1888 Chilean parliamentary election

The 1888 Chilean parliamentary election was held on 25 March 1888 during the presidency of José Manuel Balmaceda. Candidates supporting the government won an overwhelming majority, taking 109 of the 123 seats in the Chamber of Deputies, while the opposition won 14. In the Senate, the opposition won only one of the 28 seats contested.

The election confirmed the electoral predominance of Balmaceda's government, although the methods used by the administration to influence elections remained a subject of political controversy. The Library of the National Congress of Chile describes the election as confirming government control over the electoral process, while noting that it was less coercive than the methods associated with the preceding administration of Domingo Santa María.

The election was also the first parliamentary election in which the newly founded Democratic Party participated. Its candidates failed to win parliamentary representation, but the party subsequently developed into an important organization within Chile's emerging working-class political movement.

Background

Balmaceda was elected president in 1886 as the candidate of the Liberal-National coalition. His administration initially enjoyed substantial support in Congress, and the government pursued an extensive program of public works and other reforms.

The political system remained characterized by significant executive influence over elections. Government intervention in electoral contests had been a feature of Chilean politics during previous administrations, although the extent and methods of that intervention varied between governments.

The 1888 election took place shortly before an important constitutional reform. On 9 August 1888, Congress ratified a reform eliminating the previous economic requirements for citizenship and extending the franchise to Chilean men aged 21 or older who could read and write and were registered in the electoral rolls.

The same constitutional reform altered the rules governing parliamentary representation. The Chamber of Deputies was to have one deputy for every 30,000 inhabitants, and for a population remainder of at least 15,000, increasing the number of deputies as Chile's population and territory expanded.

Electoral system

The election was held under the electoral legislation derived from the Constitution of 1833 and subsequent electoral reforms. Deputies were elected directly by voters in the departments, while senators represented larger provincial groupings.

At the time of the election, the Chamber of Deputies had 123 seats. The number had increased through successive legislative changes, particularly as new territories acquired after the War of the Pacific were incorporated into the electoral system.

The Senate had 28 elected members. Senate seats were renewed according to the constitutional system then in force rather than through a complete simultaneous renewal of the chamber.

Results

Government supporters won 109 of the 123 seats in the Chamber of Deputies, while opposition candidates won 14 seats. The government majority included 84 Liberals, 18 Nationals, and 7 Radicals. The 14 opposition deputies were Conservatives.

In the Senate, the opposition won only one of the 28 seats. The remaining 27 senators belonged to the government majority.

The election therefore gave Balmaceda a very large majority in both chambers. According to the Library of the National Congress, the government obtained 109 of the 123 Chamber seats, while the Conservative opposition secured only one Senate seat.

Democratic Party

The election marked the first parliamentary participation of the Democratic Party, founded definitively on 20 November 1887. The party sought to represent workers and other popular sectors that it considered insufficiently represented by the established parties.

In Santiago, the Democratic Party nominated Donato Millán as its candidate. Millán received 3,098 votes, compared with 14,540 for the Radical candidate Enrique Mac-Iver, according to the electoral account cited by the Library of the National Congress.

Although the Democratic Party failed to secure parliamentary representation, the election established an electoral base that the party continued to develop. It subsequently participated in municipal elections and continued organizing among workers and urban popular sectors.

Aftermath

The new Congress constituted the 22nd legislative period, which began on 1 June 1888. It remained in existence until 11 February 1891, when Balmaceda dissolved Congress during the constitutional crisis that preceded the Chilean Civil War.

The large government majority did not remain politically unified. During 1889, substantial numbers of legislators who had initially supported Balmaceda moved into opposition. By 1889, the government reportedly retained the support of only about 40 deputies, while the opposition had more than 80.

The breakdown of Balmaceda's congressional majority contributed to the constitutional conflict that intensified in 1890. Congress used its control over the periodic laws governing taxation and the budget as a means of pressuring the executive to form a ministry acceptable to the parliamentary majority.

In June 1890, the Chamber of Deputies postponed consideration of the tax law, and the Senate subsequently postponed consideration of the 1891 budget. The conflict culminated in the government's decision in January 1891 to continue using the previous year's budget without congressional approval, which Congress declared unconstitutional.

Balmaceda dissolved Congress on 11 February 1891 and called new parliamentary elections for March. Those elections produced the Congress Constituent, but the body was dissolved following Balmaceda's defeat in the civil war. A separate October 1891 parliamentary election was subsequently held by the victorious congressional government.

See also

• March 1891 Chilean parliamentary election
• October 1891 Chilean parliamentary election
• José Manuel Balmaceda
• Parliamentary era (Chile)
• Chilean Civil War of 1891
• Democratic Party (Chile)