Editing Manuel Noriega (section)

===1989 election===
{{main|1989 Panamanian general election}}
Noriega's relationship with the U.S. deteriorated further during the late 1980s, particularly after the U.S. began to suspect that Noriega was supporting other intelligence services.<ref name=Tran2010/><ref name="BBC1" /> Hersh wrote in 1986 that U.S. intelligence officials suspected that Noriega was selling intelligence to the Cuban government of [[Fidel Castro]];<ref name="Hersh 1986"/> his report received widespread attention. [[Bob Woodward]] published a story about Noriega in ''[[The Washington Post]]'' soon afterward, going into even greater detail about Noriega's intelligence connections. Woodward and Hersh's reputations made certain that the stories were taken seriously.{{sfn|Dinges|1990|pp=240–242}} Spadafora had also informed the U.S. [[Drug Enforcement Administration]] (DEA) of some of his findings about Noriega's involvement in drug smuggling.{{sfn|Dinges|1990|pp=214–215}} Multiple U.S. agencies continued to investigate Noriega despite opposition from the [[Presidency of Ronald Reagan|Reagan administration]].{{sfn|Dinges|1990|pp=275–279}} In 1988 Noriega was indicted by U.S. [[Grand juries in the United States#Federal law|federal grand juries]] in courts in Miami and [[Tampa]] on charges of drug-trafficking.<ref name="BBC1" /><ref>{{cite news |last1=Pichirallo |first1=Joe |title=Indictments Depict Noriega as Drug-Trafficking Kingpin |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1988/02/06/indictments-depict-noriega-as-drug-trafficking-kingpin/1a1675d6-88ec-449a-9147-07f55c78a326/ |access-date=July 25, 2020 |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |date=February 6, 1988}}</ref> The indictment accused him of "turning Panama into a shipping platform for South American cocaine that was destined for the U.S., and allowing drug proceeds to be hidden in Panamanian banks".<ref name="nytimesobit" /> Soon afterward an army colonel and a few soldiers made an attempt to overthrow Noriega; their poorly planned effort was crushed within a day.{{sfn|Dinges|1990|pp=298–299}}

The presidential election of May 1989 was marred by fraud and violence. ''Coalición para la Liberación Nacional'' (Coalition for National Liberation), a pro-military coalition led by the PRD, named [[Carlos Duque]], a former business partner of Noriega, as its candidate.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-8119843.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160309193716/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-8119843.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=March 9, 2016 |title=Panama Casts Votes for Leader |author=Phillip Bennett |date=May 8, 1999 |work=The Boston Globe |access-date=September 2, 2012}} {{subscription required}}</ref> The ''Alianza Democrática de Oposición Cívica'' (Democratic Alliance of Civic Opposition), an opposition coalition, nominated [[Guillermo Endara]], a member of Arias' Panameñista Party, and two other prominent oppositionists, [[Ricardo Arias Calderón]] and [[Guillermo Ford]], as vice-presidential candidates.{{sfn|Scranton|1991|pp=159–160}} Anticipating fraud, the opposition tracked ballot counts at local precincts on the day of the election (local ballot counts were done in public).{{sfn|Scranton|1991|pp=161–162}} As an exit poll made it clear that the opposition slate was winning by a wide margin, reports of missing tally sheets and seizures of ballot boxes by the PDF soon emerged. In the afternoon of the day after the election, the [[Roman Catholic Church|Catholic]] bishops conference announced that a quick count of public tallies at polling centers showed the opposition slate winning 3–1. Official tallies the day after that, however, had Duque winning by a 2–1 margin.{{sfn|Scranton|1991|pp=161–162}}

Rather than publish the results, Noriega voided the election, claiming that "foreign interference" had tainted the results. Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, present in Panama as an observer, denounced Noriega, saying the election had been "stolen", as did [[Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Panamá|Archbishop of Panama]] [[Marcos G. McGrath]].{{sfn|Koster|Sánchez|1990|pp=362–366}}{{sfn|Galván|2012|p=189}} Noriega had initially planned to declare Duque the winner regardless of the actual result. Duque knew he had been badly defeated and refused to go along.{{sfn|Koster|Sánchez|1990|pp=362–366}} The next day, Endara, Arias Calderón, and Ford rolled through the old part of the capital in a triumphant motorcade, only to be intercepted by a detachment of Noriega's paramilitary [[Dignity Battalions]]. Arias Calderón was protected by a couple of troops, but Endara and Ford were badly beaten. Images of Ford running to safety with his [[guayabera]] shirt covered in blood were broadcast around the world. When the 1984–1989 presidential term expired, Noriega named a longtime associate, [[Francisco Rodríguez (President of Panama)|Francisco Rodríguez]], acting president. The U.S. recognized Endara as the new president.{{sfn|Koster|Sánchez|1990|pp=362–366}}{{sfn|Galván|2012|p=189}} Noriega's decision to void the election results led to [[1989 Panamanian coup d'état attempt|another coup attempt]] against him in October 1989. A number of Noriega's junior officers rose up against him, led by Lieutenant Colonel Moisés Giroldi Vera, but the rebellion was easily crushed by the members of the PDF loyal to Noriega. After this attempt, he declared himself the "maximum leader" of the country.<ref name="nytimesobit" />{{sfn|Galván|2012|p=189}}{{sfn|Kempe|1990|pp=8–9}}<ref name="Palm 2017">{{cite news |last1=Palm |first1=Mónica |title=Manuel Antonio Noriega acumulaba 60 años en condenas por homicidio y asociación ilícita |url=https://www.prensa.com/judiciales/Noriega-acumulaba-condenadas-homicidio-asociacion_0_4768773124.html |access-date=January 11, 2021 |work=La Prensa |date=May 30, 2017|trans-title=Manuel Antonio Noriega accumulated 60 years in convictions for homicide and illicit association|language=es}}</ref> The rebels were captured and taken to a military base outside Panama City, where they were tortured and then executed.{{sfn|Galván|2012|p=189}}