Election Surprise
The Villalba attack inaugurated a long series of Mafia attacks in Sicily on political activists, trade union leaders and ordinary peasants resisting Mafia rule and claiming land titles. In the following years many left-wing leaders were killed or otherwise attacked. On April 20–21, 1947, the Blocco del popolo – a coalition of the communist PCI and socialist PSI – won a surprise victory in the elections for the Constituent Assembly of the autonomous region of Sicily. The Blocco obtained 29 percent of the vote, while the (Christian Democrat Party) got 20.5% and the Qualunquist-Monarchist bloc came third with 14%.
Li Causi furnished an explanation for the success of the left-wing block:
"For the Communist Party, there is no question of world revolution, but of feeding and democratising the people. We plan no Soviet here. We want the big feudal land holdings redistributed, but we respect all properties below 100 hectares . And that is a good-sized piece of property. We want industry... . We want to put the idle to work. Capital will find all the guarantee it needs."
Read more about this topic: Girolamo Li Causi
Famous quotes containing the words election and/or surprise:
“Last evening attended Croghan Lodge International Order of Odd Fellows. Election of officers. Chosen Noble Grand. These social organizations have a number of good results. All who attend are educated in self-government. This in a marked way. They bind society together. The well-to-do and the poor should be brought together as much as possible. The separation into classes—castes—is our danger. It is the danger of all civilizations.”
—Rutherford Birchard Hayes (1822–1893)
“The surprise is half the battle. Many things are half the battle, losing is half the battle. Let’s think about what’s the whole battle.”
—David Mamet, U.S. screenwriter, and Brian DePalma. Elliot Ness (Kevin Costner)