{"value"=>"<p>The ad-hoc Committee on Free Elections in the Dominican Republic was formed to ensure that the June 1966 election in the Dominican Republic would not be held in the atmosphere of terror and repression that had prevailed for most of the year. The Committee organized a nonpartisan investigating commission, which visited the D. R. and spoke with citizens, government officials, and military and political leaders. The commission then reported to the Committee, which published a report on the situation and the observers' recommendations. A second set of representatives was sent to observe the elections. Members of both commissions included Victor Reuther, Bayard Rustin, and Allard Lowenstein.</p> <p>The correspondence (File II: I: I) consists mostly of letters to prominent individuals in the worlds of business, religion, and politics asking them to serve on the commissions, and their responses, mailings of the commission reports, and letters exchanged between office staff members- Thomas' letters soliciting sponsorship for the Committee are in Series I.</p> <p>Other records of the Committee in the subseries include form letters, reports, and press releases, informational materials prepared for the observers, and a collection of clippings and reprints from English and Spanish language sources about the election, the Committee, and Latin American politics in general.</p>"}