«Caciquisme» e democratizzazione a Maiorca

Abstract

Caciquismeand democratic developments in Mallorca

In Mallorca during the Restauration there existed several forms of co-existence bet- ween the System of election control by cacics, and democratic associations active in the fields of culture, mutual aid, and trade-unionism. Even after the introduction in 1891 of uni- versal male franchise, voters’ will continued to be heavily conditioned by the classic devices of corruption, threats, favours, and of open fraud, especially in the occasion of elections to the Cortes. At the same time, particularly in the town areas and among lower clas- ses, various structures emerged which ignored or opposed the caciquil system; their means of expression were multiform, from the Press to theatre show.