363. Telegram 1062 From the Embassy in Guyana to the Department of State1
1062. Subject: Guyana Election—Preliminary Assessment. Ref: (A) Georgetown 1032; (B) Georgetown 1060.
1. Results from all 38 election districts as well as overseas now reported although not all officially confirmed. Results as unofficially tabulated by Embassy as follows:
A. Vote Count
| Total Valid Votes | 348,046 | 100.0 | Percent |
| Total PNC Votes | 243,679 | 70.0 | Percent |
| Total PPP Votes | 92,673 | 2.7 [27.0] | Percent |
| Total PDM Votes | 2,113 | 0.6 | Percent |
B. Electoral
Quota—6,567 (Votes needed for one seat in National Assembly)
C. Seats in National Assembly
| PNC | 37.10 Seats |
| PPP | 14.11 Seats |
| PDM | 1.45 Seats |
| LP | 0.32 Seats |
2. If, as called for by election laws, seats are allocated on basis highest fraction results should be:
[Page 941]| PNC | 37 Seats |
| PPP | 14 Seats |
| LP | 2 Seats |
3. In attempting its forecast of this election (Ref A), Embassy had not really expected PNC to abandon all pretense of honest election. In event, however, this is what appears to have happened. Whether out of fear, confusion, inefficiency, exuberance or sheer lack of coordination, rigging does seem to have gotten out of hand. From all reports, ballot boxes were delivered by variety of means Monday night to Guyana Defense Force (GDF) headquarters in Georgetown where they remained under armed guard for upwards of 10 hours before vote counting began. PPP evidently succeeded only too well in alarming PNC by its last minute exhortations to its followers to prevent removal of ballot boxes to three central counting locations. Evidently, plans to engage in ballot box stuffing and switching while boxes being delivered, as had apparently been the original intention, were abandoned and stuffing and switching seems to have taken place while the boxes held at GDF headquarters before delivery to three counting locations.
4. Announced results district by district (which will be reported by airgram) so clearly padded that little can be learned by comparison with 1968 results which themselves suspect. We will really never know what true vote was in any of the districts, how successful PNC campaign might have been. Or how great Liberator Party’s appeal was. About all that can be said at this point is that Burnham has retained power and that he will be able to amend the constitution as he sees fit. As U.S. had in past devoted much time, effort and treasure to keeping Jagan out, we should perhaps not be too disturbed at results this election. Jagan is still out, and Burnham still in.
5. All is quiet in Georgetown, although rumors are abroad of discontent in East Indian areas in Essequibo, Berbice and Corentyne. It too early to predict whether results of this blatantly fraudulent election will be accepted or whether there is trouble ahead.
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Summary: The Embassy reported that the PNC won a landslide victory in national elections marked by extensive fraud.
Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Foreign Policy File, [no film number]. Confidential; Immediate. Repeated Priority to Bridgetown, Kingston, Port of Spain, and USCINCSO for POLAD. All brackets are in the original except “[27.0]”, added for clarity. Telegram 1032 is Document 362. Telegram 1060 from Georgetown is dated July 18. (Ibid., [no film number]) The airgram mentioned in paragraph 4 was not found.
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