The seat of the original capital of the Spanish New World, the Dominican Republic claims a host of American firsts: The first permanent European settlement, the first university, the first church and the first cathedral, the first mass, the first royal court, etc. The importance of Santo Domingo declined, however, as the bulk of the colonization and exploration shifted to the mainland. The French established the colony of Haiti in the western part of the island and the slaves there revolted and gained freedom in 1804. In 1822, the Haitians gained control over the entire island for 22 years, until 1844 when the Dominican Republic became freed of the Haitian Domination reverting to the status of a colony of Spain in 1861. In 1863, the process toward restoration bore fruit and full independence was recovered. The Americans occupied the Dominican Republic for 8 years, beginning in 1916, to ensure the payment of debts to American and European banks.
In 1930, the dictator Rafael Leonidas Trujillo gained power which he held inflexibly until his assassination in 1961. The years immediately following Trujillo’s death were turbulent. Juan Bosch was elected president in 1962 but was felled by a military coup. A series of short-lived provisional governments ensued until civil war broke out. In 1965, President Lyndon Johnson sent the Marines to stop the fighting and avoid “another Cuba”. Elections were held in 1966 and Joaqun Balaguer, who had held numerous posts in the Trujillo era, was elected president. He was re-elected in 1970 and 1974.
The Essay on The Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a nation that is located in the Caribbean regions island of Hispaniola. The western third of the republic is the nation of the Haiti, making Hispaniola one of the two Caribbean Islands that are occupied by two countries, the second one being St. Martin. ( http://www. dominicanrepublic. com/) The Dominican Republic is a country that has the first permanent Eastern ...
In 1978, Antonio Guzmn of the PRD opposition party defeated him and power was begrudgingly handed over. In 1982 Salvador Jorge Blanco, also of the PRD, was elected. Joaqun Balaguer was re-elected for a fourth term in 1986, defeating the PRD candidate by the barest of margins. In the 1990 elections, Balaguer again triumphed, this time over his old rival Juan Bosch (both candidates being in their 80’s).
In the most recent elections in May 1994, Balaguer was credited with a bare victory over Jos Francisco Pea Gmez of the PRD and Juan Bosch, who ran a distant third. Widespread accusations of irregularities led to a constitutional amendment limiting Balaguer to a two-year term.
Thus, elections will be held again in May 1996.
