Una piedra en el camino: el sistema de partidos de la nueva democracia electoral nicaragüense de los noventa

Abstract

This paper examines the party system in Nicaragua in the light of the electoral processes that have been developing in the country since the defeat of the Sandinist revolution in the 1990 elections. Particularly, the work aims at two ends: to find out the distinctive features that define this system and to assess its influence in democratization. This study shows that the new electoral democracy risen in Nicaragua is characterized by a party system where two apparently contradictory situations coexist: a structure of political competence definitely two-sided, and a high degree of party
fragmentation.