The State of the Confederation A Third-Party Independent Paper The Election of 4442 Publication approved March, 4443 | Written January, 4443 Kivonia, Davostag - The surprisingly contentious 4442 elections are over, with the shocking result of the United Capitalist Party being relegated to 2nd place. Though the election looked at first to be an uncontested victory for the UCP, the re-mobilization of the Satanist party, as well as the formation of the National Revolutionary Movement and the Communist Union in the interim years has led to voter migration from the UCP, from the left, right, and from the nationalists. The oldest party of the Confederation, the Satanist Party, came out on top in the elections, though they have failed to take a majority in legislature. The UCP continues to control the presidency, though they had to face the upstart NRM in a second round to secure the office.
Despite being in 2nd and 3rd place respectively, both the UCP and the NRM declared victory after the election. During his inauguration, Ben Herbert of the UCP declared that he would bring "swift change", and would move to "suppress the far left and right wing parties", stating that "These people are insane if they think they can take power and destroy our great nation". Though the UCP's claim to victory appears to be damage control at first, there is some degree of truth to their declaration - as no coalitions have been formed, and with no party achieving a majority, the UCP is likely to retain control of not only the presidency, but also of the cabinet and the office of First Minister for the next term.
The newly-established NRM declared victory shortly after the vote count, with presidential candidate Alavaro Kazimirez holding a rally proclaiming the death of the "legacy party", and promising that the NRM will be "a party of action, a party for and by patriots". The party, though having held no seats prior, had already blitzed the legislature with a dozen bills, and rapid calls for the re-mobilization of the military. We were able to approach a NRM campaign volunteer for an interview post-election:
NRM Logo (Interim) How can you proclaim victory when you only achieved third place? Let us be frank - the NRM was never going to win the elections - our party is only one year old, after all. But what we can see - what everyone can see - is that the legacy party of the UCP is bleeding public support. Our party, with only 12 months of preparation, was able to gain roughly half the votes the UCP was able to - when elections occur again in 4 years, I have to wonder what the UCP will be left with! We offer an alternative for the current corruption-ridden Confederation, and even though we aren't that well known yet, the ballot box has just proven that is the will of the people!
What is your opinion on the UCP proclamation of victory? Pure vanity - I'm of the belief that going from first place to second does not constitute a victory! A legacy party that used to control all of legislature should not be proud of securing only 35% of the vote. Honestly, I can't perform the mental gymnastics necessary to proclaim this result a victory - a resurgent party just crushed them, and believe me when I say that the insurgent parties are after them next! For a party that was based in St. Muron to then come in 3rd place behind a newly formed party, then claim victory? If your paper is ever looking for new staff in the satirist column, I think you've found your guy!
What is your opinion on the other parties, and what can we expect from the NRM in the next 4 years? The UCP is a legacy party, and their continued corruption feeds our growth. But I place nation before party, so if I had any advice to the UCP, it would be to reform - few like the status-quo, and I don't see that improving any-time soon. I've unfortunately not been able to talk to representatives of the Satanist party too much, but so far, they seem the patriotic sort - that said, I will reserve judgement. The Communist Union appears to share our distaste for the status-quo - though we disagree on issues of national defense, and the degree of centralization, the CU appears to be a party we can work with, on issues of regulation and health, and I hope that our two parties can continue in that spirit! As for the NRM, expect action! To those who are waiting for the ending of the volleys of NRM legislation, I say, don't hold your breath - we were elected to change the nation, and that's exactly what we're going to do.
Other parties were contacted during the creation of this piece. This paper offers no endorsement to any political party.