The World : Nicaragua Opposition Pact

Fourteen Nicaraguan opposition parties announced that they have agreed to present joint candidates and a single program to run against the ruling Sandinista Front in elections next February. The decision was a breakthrough for the Opposition National Union, a loose coalition of 14 parties ranging from left to right. “The parties have agreed to accept a united program for a government of national salvation and joint candidates for president, vice president, legislators and mayors,” Luis Sanchez Sancho of the Socialist Party told a news conference attended by the leaders of all opposition parties. Opinion polls have indicated that the opposition stands little chance of beating the Sandinistas in the elections unless it unites behind joint candidates.