Presidential elections were held in the Dominican Republic on 16 May 1996, with a second round on 30 June.[1][2] Whilst José Francisco Peña Gómez won the most votes in the first round, he was defeated by Leonel Fernández in the second round, after the Social Christian Reformist Party, whose candidate had lost in the first round, declared their support for Fernández.[3] Voter turnout was 78.63% in the first round and 76.80% in the second.[4]
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16 May 1996 (first round)
30 June 1996 (second round) | |||||||||||||||||
| Turnout | 78.63% (first round)  9.28pp76.80% (second round) | ||||||||||||||||
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Conservatives and business interests opposed Peña Gómez.[5] Peña Gómez, whose parents were Haitian, faced nationalist, anti-Haiti rhetoric in the campaign.[6]
The elections were considered free and fair.[6]
Results
edit| Candidate | Party | First round | Second round | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Votes | % | Votes | % | |||
| José Francisco Peña Gómez | Dominican Revolutionary Party | 1,333,925 | 45.94 | 1,394,641 | 48.75 | |
| Leonel Fernández | Dominican Liberation Party | 1,130,523 | 38.93 | 1,466,382 | 51.25 | |
| Jacinto Peynado Garrigosa | Social Christian Reformist Party | 435,504 | 15.00 | |||
| José Rafael Abinader | Social Democratic Alliance | 3,907 | 0.13 | |||
| Total | 2,903,859 | 100.00 | 2,861,023 | 100.00 | ||
| Valid votes | 2,903,859 | 98.47 | 2,861,023 | 99.33 | ||
| Invalid/blank votes | 45,120 | 1.53 | 19,402 | 0.67 | ||
| Total votes | 2,948,979 | 100.00 | 2,880,425 | 100.00 | ||
| Registered voters/turnout | 3,750,502 | 78.63 | 3,750,502 | 76.80 | ||
| Source: Nohlen | ||||||
References
edit- ↑ Dieter Nohlen (2005) Elections in the Americas: A data handbook, Volume I, p247 ISBN 978-0-19-928357-6
- ↑ "Election Watch". Journal of Democracy. 7 (3). 1996. ISSN 1086-3214.
- ↑ Nohlen, p242
- ↑ Nohlen, p248
- ↑ Darling, Juanita (1996-05-18). "Dominican Leadership Race Goes to Runoff". Los Angeles Times.
- 1 2 Sagás, Ernesto (1997). "The 1996 presidential elections in the Dominican Republic". Electoral Studies. 16 (1): 103–107. doi:10.1016/S0261-3794(97)83120-4. ISSN 0261-3794.