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Based at The Carter Center of Emory University, the Council delegation included George Price, former prime minister of Belize; Rodrigo Carazo, former president of Costa Rica; and Jim Wright, former speaker of the U.S. House of Repre-sentatives, along with members of both the National Democratic and National Republican Institutes. They joined nearly 1,200 Panamanian and international observers in monitoring the race, the first since outgoing President Guillermo Endara was sworn in on a U.S. military base following the American invasion of Panama in 1989.

That invasion followed Gen. Manuel Noriega's attempts to falsify records in Panama's 1989 elections, when it became clear that his hand-picked successor would lose a free contest by a substantial margin. A Council team monitored those elections as well, and President Carter strongly denounced Gen. Noriega's "obviously crude fabrications."

That made this year's return trip especially meaningful. "In the 1989 elections, the Panamanian people were denied their democratic right to choose their leaders," President Carter said the day after this year's vote. "Today, we must congratulate the Panamanian people, President Endara, the Electoral Tribunal, and all the leaders in the political arena for their extraordinary expression of civic participation."

"The Panamanian Electoral Tribunal worked very hard to ensure that these elections would be tech-nically sound, and they earned the confidence of all political parties as well as voters," added Jennifer McCoy, the CCEU senior research associate who organized the election observer mission.

Mr. Balladares campaigned this year by rejecting Gen. Noriega's leadership as a "disgrace" to Panama. The president-elect pledged to stimulate the economy and create jobs while providing a greater role in public life for Panama's middle and lower classes. He has invited other political parties and respected independents to be members of his cabinet to foster a spirit of national reconciliation.

In addition to a president, voters elected two vice presidents, 71 representatives, 67 mayors, 511 magistrates, and 24 local council members. Of Panama's 2.5 million citizens, 1.4 million were registered to vote, and turnout was 74 percent.

This year's election was considered a crucial test of Panama's renewed commitment to democracy, since the ruling party lost power.

"Both President Endara and President-elect Balladares invited President Carter to assist with the presidential transition because it will be the first civilian transition in more than three decades in Panama," Dr. McCoy said. "We are working with the United Nations Development Programme to assist with the admin-istrative transition and political reconciliation in the months before the transfer of power on Sept. 1."

The Carter team left Panama pledging the Council's help during and after the country's transition of power. "When I return to the U.S. tomorrow, I will inform President Clinton and Secretary of State Christopher of our observations and the spirit of democracy that we have witnessed here," President Carter said. "Panama has a special place in my and Rosalynn's hearts, and we are confident that all Panamanians will continue to work to strengthen their democracy in the future."