
Parliamentary elections were held in
Greece
Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...
on Sunday, 14 November 1920, or 1 November 1920 old style. They were possibly the most crucial elections in the
modern history of Greece, influencing not only the few years afterwards, including the
Greek defeat by
Kemal Atatürk's reformed
Turkish Land Forces in 1922, but setting the stage for Greece's political landscape for most of the rest of the 20th century. It had been nearly five years since the
last elections, a period during which all democratic procedures were suspended due to the
National Schism, when Prime Minister
Eleftherios Venizelos announced that elections would take place on 25 October. However, after the unexpected death of
King Alexander, who had assumed the throne after the exile of his father,
King Constantine I, the elections were postponed until 14 November.
Venizelos believed a victory for his
Liberal Party
The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world.
The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...
was all but certain because of his diplomatic and military successes against the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...
. However, the results were a disaster for him. Although his
Liberal Party
The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world.
The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...
received just over 50% of the vote, it won only 118 of the 369 seats in the
Hellenic Parliament
The Parliament of the Hellenes (), commonly known as the Hellenic Parliament (), is the Unicameralism, unicameral legislature of Greece, located in the Old Royal Palace, overlooking Syntagma Square in Athens. The parliament is the supreme demo ...
, with the
United Opposition – an alliance of the
People's Party, Conservative Party, Reform Party and others – winning 251 of the 369 seats. Venizelos also failed to win a seat. Humiliated and disappointed by the outcome of the election, Venizelos left the country for
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
, leaving his Liberal Party to the administration of
Panagiotis Dagklis.
Electoral system
The elections were held using
multiple non-transferable vote, with voters having as many votes as there were seats in their constituency. Constituencies were based on the
provinces
A province is an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outside Italy. The term ''provi ...
, with provinces with a populations of under 10,000 having one seat, with others having one additional seat for every 10,000 people.
[Nohlen & Stöver, pp814–815]
Results
The Liberals' defeat was considered to have been caused by the electoral system, the opposition having a highly esteemed leader in
Dimitrios Gounaris and managing to turn the elections into a referendum on the exiled King
Constantine I
Constantine I (27 February 27222 May 337), also known as Constantine the Great, was a Roman emperor from AD 306 to 337 and the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity. He played a Constantine the Great and Christianity, pivotal ro ...
, who was still popular especially in
Old Greece. It was also thought that voters were tired after almost a decade of wars and division were tempted by the United Opposition promise to secure peace with the Turks and bring troops home.
References
{{Greek elections
Parliamentary elections in Greece
Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922)
Eleftherios Venizelos
Greece
Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...
Parliamentary
In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
Alexander of Greece