Almanianian General Elections 1585

[Alvino Castillon]

Almanarnian General Elections of 1585

For the Presidency and Congress


Welcome to Decision 1585! This year, the United States of Almanarnia shall be holding its general elections, which means that the Presidency is once more up for the taking! These elections shall be unique as for the first time in decades, a newly formed party will be looking to seize the President's Estate.

As per the Constitution of the United States of Almanarnia, the following will be up for consideration in this election:

• The President and Vice President of the United States for a four year term each (up to 14 years total)
  
• 24 Senator seats for a four year term each (exact numbers below)
  
• 480 National Assembly seats for a two year term each
  

Show ContentRecent History:

The past few years have proven to be disastrous for the establishment parties. The Conservative Party [PC], along with their allies in the Gran Almanarnia Party [PGA], had rode a wave of populism to capture control of the National Assembly and the President's Estate in the 1581 elections. However, a series of legislative missteps and scandals have mired the administration of Simon Powers. Additionally, with the Senate remaining in the control of the Liberal Party [PL] and its allies, legislative gridlock plagued the first half of President Powers' term. Controversial campaign pledges, including a crackdown on drug usage and the defunding of social programs and services in favor of increased military spending, have drained the political capital of President Powers and divided his coalition before the midterm elections, with moderate elements in the Conservative Party growing increasingly alarmed at the public (and private) behavior of Powers.

The other side of the aisle has fared little better though. The coalition of the Liberal Party, the Green Party [PV] and the Socialist Party [PS] have suffered from a round of intra-coalition conflicts over ideological issues. Additionally, the Liberal Party, the largest party within the coalition have faced an intra-party schism in which its centrist and progressive elements accusing one another of throwing the election. The election of the Chair of the Liberal Party was bogged down by a surprise challenge by the former presidential candidate Senator Isabella Hart, further increasing strains within the party. Hart, a progressive, slammed Dan Green, her centrist challenger for a number of gaffes throughout his career, including one infamous moment in which he publicly mocked Hart during a debate, stating "Apparently, costing us the general elections isn't enough for her insatiable lust for power." He would eventually eek out a win by three votes and used his victory speech to blast Hart and the progressives for "continuously and uselessly bleeding the party for an unrealistic and impractical purity."

That was deemed a final straw by many progressives in the Liberal Party. Senator Hart, along with two other Senators and five Assemblypersons announced their decision to leave the party and form a new caucus to create a "Grand Deal for Almanarnia", inviting "any that were serious about moving Almanarnia forward" to join them. Over the next few months, this group would begin to grow caused from bleeding from both the Liberal Party and Conservative Party. By the 1583 Midterm Elections, the caucus had reformed itself into a new political party titled "Coalition for Almanarnia" [CA] and set out to secure itself as a major party, campaigning in almost every Senate election for that year and at least half of all National Assembly elections.

The midterms proved to be a disaster for the political establishment. The Liberals lost further seats and its majority in the Senate while the Conservatives lost full control of the National Assembly by a single vote, thanks in part to the new political party and the breakaway of an Independent Centrist Caucus. This led to a hung Congress, with the Coalition for Almanarnia and the Independent Centrist Caucus agreeing to not cut any deals with either side until they came to the negotiating table, expecting them to do so within a few days or a week at most.

Unfortunately, this would not be the case. Chairman Green of the Liberals and President Powers of the Conservatives blasted this alliance and urged their respective parties not to negotiate with either. This feud would last for the good part of two years with little legislature being introduced as a result, angering many Almanarnians in the process.

Current Senate




Current Composition:

• Liberal Party - 21 (6 seats up for election)
  
• Conservative Party - 11 (8 seats up for election)
  
• Coalition for Almanarnia - 9 (5 seats up for election)
  
• Gran Almanarnian Party - 4 (3 seats up for election)
  
• Socialist Party - 1 (1 seat up for election)
  
• Independent Centrist Caucus - 1 (1 seat up for election)
  
• Green Party - 1 (0 seats up for election)
  

Current National Assembly




Current Composition:

• Conservative Party - 200
  
• Liberal Party - 132
  
• Coalition for Almanarnia - 64
  
• Great Almanarnia Party - 40
  
• Socialist Party - 24
  
• Green Party - 15
  
• Independent Centrist Caucus - 5
  
  All seats are up for grabs.