Revisiting the Czechoslovakian elections of 1946

[rob in cal]

   The Czechoslovakian elections of 1946 were unique for the postwar elections of Eastern Europe in that there were no allied occupation forces present, no allied control commission etc.  They yielded a narrow majority (something like 51-48%) to the Communists and their Social Democrat allies plus the Party of Labor. 
   I've often wondered if the Czech National Socialists, Czech Peoples Party, and the Slovak Democrats, who together won about 48% of the vote, would have been able to keep Czechoslovakia out of the Communist orbit had they won a majority of the vote (and seats, a PR system was in use).  With a parliamentary majority, they might very well have been able to insist upon at least a non-partisan figure in control of the interior ministry (which controlled the police), and probably a National Socialist (President Benes' party) as prime minister.
   One route which might have led to denying the Communists and their allies a majority would have been a more democratic choice of parties running for office.  In the Czech lands, all parties to the right of the centrists People's party were banned I believe, or at any rate not allowed to field candidates.  In Slovakia, I believe the same principle was in effect, and basically non-leftists were allowed one major party, the Democrats.
   Had there been a greater spectrum of party choices, who knows what the outcome might have been.  Had the Czech agrarians been allowed to run, obviously much of their support would likely have come from those who voted National Socialist or Peoples Party, but how many voters abstained due to lack of choices, and how many voted Communist or Social Democrat but might not have had there been a more diverse choice of parties.  Clearly the Communist/Social Democratic bloc would still have done well, but I wonder if their narrow margin of victory could have been denied in a fairer ballot.

[rob in cal]

Yes, I'm quite aware of the elections for the Duma held after the Bolshevik takeover.  IIRC, the Bolsheviks won about 20 %, the SR  (Social Revolutionaries) about 40%.  Then when the Duma was going to sit, the Bolsheviks disbanded it.
    Concerning Czechoslovakia, what I find so intriguing is that there were no Soviet occupation troops to enforce full communization from December 1945 on, and also President Benes was, I believe, a respected figure.  The conditions for escaping a communist outcome were better in Czechoslovakia than anywhere else in eastern Europe, but alas it was not to be.

[rob in cal]

Ag, right the elections in Russia was for a Constituent Assembly.  I wonder what kind of a constitution would have been drawn up had it been allowed to work.