1986

October 10: Massive earthquake

Alvarado 1986: "El 10 de octubre El Salvador sufrió tal vez el mayor terremoto de su historia no sólo por la intensidad del sismo, sino porque sus efectos se sintieron en el área metropolitana, donde se concentra más de una quinta parte de la población nacional. Los más de mil muertos, diez mil heridos de distinta consideración, los doscientos mil damnificados en sus casas y en sus propiedades, las pérdidas que superan con mucho, aun antes de cerrar la cuenta, todo lo que es el presupuesto nacional de 2 años, constituyen un durísimo golpe sobre una población y un país ya golpeados secularmente por una pobreza masiva y, en los últimos años, por la guerra" (pages 930-931).

1987

Country profile. Guatemala, El Salvador 1994-95: "The Convergencia Democrática (CD), founded in 1987, is a coalition of small left-wing parties" (page 40).

Keesing’s record of world events June 1988: "In late November 1987 the National Revolutionary Movement (Movimiento Nacional Revolucionario--MNR) of Dr Guillermo Ungo and the Social Christian People’s Movement (Movimiento Popular Social Cristiano--MPSC) of Sr Rubén Zamora Rivas joined with the Social Democratic Party (Partido Social Demócrata--PSD) to form the Democratic Convergence (Convergencia Democrática), the main objectives of which were the achievement of a negotiated solution to the internal conflict and the examination of the possibility of participating in elections" (page 35953).

1988

January 8: Congress passes new electoral code

Montes 1988: New code states "El sufragio es un derecho y un deber de los ciudadanos, su ejercicio es indelegable e irrenunciable. El voto es libre, directo, igualitario y secreto" (page 178).

January 25: Rubén Zamora returns to El Salvador

March 20: Congressional and municipal elections

Acevedo 1991: Gives votes cast, invalid votes, and percent of vote obtained by ARENA, PDC, and PCN (page 31). "This was indisputably a big defeat for the PDC, which won almost 180,000 fewer votes than in 1985. ARENA won 160,000 more votes than in 1985, enabling it to take control of the Assembly" (page 31). Gives municipalities won by ARENA. Gives number of citizens who had registered to vote and number who had obtained polling cards and were able to vote.

Arriaza Meléndez 1989: "Elecciones de diputados: 20 de marzo de 1988, resultados por departamento" (page 43). Gives by department the votes for each party, the valid votes, "votos impugnados," null votes, abstentions, and total votes. "Elecciones de concejos municipales del 20 de marzo de 1988: resultados por departamento" (page 46). Gives by department the votes for each party, the valid and null votes, the abstentions, contested votes, and total votes cast. "Concejos municipales electos" (page 48) gives total won by each party.

Benítez Manaut 1990: Gives mayoralties won by each party (page 83). "Elecciones para diputados, 20/III/88" (page 84). Gives total vote and percent of vote for each party; numbers of votes that were valid, null, contested, unused, or lost; and number of abstentions.

Berryman 1988: Gives numbers of municipalities won by ARENA, PDC, PCN, and Liberación, with ARENA candidate Armando Calderón Sol becoming mayor of San Salvador. Gives congressional seats won by ARENA, PDC, and PCN (page B247).

Blachman 1989: ARENA wins control of the assembly and sweeps two-thirds of the mayoral elections, including San Salvador (page 108). Some one-third of registered voters did not participate in the elections (page 110).

Central America report April 8, 1988: Gives seats won by ARENA, PDC, and PCN in the first official count (page 103). "Following a recount of the votes in the department of La Unión, where election officials initially said ARENA had won, the La Unión seat was given to the DC, splitting the assembly evenly between ARENA on one hand and the DC and the PCN on the other." Gives number of municipalities won by ARENA (page 104).

Central America report April 15, 1988: "El Salvador: preliminary official results of March 20 legislative assembly elections" (page 108). Gives by department the seats won by ARENA, PDC, and PCN.

Central America report June 10, 1988: Gives number of registered voters; number who obtained voter registration cards for the March 20 elections; number of votes cast and percent this constitutes of the voting age population, the registered voters, and of those possessing voting cards; number of null, blank, and void votes; number of valid votes; number of votes won by the PDC, ARENA, and the PCN; number who abstained; percent of the eligible population who voted for ARENA; and number of mayoralties won by ARENA and the PDC (page 170).

Córdova M. 1988: "El Salvador. Elecciones del 20 de marzo de 1988. Resultados de las elecciones para diputados" (page 95). Gives votes and percent for each party. "El Salvador. Elecciones del 20 de marzo de 1988. Cantidad de diputados y alcaldías municipales, por partido" (page 96). "El Salvador: resultados elecciones para diputados. 20 de marzo de 1988" ("anexo no. 4," follows end of article). Gives for each department the number of polling places, votes for eight parties, contested votes, null votes, abstentions, blank votes, unused ballots, missing ballots, and total valid votes. "El Salvador: resultados elecciones para consejos municipales. 20 de marzo de 1988" ("anexo no. 5," follows end of article). Gives for each department the number of polling places, votes for eight parties, contested votes, null votes, abstentions, blank votes, unused ballots, missing ballots, and total valid votes.

Country report. Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras 1988. 2: "On March 20 Salvadoreans went to the polls to elect the 60 seat National Assembly and 262 mayors for the municipal authorities" (page 15-16). Gives preliminary results of the election. "The elections were characterised by widespread apathy among voters, and according to opinion polls over half the population felt that none of the parties standing represented their interests" (page 16).

Country report. Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras 1988. 3: "The March 20 elections for the 60 seat National Assembly and 262 municipal authorities resulted in a crushing defeat for the ruling Christian Democrat Party (PDC) and victory for the right wing Alianza Republicana Nacionalista (Arena). Arena’s tally of seats rose from 13 to 30, the PDC lost its majority and eleven seats to leave it with just 22, while the third largest party, the Partido de Conciliación Nacional (PCN), won seven seats...Arena also swept the board in the municipal elections, winning control of 200 town halls, including the capital, San Salvador, where the president’s son, Alejandro Duarte, lost the vote after 24 years of continuous PDC rule" (page 18).

El Salvador: elections 1994: Calderón Sol elected mayor of San Salvador (pages 18 and 20).

Eguizábal 1992: "The PDC lost eleven deputies in the legislature and majority of the mayoralties. ARENA obtained thirty-one deputies and 178 mayoralties, and the PCN received seven deputies and four municipalities" (page 142).

Eguizábal 1992a: Gives percent of vote and number of seats won by ARENA, PDC, and PCN (page 56).

García 1989: Gives number of municipal races won by ARENA and number of congressional seats won by the PDC (page 81).

Keesing’s record of world events June 1988: Gives official results of congressional and municipal elections (page 35952).

Montes 1988: "Diputados por partido y departamento, elecciones de 1988" (page 183). Gives by department the valid votes, total seats representing that department, electoral quotient, and votes and seats won by PDC, ARENA, and PCN. "Elecciones para diputados, por departamentos, 1988" (page 184). Gives by department valid votes and percent they constitute of total vote; total of abstentions, null votes, contested votes, and missing ballots and percent they constitute of total vote; total who voted; ballots not used; and total ballots printed.

Montes 1989: "Resultados de las elecciones de 1988: diputados" (page 205). Gives by department the votes for PDC, ARENA, PCN, and "otros," valid votes, invalid votes and the percent they constitute of total votes cast, total votes, and percent of country vote in each department.

Montgomery 1995: Gives seats and mayoralties won by the PDC and seats won by ARENA (page 208).

Ramos 1997: Gives seats lost by PDC, seats won by PCN, and seats and mayoralties won by ARENA (page 68).

Resultados oficiales de las elecciones 1988: "Consejo Central de Elecciones de El Salvador. Elecciones de diputados. Resultados por departamento. (20 de marzo de 1988)" (page 285). Gives by department the number of ballot boxes, votes for eight parties, contested votes, null votes, abstentions, unused ballots, missing ballots, and total valid votes. "Consejo Central de Elecciones de El Salvador. Elecciones de concejos municipales (20 de marzo de 1988). Resultados por departamento" (page 286). Gives by department the number of ballot boxes, votes for eight parties, contested votes, null votes, abstentions, unused ballots, missing ballots, and total valid votes. "Consejo Central de Elecciones de El Salvador. Elecciones de concejos municipales (20 de marzo de 1988). Resultados por municipio" (pages 286-295). Gives by municipality the number of ballot boxes, votes for eight parties, contested votes, null votes, abstentions, unused ballots, missing ballots, and total valid votes.

November

Dunkerley 1994: On November 15 "50,000-strong march demands peace negotiations" (page 112).