817.00/5152: Telegram
The Secretary of State to the Chargé in Nicaragua (Munro)
209. Your 344, November 22, 1 p.m. Doctor Dodds has drafted the following additional section to transitory provisions of the Electoral Law to cover the matter.
“Section 8. Upon the restoration of the electoral law of March 20, 1923, in full force and effect, as provided in the preceding section, the National Board of Elections and the several departmental boards of elections and directorios electorates prescribed in said law shall forthwith be reconstituted in the manner provided by said law for the appointment of members of said boards and directories electorates respectively, and the basis for the selection of chairmen of the several departmental boards of ejection as prescribed in Section 22 of said law shall be the presidential election of 1928.
The respective terms of office of the members of all boards of election and directories electorates appointed in accordance with this section shall expire at the time they would have expired had such boards and directories electorates been appointed to serve under the electoral law of March 20, 1923 in the election for the Supreme Authorities in the year 1928.”
This will cover the situation to 1932, the only difference being that in Congressional and by-elections between termination of supervision of 1928 elections and the Presidential election of 1932 the composition of the departmental electoral boards and of the precinct boards will be on the basis of the 1928 Presidential election rather than on the basis of that of 1924. Doctor Dodds points out that if the Liberals should sweep the country in the election next year they will under this [Page 383] proposed Section 8 control a larger proportion of the election machinery than if the 1924 results are retained as a basis and that this consideration would probably cause them to support the proposal.
The Department will be glad to have your views regarding a possible amendment to the 1923 Electoral Law to make permanent a provision along the lines covered in this new transitory article. In other words, the Department would like to have your views as to the relative advantages or disadvantages of having Congressional elections between Presidential elections conducted by boards composed on the basis of the immediately preceding Presidential election rather than on the basis of the Presidential election 4 years previous thereto as at present. The Department is giving consideration to this matter. You will of course appreciate that it does not affect the present situation which is fully covered by the transitory provision but is merely a matter which the Department will have to take into consideration in any future permanent arrangement.
With reference to the statement of the Liberals regarding their understanding with Colonel Stimson, the latter states:
“The assertion of the Liberals that I recognized the right of their party to the presidency of the Departmental Boards is quite untrue. For the sake of avoiding any controversy in the by-elections held last September in the Liberal districts, I advised President Diaz to permit the majority of the boards in those districts to be constituted of Liberals. But I have never undertaken to express an opinion as to the party result of the election of 1924. The ticket then elected was a coalition ticket composed of both Conservatives and Liberals. I have never myself examined into the question of whether the election could be fairly called a Liberal or a Conservative victory and I have never expressed an opinion thereon. Please make this clear to all parties in Nicaragua.”