Staying on the Sidelines

Abstract

Chapter 4 includes the second set of case studies designed mainly to test this book’s arguments about the causes of such interventions. These are cases in which the U.S. (at the highest decision-making levels) is now known to have seriously considered doing an electoral intervention but eventually decided against that option. Accordingly, after fleshing out the theoretical predictions in each case, this chapter includes three detailed case studies of the decision-making process that led the U.S. to decide to not intervene: the 1958 Venezuelan election, the 1967 Greek election, and the 1965 Philippine election. These cases provide strong support for the theoretical model as well.