Dominican Republic and Haiti: Country Studies

Dominican Republic: Government and Politics
Bosch, which was overthrown after only seven months in office.
Yet, the PRD as a strong party was ultimately forged through
this initial victory and overthrow, and the further heroics of
civil war, foreign intervention, and subsequent repression
under Balaguer. The struggle for democracy during the 1970s
under these conditions and the hard bureaucratic work associated
with it helped to build a strong organization led by Jose
Francisco Peha Gomez, who often served as the party's secretary
general. The party continued to prosper in spite of Bosch's
departure in 1973 in order to create a new party. Bosch, who
had become radicalized as a consequence of the 1965 United
States intervention, was promoting the notion of "dictatorship
with popular support."
Following Bosch's departure, the PRD pursued a threepronged
strategy to assume power in 1978. It continued its
extensive organizational work, particularly in the country's
major urban areas where the bulk of its supporters were found.
The party also moderated its nationalist, statist, and reformist
program and purposely named a very moderate figure,
Guzman, as its presidential candidate. In addition, it assiduously
strengthened its international contacts, both with the
Socialist International and with liberal politicians in the United
States. As a consequence, when the Dominican military sought
to block the vote count and prevent a PRD victory in 1978, the
party was able to draw upon support from the United States
and other international allies, as well as from a variety of
domestic groups and to secure the presidency. In 1982, with
Jorge Blanco as its presidential candidate, the PRD was once
again able to win the country's national elections.
The eight-year period during which the PRD held the presidency
turned out to be an acute disappointment for the country
and for the party, however. The party was forced to oversee
a difficult period of economic stabilization as a result of the
debt crisis. At the same time, each of the presidencies became
marked by bitter intraparty division as the party increasingly
lost its ideological moorings and its factions fought for power
and spoils. The first term was marked by the tragic suicide of
Guzman near the end of his term. Guzman had bitterly
opposed Jorge Blanco's nomination as the party's candidate for
president, and as he became increasingly isolated within the
party, he feared retribution and corruption charges against
family members by the incoming administration. The term presided
over by Jorge Blanco saw an increase in levels of corrup-
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