Panama…forty years after the 1984 presidential elections Panamá…cuarenta años después de las elecciones presidenciales de 1984

Abstract

On May 6, 2024, forty years were commemorated since the first presidential election organized during the military regime, following the seizure of the political power by the top command forces of the National Guard. This event occurred on October 11th, 1968, when the constitutional President Arnulfo Arias Madrid suffered a coup just eleven days after assuming power.

Likewise, forty years have passed since the publication of the book: Anatomy of a Fraud, The 1984 Presidential Elections in Panama, authored by Raúl Arias de Para, a close collaborator of Ricardo Arias Calderón in the political arena between 1983 and 1993. This book, with a prologue by Arias Calderón, stands as the most detailed recount of the 1984 presidential elections. In this context, this commemorative essay aims to emphasize the importance of orderly, peaceful, transparent, and legitimate elections held every five years, a significant achievement of the Panamanian country after overcoming an authoritarian regime and the most evident experiences of electoral fraud in 1984 and 1989.