1946 Manchu general election

The 1946 Manchu general election was the first general election in the Manchu Commune, being held on November 5, 1946. It was the first and last two-party election in Manchuria, with the 1950 Manchu general election starting a four-party system that remained until the 1982 Manchu general election. This was the first and last election to involve the Soviet-Manchu Union Front (SMUF) and the first to involve the Manchu Agrarian Front (MAF). The Manchu Agrarian nominee, Zhou Baozhong, was elected the first President. The Soviet-Manchu Union Front dissolved itself after the election, reorganizing into the Sino-Manchu Syndicate.
== Incumbent government ==
Following the formation of the Manchu Commune on January 1, 1946, the country had been under the presidency of Joseph Stalin. The Soviet-Manchu Union Front had originally been the only party in government and held all positions of power, controlling all seats in both chambers of the Manchu Assembly of Communard Representation.
Stalin administration
Party 	President 	Lower house control	Upper house control
Soviet-Manchu Union Front	Joseph Stalin	500/500 	100/100
Total: 	Total: 	500/500 	100/100
== Nominations ==
=== Soviet-Manchu Union Front ===
=== Manchu Agrarian Front ===
== Debates ==
The only debate of the election cycle was held on August 7, 1946. Soviet-Manchu Front nominee Vasily Stalin and Manchu Agrarian Front nominee Zhou Baozhong both qualified for the debate. The two treated each other with civilty and respect as they debated issues ranging from the organization of the new government to what freedoms should be allowed to foreign power and several other issues. Baozhong was widely declared the winner of the debate,
== Turnout ==
The Soviet-Manchu Union Front claimed that 83% of the Manchu population voted in the 1946 general election, hoping to make the de facto Soviet satellite state appear as democratic as possible. The Manchu Agrarian Front disputed this claim, accusing the SMUF of inflating statistics to the benefit of the Soviet military presence. The MAF released a counter-claim that stated only 18% of the population got to the vote in the election. After the inauguration of the post-election MAF administration, public election records were released. The official records documented a 32% voter turnout.
== Results ==
In the first hour of ballot counting, Vasily Stalin won an early lead with 81% of the counted votes. This put Zhou Baozhong at a huge disadvantage at 19%. Most of the early votes came in from the urban centers, however, which had the highest concentration of Soviet military presence. Naturally, several cases of voter intimidation by the Red Army against urban voters was recorded. The vast majority of ballots counted in the second hour flipped towards Baozhong, however, and Stalin's advantage dropped to 62%. Baozhong surged to 38%. By the end of the fourth hour, it had moved to Stalin 50.4% - 49.6% Baozhong. The count ended half an hour later at 50.1% - 49.9%.
The Soviet-Manchu Union Front claimed victory seven minutes after the results were finalized and Vasily Stalin began preparing for a victory speech in Harbin. The city of Harbin itself had been won 53% - 47%, however the large Soviet military presence there made many people skeptical. Stalin and the SMUF managed to win slim victories in other urban centers, which also left many people skeptical given the concentration of the Red Army. The Red Army denied any engagement in electoral interference, however the Manchu Agrarian Front filed a lawsuit on November 8. A judicial system had not been yet established in Manchuria, so the case was heard by the Supreme Court of the Soviet Union. Despite the severe lack of impartiality, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the MAF. They determined that 4.3% of the national vote had been fraudulent in favor of the SMUF and that the actual vote was 45.8% - 54.2%. Vasily Stalin fled Manchuria on Christmas of 1946, hoping to escape prosecution for electoral fraud by the soon-to-be inaugurated MAF government. The SMUF was officially dissolved on December 29, 1946. The SMUF members mostly became independents until the formation of the Sino-Manchu Syndicate.
1946 Manchu general election results
Nominee 	Political affiliation 	Popular vote	Result 	Seats 	Seats 	Seats
Nominee 	Political affiliation 	Popular vote	Result 	Lower house	Upper house	Net +/-
Zhou Baozhong	Manchu Agrarian Front 	54.2% 	First place 	271 	54 	
Vasily Stalin	Soviet-Manchu Union Front	45.8% 	Second place	229 	46 	-271 / -54
Total: 	Total: 	100% 	2 	500 	100 	
Category:Elections
Category:Manchu Commune