Dominican Republic general election, 1986

General elections were held in the Dominican Republic on 16 May 1986.Joaquín Balaguer of the Social Christian Reformist Party won the presidential election, whilst the PRSC-led alliance won the Congressional elections. Voter turnout was 72.2%.

The incumbent Salvador Jorge Blanco was vacating after serving 4 years in government. Although he was constitutionally allowed to run for a second term, his Dominican Revolutionary Party had a strict anti-re-election ideology.

Since the PRD had a strict anti-re-election stance, it was assumed that Jacobo Majluta was next in line for his party's nomination. Majluta was Vice President under Antonio Guzmán Fernández and had served as President for 43 days after Guzmán committed suicide. After having been defeated by Jorge Blanco for the nomination in 1982, he was given the candidacy for Santo Domingo Senator and President of the Senate (a similar deal had been done by Blanco and Guzmán in 1978) which he won. From this position he engaged a fierce battle with the faction of the party led by Blanco and so the latter tried putting Secretary of State Hatuey Decamps against Majluta for the nomination but someone so close to the unpopular government could not stop Majluta who had become the most vocal critic of the administration. Blanco supporters then turned to party leader and Mayor of Santo Domingo, the popular José Francisco Peña Gómez. At first he did not accept it (neither declined it) but after surviving a heart attack he believed it was his destiny to become President and so he decided to run against his once closest party colleague. The race was extremely close and divisive, even causing a shoot out at the Concorde Hotel but when results came in, Majluta was declared the winner.

The post-convention process was traumatizing and many PRD members refused to endorse Majluta. Some Gomez supporters even went as far as to endorse Juan Bosch. Carlos Andrés Pérez President of Venezuela and strong activist of Socialist International campaigned for Gomez to be included on the ticket as Vice President but Majluta said he preferred to lose than to win alongside Peña Gomez who he felt had betrayed him by competing against him. A deal similar to the one Guzmán had made with Blanco and the latter with Majluta was offered to Gomez but he declined calling it a "cursed gift". Ultimately Nicolas Vargas of Santiago was chosen as running mate.

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