Post by callmedelta on Aug 11, 2022 1:20:43 GMT -5
The National Chamber
As set out by the Constitution of 1877, the National Chamber is the national legislative body of Franerre. It is composed of 150 members, 10 seats that are tied to each of the five provinces, with the remaining 100 to be divided between them based on population. Elections take place every three years, with the census determining the awarding of seats taking place every 9. Currently, the National Chamber is divided between two political parties, the left-leaning National Unions of Franerre (Syndicats Nationaux de Franerre/SNF), and the right-leaning Democratic People’s Party (Parti Popularie Democratique/PPD). The SNF currently hold a slim majority, but due to the party’s status as a broad coalition, many of its more moderate members often side with the PPD, making most bills endure long periods of revision and political maneuvering to attempt and attract these moderates to their side. One very noticeable effect this political stalemate has had on Franerri politics is increasing the power of the King. While officially he is only to act as a tiebreaker vote in the National Chamber, pass temporary Royal Decrees, and use the rare Royal Veto, many chambermen respect the King’s word enough to sway their opinion one way or another on a bill. With the elections of 1931 fast approaching, it’s anyone’s guess what will come of the National Chamber.
Pink: National Unions of Franerre (SNF). Blue: Democratic People's Party (PPD)
National Unions of Franerre (SNF)
Born from the cries of the working man and the ashes of the short-lived Franerri Worker's Party, the SNF is determined to make life better for the average Franerri citizen, at least in theory. In practice, the SNF's electoral 'victory,' if you can call it that, only came after decades of dissatisfaction with uncontested PPD rule and from a broad coalition of hardline communists, moderate social democrats, and centrist, right, and far-right elements either dissatisfied with or shunned by the PPD. Even then, it took the disastrous handling of the 1927 Franerri Miner's Strike by King Dante and the PPD to overcome the memories of the 1915 assassination attempt on King Toussaint I by a radical anti-monarchist communist and Franerri Worker's Party sympathizer. The main electoral base of the SNF are in the mountainous mining border regions and the factory and dockworkers of the coastal cities, and though they can't legally vote, many women are pro-SNF due to their more liberal leanings on women's rights. Since the Election of 1928, Julius Verenes, the ostensible leader of the SNF and First Chamberman of the National Chamber has tried his best to work with a stubborn King and disunified party, but the experienced Isaac Dufour Jr. of the PPD is able to play the game of politics much better than the young Verenes. But even his skill can't stop the tide of the Franerri people, only delay it. At least that's what Verenes hopes.
Democratic People's Party (PPD)
The Democratic People's Party was, for the longest time, the sole power in Franerre. Born from the remnants of the King's former privy council before Mordred's Revolution brought democracy to Franerre, the PPD still draws its' power from much the same place it did back then: the nobility, factory owners, and rich Luso-Franerri elite, with the addition of the Lusatian Catholic church following the collapse of the Franerri Worker's Party. This group is helmed by Isaac Dufour Jr., the Second Chamberman and son of Isaac Dufour Sr., one of the members of both the King's final privy council and the original PPD. Isaac has played the game of politics longer than many of the SNF's chambermen have been alive, and with the old friends, older money, and ear of the King he held for so long, for the longest time his word was law, and Dufour ruled the party with an iron fist. Even with his uncontested seat of power, Isaac did not fall prey to the temptations of sloth that came with power. When the Franerri Worker's Party won the election of 1915, Dufour capitalized on the assassination attempt on King Toussaint I to call for a snap reelection, and thanks to the PPD's stranglehold on newspapers, the PPD won in a landslide. To prevent such a thing from happening again, Dufour allied the PPD with the Lusatian Catholic Church to fight against the 'modern degeneracy' of cities and capture the votes of the poor religious rural farmers who had made up a key voter base of the Franerri Worker's Party. Now that the SNF have won a slim majority, Dufour has used every trick in his book to get those moderates back on his side, and keeps a keen eye on any failure of the SNF he can capitalize on.
The Democratic People's Party was, for the longest time, the sole power in Franerre. Born from the remnants of the King's former privy council before Mordred's Revolution brought democracy to Franerre, the PPD still draws its' power from much the same place it did back then: the nobility, factory owners, and rich Luso-Franerri elite, with the addition of the Lusatian Catholic church following the collapse of the Franerri Worker's Party. This group is helmed by Isaac Dufour Jr., the Second Chamberman and son of Isaac Dufour Sr., one of the members of both the King's final privy council and the original PPD. Isaac has played the game of politics longer than many of the SNF's chambermen have been alive, and with the old friends, older money, and ear of the King he held for so long, for the longest time his word was law, and Dufour ruled the party with an iron fist. Even with his uncontested seat of power, Isaac did not fall prey to the temptations of sloth that came with power. When the Franerri Worker's Party won the election of 1915, Dufour capitalized on the assassination attempt on King Toussaint I to call for a snap reelection, and thanks to the PPD's stranglehold on newspapers, the PPD won in a landslide. To prevent such a thing from happening again, Dufour allied the PPD with the Lusatian Catholic Church to fight against the 'modern degeneracy' of cities and capture the votes of the poor religious rural farmers who had made up a key voter base of the Franerri Worker's Party. Now that the SNF have won a slim majority, Dufour has used every trick in his book to get those moderates back on his side, and keeps a keen eye on any failure of the SNF he can capitalize on.