By 1922, the Finnish society, economy and politics had begun to stabilize. The Progressive (liberal) President Kaarlo Juho Ståhlberg had pardoned many Red (socialist) prisoners of the Finnish Civil War, the worst poverty caused by World War I and the Civil War was over, and the Agrarian leader, Kyösti Kallio, was preparing a law (Lex Kallio) that would distribute the excess farmlands of wealthy landowners to the former tenant farmers and other landless rural people. The Social Democrats, led by Väinö Tanner, had committed themselves to the peaceful and democratic pursuit of socialist reform goals. The mostly Agrarian-Progressive minority governments pursued moderate and conciliatory policies. Compulsory schooling of Finnish children was enacted in 1921. The Communists dared to organize the Socialist Workers' Party before the elections, so they preferred open political activity to underground political activity. Shortly before the election campaign officially started, the Finnish Parliament rejected a five-year defence treaty between Finland, Poland, Latvia and Estonia. Enough deputies doubted the ability of Poland and the Baltic countries to defend Finland during a real war.[3][4]
^Seppo Zetterberg et al., eds., A Small Giant of the Finnish History / Suomen historian pikkujättiläinen, Helsinki: WSOY, 2003, pages 619–620, 629–630, 672
^Pentti Virrankoski, A History of Finland 1&2 / Suomen historia 1&2, Helsinki: Finnish Literary Society / Suomalaisen kirjallisuuden seura, 2009, pages 786–787, 791, 797–800
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