The day had, at long last, come. The political battles between the communists and their moderate and democratic opponents had reached their zenith.

Figures on both sides of this divide recognized the importance of the day and long campaigns to turn out the vote had been run by each camp.

For the liberals, a series of events boosted their chances at the polls and gave their bloc the strength to push on to May 1948:

• Foremost, American aid and the British declaration of intent to defend Czechoslovak democracy;
• Secondarily, a slowly-unraveling plot that evidently implicated the communists in plots to assassinate democratic ministers and perhaps overthrow the government entirely;

For the communists, a laundry list of efforts boosted their odds as well:

• Foremost, a close alliance with the Soviet Union and aligned communist parties in neighboring states;
• Secondarily, extensive control of the levers of power in the Ministry of the Interior, which controlled the police and the election process;
• Thirdly, grave concerns amongst some of the population over exposed British efforts to infiltrate and subvert the 1948 elections, or to start some sort of coup if the communists won them;
• Fourthly, Soviet aid in the immediate postwar years including hundreds of thousands of tons of cereal crops and other direct aid to assist in preventing famine and reconstructing the country;
• Fifthly, gratitude by the Czech and Slovak people towards the Soviet Union and the communists in liberation of Czechoslovakia in 1945;
• Sixthly, the strong and highly-organized apparatus of the communist party.

The National Front of Czechs and Slovaks was more or less officially destroyed in this election, however. KSČ had burnt all bridges with the liberal parties, as far as they were concerned, and the ČSSD, ČSNS, ČSL, and DS formally broke ranks with them. KSČ could still count on the KSS, a closely-aligned Slovak communist party, and large elements of the ČSSD that were still strong fellow-travelers.

Under its new chairman, Václav Majer, the ČSSD refused to join a list with the KSČ and KSS, but also with the ČSNS and ČSL with whom it did not align politically. Truly, Majer had intended for ČSSD to go its own way.

Thus, the election became something of a three-way race between liberals, communists, and social democrats. In the end, the results were remarkably stable. The newly-founded Chamber of Deputies, due to serve a 6 year term, had more or less tread water-- the most remarkable change was the elimination of the parties with fewer than five mandates, who had been swayed to caucus with the Democratic Party out of fear of communist takeover. In the new Senate, the news was just as mixed-- this upper house trended more strongly towards moderation, but not by much.

This was, of course, considered an electoral defeat by the communists but Klement Gottwald was not prepared to run up the white flag, and began-- via the StB and other underhanded means at his disposal-- to prepare a run for the Presidency. The ailing President, Edvard Beneš, was universally understood to be nearing the end of his life. He rarely made public appearances, now, and could not walk without the aid of a cane. His migraines were nearly constant, and his speech slurred and difficult to understand. Even so, Beneš was a national hero and drew sympathy even from among the ranks of the KSČ-- so Gottwald played his role as a Czechoslovak and, when the legislature voted to confirm him as President officially, he cast his ballot for Beneš.

Edvard Beneš was, overwhelmingly, elected to lead Czechoslovakia into the future as the state reassembled itself.

The work began to assemble a government. Gottwald, naturally, had the first run at this as leader of the largest party in the Chamber of Deputies. He could count on the KSS to join any coalition he built, and swiftly approached the ČSSD. Majer was, of course, disinclined initially and talks flopped rather quickly. The liberal parties had little interest in such a government again and the situation began to spiral.

ČSNS was next, and Petr Zenkl made an effort at the same. He aligned the ČSL and DS behind him, but they fell tantalizingly short of the necessary number of seats. ČSSD was again the kingmaker, but this is where Gottwald and his allies in the ROH played their trump card.

In a meeting with the President, Gottwald alerted him to an impending general strike if the communists were shut out of government. Beneš, who was near death at this point, had little interest in his legacy being a stricken, ruined country and called upon Zenkl to include the communists in government. Zenkl, keenly aware of the threat the communists posed, refused.

The government teetered on the brink of crisis, and Gottwald continued to exert pressure directly on the ailing President. Out of overriding concern for the health of the nation, President Beneš elected to utilize his powers under Article II, Section 31 of the Czechoslovak constitution-- he dissolved the Chamber of Deputies, triggering a new round of elections in four weeks.

The second round of 1948 elections, held in June 1948, saw the KSČ gaining seats to the exclusion of all other parties-- the average Czechoslovak saw obstruction of the communists dimly, and spontaneous demonstrations in Wenceslas Square were broadcast to the nation in the news and on the radio-- red banners flew, people called out for the communists to be included. This was a pleasant surprise even for Klement Gottwald and his people-- genuine public support.

Once again, Gottwald attempted to form a government with the KSS and reached out to the ČSSD. Majer again balked, even when offered the role of Deputy Prime Minister. At this point, the ROH stepped in.

Gottwald at last activated the unions-- work stoppages occurred all across Czechoslovakia, grinding the economy to a halt. People marched in the streets, chanting and carrying signs calling for the KSČ to form the government. The crisis swallowed the country as tens of thousands of workers walked off the job and took to the streets. This was not a move Zenkl or the liberals could match, and no effort at negotiating with the ROH was successful-- they had one simple demand that the liberals could not satisfy.

A week into the strikes, at last, a deal was struck and a government under Klement Gottwald formed in mid-June, 1948, consisting of the KSČ, KSS, and ČSSD. Majer took on the role as Deputy Prime Minister, and the strike was called off.