Sputnik 1 falls to Earth from its orbit (launched on October 4 1957) January 8 14 year old Bobby Fischer wins the United States Chess Championship January 18 Armed Lumbee Nat with 31.6% of the popular vote.
In this case, however, there was an active campaign against Allende's confirmation by Congress, and his presidency was ratified only after he signed a "Statute of Constitutional Guarantees".
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.
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