1885 Chilean parliamentary election
The 1885 Chilean parliamentary election was held on 29 March 1885 during the presidency of Domingo Santa María. The governing coalition retained a large majority in the Chamber of Deputies, winning 96 of the 113 seats, while the opposition won 17. The election was marked by extensive government intervention and by electoral violence, with contemporary accounts recording 165 people injured and 12 killed in incidents associated with the election.
The election took place after the Conservative Party had abstained from the 1882 parliamentary elections in protest against government intervention. Conservatives returned to electoral politics in 1885, but the governing parties nevertheless maintained a substantial majority.
The election was one of the last parliamentary contests held under the administration of Santa María. It produced the 21st legislative period, which began in June 1885 and continued until May 1888.
Background
The election was held during a period in which the Chilean executive exercised substantial influence over the electoral process. The electoral reforms of 1874 had reduced some of the government's direct control over elections, including by transferring responsibility for the formation of electoral authorities from municipalities to boards of major taxpayers. However, the executive continued to influence the composition and operation of these boards and other electoral institutions.
Santa María's government was strongly associated with electoral intervention. The president openly acknowledged his intervention in elections, arguing that it was necessary to secure a disciplined legislature capable of cooperating with the government.
The conflict between the government and the Conservative opposition was particularly intense because of the government's liberalizing policies in religious and civil affairs. During Santa María's presidency, Congress had enacted legislation establishing secular cemeteries, civil marriage, and civil registration, measures that reduced the Catholic Church's role in areas previously under ecclesiastical control.
The Conservatives had responded to government intervention by abstaining from the 1882 parliamentary elections. In 1885, however, the party decided to participate again. Its return to electoral politics did not prevent the government from retaining control of the legislature.
Electoral system
The election was conducted under the electoral system established by the Constitution of 1833 and modified by subsequent electoral legislation, including the electoral reform of 1874. The reform had abolished the previous property-based qualifications for voters and introduced a system in which literacy and registration in the electoral rolls became central requirements for voting.
Deputies were elected directly in electoral districts based on departments. The Senate was elected indirectly through electoral bodies established for the provinces.
The 1885 election was held for the 113 seats of the Chamber of Deputies. Senate elections were conducted according to the system of partial renewal established by the Constitution rather than through a simultaneous election of the entire chamber.
The electoral process was administered through boards of major taxpayers. These boards played an important role in compiling electoral rolls and organizing elections, and their composition became a major source of political conflict because of the government's ability to influence them.
Election campaign and violence
The election was accompanied by significant electoral violence. The Library of the National Congress records 165 people injured and 12 killed in incidents associated with the electoral process.
One of the most serious incidents occurred in Putaendo, where the local government prevented the formation of the board of major taxpayers. According to a later scholarly study of Chilean elections, the local authorities detained members of the municipal council in separate rooms, during which the taxpayer Francisco B. Lazcano was killed.
Similar disputes occurred in other electoral districts. In several departments, the boards of major taxpayers were not properly constituted, preventing elections from being held on schedule. When Congress opened in June 1885, approximately 20 deputies and six senators had yet to be elected.
The electoral controversies contributed to increasing criticism of executive intervention. Opposition politicians and newspapers accused the government of manipulating electoral authorities, interfering with the judiciary, and using administrative resources to influence the outcome of elections.
Despite these controversies, the election proceeded and produced a substantial government majority.
Results
Government supporters won 96 of the 113 seats in the Chamber of Deputies, while opposition candidates won 17 seats.
The party figures compiled by the Library of the National Congress from the work of historian Julio Heise show that the elected Chamber included 67 Liberals, 17 Conservatives, and seven Radicals. The remaining seats were held by members of the National Party and other political groupings.
Party |
Seats |
|---|---|
Liberal |
67 |
Conservative |
17 |
Radical |
7 |
Total represented by these parties |
91 |
The broader contemporary classification used by historians gives the government 96 seats and the opposition 17 seats. The difference between the party totals above and the government-opposition totals reflects the classification of individual deputies and political groupings in the period.
Aftermath
The newly elected Congress constituted the 21st legislative period, which began on 1 June 1885 and ended on 31 May 1888.
The government majority gave Santa María substantial legislative support during the final year of his presidency. The election also restored a Conservative parliamentary presence after the party's decision to abstain from the previous election.
The Conservatives' return to Congress did not end the dispute over electoral intervention. At its second general convention in December 1885, the party placed particular emphasis on the defense of electoral freedom and criticized official intervention in elections.
The political balance subsequently changed during the presidency of José Manuel Balmaceda, who succeeded Santa María in September 1886. Balmaceda initially governed with the support of a broad Liberal-National coalition, but divisions within the governing parties gradually weakened his congressional majority.
The 1885 election was therefore followed by a period of increasing political competition over the relationship between the executive and Congress. The disputes that developed during Balmaceda's presidency eventually culminated in the Chilean Civil War of 1891.
See also
- 1888 Chilean parliamentary election
- March 1891 Chilean parliamentary election
- Chilean Civil War of 1891
- Parliamentary era (Chile)