Presidential elections were held in Chile on 4 September 1946.Dieter Nohlen (2005) Elections in the Americas: A data handbook, Volume II, p262 The result was a victory for Gabriel González Videla of the Radical Party, who received 40% of the popular vote and 75% of the Congressional vote.

Electoral system The election was conducted using the absolute majority system, wherein a candidate had to secure more than 50% of the popular vote to be elected. In the event that no candidate obtained the required majority, both houses of the National Congress would convene to vote on the two candidates with the highest number of votes.Nohlen, p259

Candidates

Gabriel González Videla In early 1946, the Radical Party Congress took place in Valdivia from 24 to 27 January, during which the presidential candidate was to be chosen. An internal vote was planned to decide between Gabriel González Videla and Arturo Olavarría, who had the support of the Duhaldista faction. However, shortly before the vote on 28 April, the Duhaldista faction withdrew their backing for Olavarría and abstained. Consequently, he suffered a significant defeat at the hands of his opponent. The final results of the Radical Party's internal plebiscite were as follows: CandidatePartyVotes%Gabriel González VidelaPR22,15984.9%Arturo Olavarría BravoPR3,93815.1%Blank votes195Null votes14Total votes cast26,306100% The Democratic Alliance, the successor of the Popular Front, held a convention on 20 July. The following day, they unanimously decided to support González, disregarding the candidacy of the communist Elías Lafertte. The results of the voting at the convention were as follows: CandidatePartyVoting rounds1st2nd3rd4thGabriel González VidelaPR0169176302Elías Lafertte GaviñoPCCh941081230Asdrúbal Pezoa291600Jerónimo Méndez ArancibiaPR165000Total votes cast288293299302

Bernardo Ibáñez In light of González Videla's nomination as the Democratic Alliance candidate, the Socialist Party declared on 11 July that they would not endorse González and would instead field their own candidate. During a plenary session on 18 August, the Socialist Party officially announced the presidential candidacy of labor leader Bernardo Ibáñez.

Eduardo Cruz-Coke The right-wing parties held their own convention starting on 6 July. Representatives from the conservative, liberal, and agrarian laborioust factions attended the convention and presented the following candidates:

Conservatives: Eduardo Cruz-Coke. Labor Agrarians: Jaime Larraín. Liberals: Arturo Alessandri, José Maza Fernández, and Francisco Bulnes Correa.

However, none of the candidates were able to secure victory in the convention. The election required 65% and then 60% of the delegates' support, but no candidate met these thresholds. As a result, the convention was suspended on 14 July. The voting results from each day of the convention were as follows: CandidateParty7 July8 July9 July1st2nd3rd4th5th6th1st2nd3rd4th5th6th1st2nd3rd4th5th6thEduardo Cruz-CokePCon0384369406436435383392374396424422377379409415418413Jaime Larraín García-MorenoPAL0222230269002192262252440021322823323900Arturo Alessandri PalmaPL018520030931832219019819100016316622000Francisco Bulnes CorreaPL0196188000541000207206315313313310José Maza FernándezPL040000180168197332309274100000Fernando Alessandri RodríguezPL000000110000200000Horacio Walker LarraínPCon000000000000100000Ambrosio Barros MoreiraPCon000000000000100000Joaquín Prieto ConchaPCon35900000000000000000Oscar Urzúa JaramilloPL33900000000000000000Eduardo Necochea NebelPAL15000000000000000000 CandidateParty10 July11 July12 July13 July1ª2ª3ª4ª5ª1ª2ª3ª4ª5ª1ª2ª3ª4ª5ª1ª2ª3ª4ª5ªEduardo Cruz-CokePCon371378386528526543529516520526400417415429431402395378422435Jaime Larraín García-MorenoPAL27032335641242940343444144443402312310025527027800Arturo Alessandri PalmaPL0000000000032332935736300000Francisco Bulnes CorreaPL140000020000000000000José Maza FernándezPL263259223000000000000244294313298420 Numerous efforts to reach an agreement on a single candidate were unsuccessful, leading to the emergence of two main contenders: Eduardo Cruz-Coke, backed by conservatives, and Arturo Alessandri, supported by liberals and labor agrarians. Eventually, Cruz-Coke became the sole candidate supported by the conservatives, while the liberals, labor agrarians, and a faction of the Radicalism (Democratic Radical Party) continued to support Fernando Alessandri's candidacy. This situation occurred following the resignations of Arturo Alessandri and Vice President Alfredo Duhalde on 11 August and 13 August, respectively.

Fernando Alessandri The Democratic Alliance's support for González led to the division of a faction within the radical movement that opposed the communist-radical alliance. This division resulted in the formation of the Democratic Radical Party, led by Julio Durán and Arturo Olavarría. The party endorsed Alfredo Duhalde as their candidate, with additional support from the Authentic Socialist Party. Duhalde accepted the nomination on 3 August, resigning from his position as Vice President of the Republic and handing over power to Vice Admiral Vicente Merino on the same day.

Subsequently, on 11 August, Arturo Alessandri withdrew his candidacy in favor of his son, Fernando Alessandri Rodríguez. Fernando became the representative for the coalition of liberals, democratic radicals, and authentic socialists of Marmaduke Grove. Two days later, on 13 August, Alfredo Duhalde resigned from his candidacy, reclaiming the vice presidency of the Republic that he had left earlier in the month to pursue his political campaign. On the same day, 13 August, the Agrarian Labor Party announced its support for Fernando Alessandri's candidacy.

Results As none of the presidential candidates obtained an outright majority, as stipulated in the 1925 constitution, the responsibility fell on the Full Congress to choose between the two candidates who garnered the highest relative majorities.

These circumstances prompted the right-wing parties to pursue victory in the Full Congress after failing to achieve it at the ballot box. González Videla accused Eduardo Cruz-Coke of engaging in these maneuvers, which he claimed were aimed at disregarding the triumph of the left-wing candidacy, while simultaneously campaigning to secure the necessary support from different political groups in the Full Congress.

Utilizing his political acumen, González Videla successfully built a broad coalition of support. Following extensive deliberations, both Duhalde's supporters and the democratic radicals (except for Olavarría) decided to lend him their electoral backing. Subsequently, the National Falange joined the coalition, followed immediately by the agrarian and socialist parties, including both Grove and Bernardo Ibáñez factions.

Efforts to obtain support from the conservatives did not succeed. The communists also contributed their votes, and eventually, the liberals, who initially refused, opted to support him.

References