Parliamentary elections were held in Poland on 19 January 1947,[1] the first since World War II. According to the official results, the Democratic Bloc (Blok Demokratyczny), dominated by the communistPolish Workers Party (PPR) and also including the Polish Socialist Party (PPS), People's Party (SL), Democratic Party (SD) and non-partisan candidates officially received 80% of the vote and 394 of the 444 seats in the Legislative Sejm. The largest opposition party, the Polish People's Party, was officially credited with 28 seats. However, the elections were characterized by violence;[2]anti-communist opposition candidates and activists were persecuted by the Volunteer Reserve Militia (ORMO).[3] The elections were heavily manipulated,[4] and the opposition claimed that it would have won in a landslide had the election been conducted in a fair manner.[5][2][6]
The election gave the Soviets and the communist-dominated Polish satellite government[7] enough legitimacy to claim that Poland was 'free and democratic', thus allowing Poland to sign the charter of the United Nations.[8]
^Janusz Wrona (ed.), Kampania wyborcza i wybory do Sejmu Ustawodawczego 19 stycznia 1947 (Elections campaign and the elections to the Legislative Sejm of 19 January 1947), Wydawnictwo Sejmowe, 1999 ISBN83-7059-322-4[page needed]
^Cite error: The named reference wprost2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Stephen Schlesinger, Act of Creation: The Founding of the United Nations, Westview Press, 2003, ISBN0-8133-3324-5 "On January 19, 1947, the first Polish elections were held. They were widely seen as fraudulent." Google Print, p.225
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