Dominican Republic and Haiti: Country Studies

Dominican Republic: Government and Politics
tered the electoral arena. From a mere 1.1 percent of the vote
in 1978, the PLD's support grew to 9.9 percent in 1982 and
18.4 percent in 1986. In 1990 a much more moderate PLD
campaigned on promises of honesty, efficient government, and
gradual reform. It gained 33.9 percent of the vote, losing the
presidency to Balaguer by a very slim margin, which many
Dominicans are convinced was the result of fraud. Although
the PLD continued to retain a more complex organizational
structure and a greater respect for internal party norms than
did Balaguer's PRSC, Bosch remained its unquestioned leader;
individuals perceived as potential threats were occasionally
forced out of the party.
During the 1990s, the PLD continued to moderate its ideological
position. Retaining a modest nationalism and focus on
good governance, as well as a strong organizational structure,
the party sought to reach out more effectively to broader sectors
of Dominican society. In 1994 an aging and ailing Bosch
was able to capture only 13.1 percent of the vote. As a result of
the agreement following that election, Balaguer's term was
shortened by two years, and he agreed not to seek reelection.
Because of his age and poor health, Bosch agreed to step down
as leader and presidential candidate for the PLD and endorsed
the party's nominee, Leonel Fernandez. With Fernandez's victory
in the 1996 presidential elections, the PLD reached the
country's highest office; ironically, however, the once radical
party did so by defeating the PRD through a coalition with the
conservative Balaguer. The PLD, however, has been stymied by
its lack of support in Congress. In the 1998 elections, it
received 30.4 percent of the vote, slightly increasing its presence
in Congress, especially in the Chamber of Deputies where
it was able to elect forty-nine representatives, just enough to
uphold a presidential veto. Nevertheless, President Fernandez
has remained a generally popular figure. And, his favored candidate
within the PLD, his close adviser and Secretary of the
Presidency Danilo Medina, won the party's nomination
through a closed party primary in June 1999 to be the PLD candidate
for the May 2000 elections. The major future challenges
for the PLD are consolidating its support among the parts of
the electorate it won over from the PRSC and winning over
new voters, while preventing factional strife and division.
In addition to these major parties, the PRSC, the PLD, and
the PRD, the Dominican Republic has had multiple minor parties.
Some of these have been little more than personalist vehi-
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