page_title: History of Honduras (1900–1954)
section_title: Grants and the 1902 election
hierarchical_section_title: History of Honduras (1900–1954) / Banana republic / Grants and the 1902 election
caption_attribution_description: Railroad station in La Ceiba, Honduras
context_page_description: During the first half of the 20th century the economy of Honduras was dominated by American companies such as the United Fruit Company, the Standard Fruit Company and the Cuyamel Fruit Company, which established enormous banana plantations along the north coast. These companies quickly made bananas the primary export of the country in return for large land grants from conservative politicians. Foreign capital, life in the banana plantations, and conservatives determined the politics of Honduras from the mid-20th century to 1988.
  Manuel Bonilla came to the presidency of Honduras through a military operation. Once in power, he became an even better friend of the banana companies than his predecessor, Terencio Sierra. He gave the banana companies tax breaks and permission to build a variety of infrastructure, including the National Railway of Honduras. One of Bonilla's greater accomplishments was the delimitation of the border with Nicaragua, especially in the area of La Mosquitia where there had been a long dispute.
  Miguel R. Dávila succeeded Bonilla as president.
context_section_description: General Terencio Sierra succeeded Policarpo Bonilla in 1899. His administration gave Honduras one of the more important historical factors in the economic life and politics of the country. Marvin Barahona in his book Honduras in the 20th century relates that "the Vaccaro brothers, a family of Italian origin that traded bananas in New Orleans, received land grants on the north coast. In return, they agreed to build railways over an extensive area. The land was awarded according to the number of kilometres of railway built, with 250 hectares per kilometre of railroad the going rate. The Vaccaros, as other dealers in the north coast would later also do, took advantage of the privileges awarded them and the land grants to export bananas from La Ceiba".
  On 1 March 1902 the people were called to choose a successor to Sierra. General Manuel Bonilla was one candidate, sponsored by prominent liberals and by the conservative party, the National Party. Another was Dr. Juan Ángel Arias of the Liberal Party.
  General Manuel Bonilla won the election with 28,550 votes vs 25,118 for Doctor Juan Ángel Arias Boquín and 4,857 for Doctor Marco Aurelio Soto. As writer and politician Ángel Zuñiga Huete said, voters did not give an absolute majority to any of the contenders as required by the constitution. Therefore, the National Congress had to choose the president and designated Juan Ángel Arias Boquín and General Máximo Betancourt Rosales as vice-president. Arias and Rosales took charge of the government on February 18, 1903.
caption: Railway Station in La Ceiba at the beginning of the 20th century
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