Election 4780: Right-Wing Set To Form Next GovernmentAfter twelve years at the head of the Vascanian government, the socialist LSS has likely lost power to the national-conservative VRK under Kavita Mohite.
With 334 seats, the VRK is the largest party by some margin, head of the LSS on 282. This constitutes a 46-seat fall for the the left, leaving them with
little chance to form government. The VRK's Mohite ran a populist campaign, railing against trade union leaders, 'liberal elites' and Ahmadi immigrants.
Without the personal popularity of Prime Minister Durga Upamash - who stood down after 12 years in office - the LSS struggled to make the case for an
unprecedented fourth term in office for a left-wing party. They were also hampered by Mohite's careful rhetorical maneuvering on economic issues,
where she presented herself as being willing to continue many of the socialists' internal development initiatives.
The VRK has already announced it will be beginning talks with minor right-wing parties and the moderate NPG, who themselves have seen yet another
drop in their parliamentary representation. The NPG are likely to demand concessions from Mohite on environmental policy. Insiders suggested before
the election that Mohite would offer the NPG a nuanced energy settlement, in which Vascania continued to export oil internationally but internally
moved towards a nuclear-and-renewable based system. Whether or not this would be enough will depend on the NPG's willingness to bend their hardline
ecological position in favour of entering government. During the campaign, the NPG's environment spokeswoman is noted to have said 'dignified
opposition does not help us enact policy change' - a break from party leadership who had previously refused to bend on the oil issue when attempting to
form a coalition with the socialists after the last election. Another key concern of the NPG in entering coalition with the VRK is Mohite's history of
embracing anti-Ahmadi sentiment, which contrasts with the NPG's social liberalism.
The Communitarian Party, who are part of the current coalition and tend do position themselves on the cultural right and economic left, made modest
gains but once again struggled to make a breakthrough. A few independents and regional party candidates were elected, in particular in Rapa Pile -
where the Liberals and VRK-aligned SP each won 17 seats. The MSP is likely to enter government alongside the continental VRK, as the two parties are
strongly aligned politically and the SP's seventeen votes in parliament will help pass reforms that may be opposed by the Socialists.
Vascania is a large and diverse nation, so the story of the election can be subdivided regionally:
North: Kalam Nadu, Avidangana & TannaragaThe collapse of the far-right LRS massively benefited the VRK in the north, were they stormed back into their historic dominance of the area. Middle class
voters in the rural and suburban north tend to be quite socially conservative, and so have generally voted for conservative and nationalist parties. The
socialist LSS have had troubles establishing a foothold in the region, which has somewhat fewer of the poorer urban areas the LSS generally does well in.
This election, the socialists did not fall back much as they did in other regions, possibly as left-leaning NPG members chose to put their lot in with the LSS
in fear of enabling a blue-green coalition.
A significant degree of environmental concern, particularly on the coasts, has allowed the local NPG to generally have a serious presence in the northern
parts of Vascania. This election, however, they fell notably as the focus turned away from environmentalism and towards cultural issues and change. The
NPG's social liberalism hindered their development locally, while the regional Communitarians gained a few seats after having struggled for about a
decade in this part of the nation. Smaller parties in the area, primarily conservative local parties, fell back a bit but may still be used in by a VRK-led
government to help pass some cultural bills.
Centre: Bhaporistan, Sanashtra, Utsal & SurasaThe central regions remain largely left-wing, but there has undoubtedly been a surge in certain areas for the VRK. Though the political right used to
struggle in places like Sanashtra and Surasa, the populist politics of the VRK under Kavita Mohite managed to convince a lot of people over to the right.
Concerns about Ahmadi influence were played up by the VRK campaign, especially in these areas which have significant Ahmadi populations. Cultural
issues dominated the campaign here, especially in Sanashtra - the state that Mohite used to govern. Her brand of politics had and still has, evidently, a
base of support among the working class even in these heartlands. Upamash's retirement may have cost the LSS votes in this, her home territory.
The NPG lost almost half their seats in the central states, where their socially liberal values hurt their ability to attract voters. Their key policies,
including abandoning oil production and placing CO2 taxes on industry, were perceived as potentially damaging to the industrial parts of Utsal that have
developed under Prime Minister Durga Upamash. The Communitarians had hoped to gain here after an aggressive social media campaign targeting young
people in urban areas. This failed to materialise for them as they barely gained any seats in the area.
East: Zaqrandi Pradesh, Rajuttistan & Hamal PradeshWhen factoring in the collapse of the LRS, the shift from red to blue was most severe here in the east. Southern Rajuttistan, where the socialists had
hung on by the skin of their teeth last time, finally fell after a tour by Mohite where she suggested that Ahmadis would soon start immigrating illegally
onto Vascania's east coast due to instability on the continent. The capital Kamalata, a LSS stronghold, also showed a shift away from the Prime Minister's
party - fear of Ahmadi migration was brought up on many doorsteps according to campaigners from all parties. Zaqrandi Pradesh, with a high Ahmadi
population, still showed the rightward shift as the two communities are often informally segregated between and often within towns and cities.
The NPG has historically been strong on Kayal Island, and this was the only area of the country where they won a majority of votes. The Communitarians
have had little strength in the area, and indeed it was the only region where they in fact lost seats from last time around. Again, the culture-clash of
liberal and open against conservative and traditional put a squeeze on the ability of the minor parties to compete, even though the east is considered to
be the most socially liberal part of the country.
South-West: Khond, Paristan & RajavantThe south-west is another region where the collapse the of the LRS benefitted the conservative VRK. Mohite's populism was less effective in this
relatively socially moderate area, but a desire for change was strong in many parts of the south - particularly in Paristan, which has seen relatively little
development in comparison to other working-class areas like the central belt and north-eastern coastline. The LSS's proposals on issues like rent control
and urban transport struggled to cut through in an area that has a high amount of property ownership and car ownership as well. Rural voters, according
to exit polling, appeared to feel 'ignored' by the LSS campaign - 56% felt 'ignored' compared to 28% who felt 'engaged'.
The NPG has historically been strong on the far southern coast and unlike in other areas environmental issues remained key here due to the area's
growing tourism industry - which relies on environmental sustainability to advertise internationally. This is the area that most benefits from oil drilling,
however, due to the presence of the western oilfield off the coast of Khond and the Great Vascanian Lake drilling project. This creates a duality in which
the area gets the most benefits from the oil project Upamash started, but also is at most risk from a disaster like an oil spill. Concerns over a looming oil
issue, especially as regards local habitat preservation, eventually won over more voters than the oil drilling jobs managed to convince. Mohite took a
relatively moderate view on the environment generally, but promised to invest more federal money in species preservation.
Vascania News is the national public broadcaster and information outlet for the Vascanian Empire.