A Békés Megyei Múzeumok Közleményei 24-25. (Békéscsaba, 2003)

Kocsor János: Data to the history of the Békés County branch of Independent Small-holders’ Party in the second half of the 1930s

Adatok a Független Kisgazdapárt Békés vármegyei szervezetének történetéhez... TÓTH 1982. Tóth G.: Ellenzéki politikai mozgalmak a Tiszántúlon a harmincas években. 1929-1939. Budapest, 1982. VÍGH 1991. Vígh K.: Tildy Zoltán életútja. Békéscsaba, 1991. Data to the history of the Békés County branch of Independent Small-holders' Party in the second half of the 1930s - János Kocsor Resume Experiences gained during the elections in year 1935 and the development of the domestic politics had got a decisive impact on the party's activities during the second half of the 1930s. Even if the party's leadership had fostered some illusions earlier as to a sort of co-operation with the Gömbös-government, these were broken by May of 1935. Atrocities and deceits around the elections showed clearly the antidemocratic features of Gömbös' aspirations, while confirmed the necessity of their demand for secret voting. Accordingly, after 1935 the secret elective franchise was put again in the centre of the party's political propaganda. In the second half of the 1930s, the domestic political affairs made the party revise and represent more consistently its political, social and economic aims in order to retain its mass basis. Gömbös'

s and the following government's articles promising the ascendancy of the villages, as well as the emergence of the village researching movements also encouraged them to deal with the adversities of the rural paupers. The extreme right-wing movements coming forward from the middle of the 1930s with their demagogy also threatened with reducing the social influence of the small-holders. Besides, for a party aiming at the extension of democracy on the ground of parliamentarism, fighting against them was of particular interest, too. This study addresses these three related issues, the secret elective franchise, improvement of the agricultural workers' conditions, and fight against the extreme right-wing propaganda, through the activities of the Békés County branch of the Independent Small-holders' Party. Kocsor János Munkácsy Mihály Múzeum 5600 Békéscsaba, Széchenyi u. 9. kocsor@bmmi. hu 211