Duarte was increasingly seen as powerless not only between the two opposing forces of left and right but also in terms of the US anti-communist political influence in the region. With corruption scandals, an economy in tatters, rumors of a right-wing coup and a civil war that did not appear to have a solution, the government became ineffective, unstable and unable to stop the indiscriminate violence and brutality. In the March 20 1988 elections, the PDC were soundly beaten by ARENA in a fair election.