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Presidential elections were held in
Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...
on 15 October 1986. The result was a victory for incumbent
Hussain Muhammad Ershad Hussain Muhammad Ershad (1 February 1930 – 14 July 2019) was a Bangladeshi military officer, dictator and politician who served as President of Bangladesh, the president of Bangladesh from 1982 to 1990. He seized power as a result of a 1982 ...
, who had assumed the office in 1983 following a military coup. Ershad reportedly won 84% of the vote with a voter turnout of 55%. However the elections were controversial as they were boycotted by all major opposition candidates and there were reports of irregularities.


Background

In 1982 a
coup d'état A coup d'état (; ; ), or simply a coup , is typically an illegal and overt attempt by a military organization or other government elites to unseat an incumbent leadership. A self-coup is said to take place when a leader, having come to powe ...
led by Army Chief
Hussain Muhammad Ershad Hussain Muhammad Ershad (1 February 1930 – 14 July 2019) was a Bangladeshi military officer, dictator and politician who served as President of Bangladesh, the president of Bangladesh from 1982 to 1990. He seized power as a result of a 1982 ...
overthrew democratically elected President
Abdus Sattar ʻAbd al-Sattār (ALA-LC romanization of ) is an Arabic Muslim male given name, built on the Arabic words '' ʻabd'' and ''al-Sattār''. The name means "servant of the Veiler (of sins)". Because the letter s is a sun letter, the letter l of the '' ...
.
Parliament 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 ...
was dissolved and all political activity was banned. Ershad appointed Justice
A. F. M. Ahsanuddin Chowdhury Abul Fazal Mohammad Ahsanuddin Chowdhury (1 July 1915 – 30 August 2001) was a Bengali public servant and judge who served as President of Bangladesh from 27 March 1982 to 10December 1983. Biography Chowdhury was born on 1 July 1915 in Gouri ...
as
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...
on 27 March 1982, a position which he held until December 1983 when Ershad assumed the presidency himself. In 1983 Ershad promised to hold presidential elections in May 1984 and to restore parliamentary government the following year. However, neither elections were held until 1986. Amid opposition from the general public, Ershad aimed to legitimise his regime by holding a referendum in March 1985. The official result of the referendum was overwhelmingly in support of his regime, however there were allegations of large-scale vote rigging. Ershad planned to hold presidential elections in early 1986, but was faced with vigorous opposition from the
Awami League The Awami League, officially known as Bangladesh Awami League, is a major List of political parties in Bangladesh, political party in Bangladesh. The oldest existing political party in the country, the party played the leading role in achievin ...
-led eight-party alliance,
Bangladesh Nationalist Party The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (), popularly abbreviated as BNP (), is a major List of political parties in Bangladesh, political party in Bangladesh. It was founded on 1 September 1978 by President of Bangladesh, President Ziaur Rahman, wit ...
-backed seven-party alliance and the left-leaning five-party alliance, which all demanded the lifting of martial law and the holding of parliamentary elections prior to a presidential election. On 1 January 1986 Ershad formed
Jatiya Party (Ershad) The Jatiya Party (, ; JaPa or JP(E)) is a political party of Bangladesh. The current chairman of the party is Ghulam Muhammed Quader. On 3 January 2019, the party announced its decision to join the Bangladesh Awami League-led Grand Alliance a ...
to represent his interests in elections and, conceding to opposition demands,
parliamentary elections A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. General elections ...
were held on 7 May 1986, which were won by Ershad's Jatiya Party. However the result was controversial as the elections were boycotted by the BNP and Awami League, which accused the Jatiya Party of election rigging. A British team of observers termed the elections a "tragedy for democracy" and a "cynically frustrated exercise". Ershad resigned as Chief of Army Staff on 30 August 1986 and, with the approval of the new parliament, a presidential election was scheduled for 15 October 1986. However, the election was boycotted by all major opposition party candidates, who demanded the lifting of
martial law Martial law is the replacement of civilian government by military rule and the suspension of civilian legal processes for military powers. Martial law can continue for a specified amount of time, or indefinitely, and standard civil liberties ...
.


Results

The elections saw Ershad win in a landslide victory, reportedly receiving 84% of the vote. However, the result was viewed with scepticism, with reports of widespread irregularities.
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
reported that voter turnout was much lower than the government claimed and that very few people were able to vote in
Dhaka Dhaka ( or ; , ), List of renamed places in Bangladesh, formerly known as Dacca, is the capital city, capital and list of cities and towns in Bangladesh, largest city of Bangladesh. It is one of the list of largest cities, largest and list o ...
due to an opposition-sponsored strike. The newspaper also reported that election officials were seen putting ballots in the boxes themselves and that "reporters saw voter sheets in which all the votes on one page were listed as having been cast, while almost none of the voters on another page had voted, suggesting that officials had marked up the lists themselves". Some people were seen with more than one purple stamp on their hands, suggesting that they had been able to vote more than once. Despite the opposition boycott and reports of widespread irregularities, Ershad claimed victory stating "This is the day that we negotiated the last bridge toward a democratic government. Today my pledge to the nation stands fulfilled."


Aftermath

In November 1986 Parliament passed the seventh constitutional amendment bill, protecting Ershad and his regime from prosecution for actions taken under the years of military rule. Martial law was subsequently lifted on 11 November. In July 1987 the opposition groups united to lead mass demonstrations and strikes in opposition to the Ershad regime. Ershad declared a state of emergency on 27 November. Parliament was dissolved on 6 December, and
parliamentary elections A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. General elections ...
were held in March 1988. All major political parties refused to participate resulting in a victory for
Jatiya Party (Ershad) The Jatiya Party (, ; JaPa or JP(E)) is a political party of Bangladesh. The current chairman of the party is Ghulam Muhammed Quader. On 3 January 2019, the party announced its decision to join the Bangladesh Awami League-led Grand Alliance a ...
. In 1988 Parliament passed the controversial eighth amendment to the Constitution, which made Islam the state religion, in contravention of the original secular nature of the
Constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed. When these pri ...
. In 1990 a popular mass uprising led by future
Prime Ministers A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but rat ...
Khaleda Zia Begum Khaleda Zia (born August–September 1945) is a Bangladeshi politician who served as the prime minister of Bangladesh from 1991 to 1996 and again from 2001 to 2006. She was the first female prime minister of Bangladesh and the second fema ...
and
Sheikh Hasina Sheikh Hasina (''née'' Wazed; born 28 September 1947) is a Bangladeshi politician who served as the tenth prime minister of Bangladesh from June 1996 to July 2001 and again from January 2009 to August 2024. Premiership of Sheikh Hasina, Her ...
led to Ershad resigning from the Presidency, and the country returning to parliamentary democracy, with the Office of the President becoming a largely ceremonial one.


References

{{Bangladeshi presidential elections
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...
Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...
Presidential elections in Bangladesh Presidential Election and referendum articles with incomplete results Hussain Muhammad Ershad