Chapter 303: Chapter 299 Referendum Passed
December 16, 1850.
Amidst the expectations of all citizens of France (the Second Republic had been nominally dissolved), France once again initiated a referendum.
To prepare for this referendum, Jerome Bonaparte deliberately relaxed the voting restrictions, granting military personnel and temporary residents the right to vote. For the military, the Bonaparte name symbolizes wealth; no one would refuse to follow a Bonaparte into victory.
The content of the referendum was also quite cunning. In Paris, the referendum asked, "Do you support the President in establishing a new Republic?" while in the Outer Provinces, it asked, "Do you support Jerome Bonaparte becoming the Governor of France?"
Though different in wording, both versions of the referendum spoke of the same thing, thereby maximizing the weakening of resistance from the opposition in France.
Jerome Bonaparte’s stance: "We must meet both the demands of Paris and the expectations of the Outer Provinces. Only in this way can we transition smoothly during this period."
Indeed, the so-called Third Republic was merely a transitional platform for Jerome Bonaparte to establish the Empire. He planned to linger on this platform for a while, until everyone had forgotten the military coup and accepted Jerome Bonaparte, then the Empire would once again draw near in this world.
The voting process took two weeks, during which there were instances of clandestine operations reminiscent of ghost soldiers borrowing votes.
[Since the Provence Region was traditionally a gathering place for anti-Bonaparte factions, to achieve the results mandated from above and maintain Jerome Bonaparte’s authority, the Governor of Provence, with military cooperation, began arresting anti-Bonaparte individuals. These detainees uniformly cast approval votes in the referendum, resulting in a total number of votes equaling 0.8 times the population of the entire Provence Region.]
However, generally speaking, the Outer Provinces of France chose to support Jerome Bonaparte as Governor.
Citizens in the Seine Province (Paris) also did not oppose Jerome Bonaparte; almost one-third of them cast abstention votes, half voted in favor, and the remaining one-sixth voted against.
On the evening of December 30, the voting results from various places were announced.
After two days of counting, the results were finally completed by January 1, 1852.
At the same time, all newspapers spread the news throughout Paris. According to the overnight statistics from the French Government’s audit department, a total of 8,471,431 approval votes and 341,351 opposition votes were counted, meaning the approval votes won with an overwhelming advantage of 8 million to 300,000.
Once the news spread, the entire Bonaparte Faction plunged into unprecedented celebration; the 8 million votes had endowed the Bonaparte Faction with the legal legitimacy for the coup.
From January 1 onwards, no one would question whether Jerome Bonaparte’s coup was lawful, as he was now endorsed by 8 million French people, elevating him above the law.
When the news reached the jails, the Republicans and Mountain Faction members inside hung their heads in silence as if mourning, fully aware of the significance of 8 million votes.
The entire French population had entrusted power to Jerome Bonaparte.
If they could not reclaim the votes from Jerome Bonaparte, even if they resorted to illegal measures against him, they still wouldn’t have the legitimacy to take over Paris after Jerome Bonaparte’s death.
Moreover, hastily assassinating a dictator empowered by the entire populace was not something in their own favor.
To celebrate the comprehensive victory of the Bonaparte Faction, a thrilled Jerome Bonaparte specifically visited the prison where the Republicans were held.
Accompanied by Police Chief Mopa, Jerome Bonaparte arrived at a cell door, peering through the observation window to see the "prisoner" inside.
The person lying inside the cell was none other than the former Republican Governor Cafenak, who now lay haggardly curled up on a hard bed. Observing the once ambitious Cafenak reduced to this state, Jerome Bonaparte couldn’t help but feel a sense of triumph.
"Open it! I want to have a chat with General Cafenak!" Jerome Bonaparte ordered Mopa.
"Your Majesty, should I summon a few men..." Mopa inquired eagerly.
"No need!" Jerome Bonaparte shook his head and entered the cell alone.
"General Cafenak, there’s no need to pretend to be asleep! You can wake up now!" Jerome Bonaparte said with a smile, dragging the chair from Cafenak’s desk over to the bedside and sitting down.
Cafenak opened his eyes to look at the Jerome Bonaparte before him, his gaze filled with disdain and discontent: "What are you doing here?"
Jerome Bonaparte shrugged, saying, "Would you believe me if I said I came to see you?"
"Don’t feign kindness!" Cafenak smirked disdainfully, "If you really had a sliver of conscience, you wouldn’t have launched a military coup!"
"General, political struggles seemingly have nothing to do with conscience!" Jerome Bonaparte retorted, unconcerned by Cafenak’s mockery, shaking his head.
"You have imprisoned the entire Republic! You have destroyed the republican system!" Cafenak severely accused Jerome Bonaparte.
"General!" Jerome Bonaparte replied solemnly: "What is the foundation of the Republic? It is universal suffrage! It allows everyone to speak with their ballot, to let the weak make a sound, even if it is very faint! The previous Republic stripped them of their right to voice, and I have returned power to the French people! I understand the republican system better than you do, I am the true Republican!"
"You shameless manipulator of public opinion!" The arrogant stance of Jerome Bonaparte claiming to be a "Republican" filled Cafenak’s heart with humiliation, he’d rather kill this guy on the spot.
Reason told him he could not do so.
Killing Jerome Bonaparte would only result in the Republican Faction becoming universally reviled, and the Monarchist Faction would inevitably seize power after Jerome Bonaparte’s death.
Compared to the pests of the Monarchist Faction, Jerome Bonaparte indeed seemed more "Republican."
"General, now 8 million French stand by my side! I am the representative of all French people in abolishing the National Assembly!" Jerome Bonaparte responded to Cafenak.
"Hmph! What exactly are you trying to say?" Cafenak responded to Jerome Bonaparte.
"Join us! You will get everything you want, whether it’s honor or a title!" Jerome Bonaparte extended an olive branch to Cafenak, as someone like Cafenak turning to his side would surely cause severe division within the Republican Faction.
If not handled properly, the Republican Faction would crumble into disarray.
Faced with Jerome Bonaparte’s olive branch, Cafenak fell into silence, seemingly pondering whether to agree with Jerome Bonaparte.
After a while, Cafenak spoke with determination: "I will never join you! Whether it’s exile or imprisonment, I will fight against you to the end!"
"That’s truly regrettable!" Jerome Bonaparte sighed and stood up to leave: "General Cafenak, I wish you a pleasant trip in North Africa in advance!"
Having said that, Jerome Bonaparte left the cell where Cafenak was held.
Mopa, standing by the door and ready to rush in to rescue Jerome Bonaparte upon any noise, immediately saluted Jerome Bonaparte upon seeing the cell door open.
"Let’s go! Next one!" Jerome Bonaparte said to Mopa.
Under Mopa’s guidance, Jerome Bonaparte arrived at where Victor Hugo was held.
Upon entering the cell, Jerome Bonaparte was bombarded with a tirade by Victor Hugo, who called Jerome Bonaparte the "evil of this world," and proclaimed that he would eventually be overthrown by the righteous Parisians.
Jerome Bonaparte, unhurriedly, stated that France still supported him, and invited Victor Hugo to rejoin them.
In response, Jerome Bonaparte got a resolute rejection from Victor Hugo, who also ordered Jerome Bonaparte to leave the cell.
Leaving the cell, Jerome Bonaparte shook his head and sighed: "Why bother!"
Afterwards, he met with a few former Order Party Members. Unlike stubborn figures like Cafenak, these members with flexible moral boundaries accepted Jerome Bonaparte’s invitation and vowed to actively participate in the "official candidate’s election" after their release.
Such an attitude greatly pleased Jerome Bonaparte, who immediately ordered Mopa to release several Order Party members, including Falu and Montalambert.
On January 2, 1851, the Third French Republic was declared established, with Jerome Bonaparte as its Supreme Governor for a term of 10 years.
At the same time, the Supreme Court convened, and over 400 former Legislative Assembly members appeared at the trial.
Arrested generals, parliamentary chief of staff, Remiza, and Republican Faction members were all sentenced to exile, while some Order Party members were also exiled to Algeria.
Besides Paris, other provinces also formed military tribunals in cooperation with governors, generals, and three judges; 10,609 people were released, 9,530 sent to Algeria, 2,804 imprisoned, and 5,108 monitored by the police.
Afterwards, Victor Hugo, exiled in Britain, declared in his memoir that this was Jerome Bonaparte’s "mad revenge" against the Republic.
In fact, not many people died in this coup.
The death toll of the coup was less than that of a flu outbreak.