Foreign interference with elections in democratic countries
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Foreign governments often have vested interests in other countries. Often these may be at stake should the 'wrong' people come to power in those countries. Particularly throughout the 20th century, there are many examples of foreign interference with elections in democratic countries.
Examples involving foreign governments
In Greece, the United States CIA assisted in the 1967 military coup d'état (see Foreign relations of Greece - United States). Taking place in April 1967 it came just two days before the campaign for national elections was to begin, elections which appeared certain to bring the veteran liberal leader George Papandreou back as prime minister. Papandreou had been elected in February 1964 with the only outright majority in the history of modern Greek elections. The Greek branch of Gladio, NATO's secret "stay-behind" paramilitary organizations, participated in the coup.
Gladio also participated in Italy's strategy of tension during the 1970-80s, which involved a serie of false flags terrorist attacks, starting from the December 1969 Piazza Fontana bombing. The predominantly neofascists Propaganda Due masonic lodge was a partner of Gladio, whose strategia della tensione, as it was known in Italy, was to "impede the Italian Communist Party and, to a lesser measure, the Italian Socialist Party, from reaching executive power", according to a 2000 Parliamentary report.
In Greece as in Italia, the leftists parties were impeded from legally reaching the executive power, through a deliberate methods of false flags terrorists attacks, directed by Gladio, which was directly responsible to the SACEUR (Supreme Allied Commander in Europe), led by Alexander Haig, who would later become Ronald Reagan's secretary of state.
Gladio was also involved in coups in Turkey and in the May 1st Taksim Square massacre, and in terrorist attacks in Spain (1976 Montejurra incident), in France (Gladio members help to found the O.A.S. during the Algerian war of independence - (1954-62), in Belgium during the Brabant massacres, and in Argentina during the 1973 Ezeiza massacre, when left-wing Peronists were fired upon by the Alianza Anticomunista Argentina (a.k.a. Triple A).
Examples involving other external forces
Terrorist attacks in Spain, combined with the outgoing government response, are generally held to have affected the course of the Spanish legislative election, 2004. The Socialist party under their leader José Zapatero were elected ahead of the ruling People's party.
An assassination attempt on Taiwan's president and vice president, followed by the announcement of joint military exercises off of Taiwan's coast to coincide with its democratic elections is also expected to influence the outcome of the ROC presidential election, 2004.