Month 0
The story
In the aftermath of a disatrous war, Randland was convulsed by another more deadly Civil War. Opposing extremist forces fought each other and wreaked havoc on Randland for decades. The old King and his family were forced to flee the country. Randland was plunged into chaos and for decades alternating extremist totalitarian regimes ran the country. Coup followed coup and after each one came a new round of purges. The population lived in terror. Then three years ago a mass protest by the farmers and the labor unions toppled the government of the last dictator.
The leaders of the protest the asked the grandson of the old King to return to Randland to help restore order and stability to the government and the people.The new King, who was living in America teaching politcal science at a prestigious university, agreed to return on the condition that he be allowed to draft and enact a new democratic constitution for Randland. The leaders agreed, the King returned and the new constitution went into effect three months ago.
According to the new constitution, Randland is to be a constitutional monarchy with the new King, and his heirs after him, serving as heads of state. The King appoints the Government on the advice of the Federal Assembly and from among its members. The King declared the a number of ancient royal titles would be used to denote the heads of the various government departments who would form the Cabinet. Those offices (in order of their importance in the Cabinet) and their responsibilities are as follows:
Prime Minister - Head of the Government and the Cabinet
Leader of the Chamber of Deputies - Chief Chamber Whip
Leader of the Senate - Chief Senate Whip
President of the Council of States - Government Liason with state governments
Chief Treasurer - Head of the Royal Treasury
Supreme Ambassador - Head of the Foreign Affairs Office
Chief Detective and Prosecutor - Head of the Royal Police and Criminal Affairs Office
Generalissimo and Admiral of the Fleets - Head of the Royal Armed Forces
Protector of the Land - Head of the Agricultural and Wildlife Bureau
Chancellor of the Royal University - Head of the Department of Education
Chairman of the Medical Council - Head of the Department of Health and Welfare
Director of Economic Policy - Head of the Royal Council of Banking and Industry
Administrator of Government and Social Services - Head of the Transportation and Infrastructure Department
President of the Cultural Council - Adminstrator for the Arts, Culture and Sports
Chairman of the Board of Science and Technology - Chief Government Science Policy Coordinator.
Cabinet positions are to be distributed from the top down amongst all the government parties in both houses according to the strength of each government party in each house.
Additionally, each Cabinet member from President of the Council of States down has 4 Junior Ministers which are also distributed from the top down amongst all the government parties in both houses according to the strength of each government party in each house. A Cabinet memerb and his Junior Ministers form the Executive Council of a Department. A majority for action in the an Executive Council is either the Cabinet member and at least 2 Junior Ministers, or all 4 Junior Minsters, with or without the Cabinet Member.
The Assembly is to be elected by universal adult suffrage according to the principals of proportional representation. The Federal Assembly has two houses. The Chamber of Deputies has 500 members that are apportioned among the 15 states according to the population of each state. Seats are reapportioned at least every third election but at most every 10 years. The Senate has 200 members. Each state elects 12 Senators and the King appoints 20 Senators on the advice of the Chamber of Deputies. These seats are distributed according to the number of seats each party wins in the Chamber. New elections to the Assembly must be held at least every 60 months. In the event of a vacancy in either house, the King will order a by-election to take place in the appropriate state 60 days after the vacancy becomes known. A seat is won in a by-election by the party who would have the highest number of votes cast in the by-election per seat in that state if they were to be awarded the seat. The number of seats held by a party does not include the vacant seat.
The first elections are to take place in one month and the campaign platforms of each of the parties has now been released. Each voter cast one vote for a part for the Chamber and one vote for a party for the Senate. Voters need not vote for the same party for both houses. Paries must win 5% of the vote in a state for a house in order to win representation for that state in that house. With that fact in mind, each of the parties has issued a platform that positions itself in a different region of the political spectrum. The following are brief summaries of each of the parties positions.
Kommunist Party
This is an extreme left wing party, the successor of the Democratic Socialst Worker's Movement that produced several of the dictators during the Interregnum. The party's platform is a typical Communist statement of values and the party opposed most democratic reforms. The Kommunist's main supporter are hard-liners from their previos regimes. Opinion polls report thir support at about 5% of the electorate.
Green Party
The Greens are a left-wing party with a special emphasis on ecological issues. Preservation of the countryside and prevention of economic development are their main issues. Their main support comes from college-educated white-collar voters. Opinion polls report their support at about 10% of the electorate.
Social-Democratic Party
The SDP was formed from the labor movement that helped topple the last dictator. They are a democratic socialist party with the aim of nationalising industry and creating an exstensive welfare system. Their main support comes from blue-collar workers. Opinion polls report their support at about 30% of the electorate.
Liberal Party
The liberals are a centrist party with a pracmatic approach that should allow them to work well with most other parties. They are expected to play the role of "Kingmaker" in many elections. Their main support comes from urban upper and middle class voters. Opinion polls report thir support at about 10% of the electorate.
Conservative Party
The Conservatives are a traditional right-wing party. Their platform includes an emphasis on laissez-faire economics, social conservatism and support for the monarchy. Their support comes mainly from suburban upper and middle class voters. Opinion polls report thir support at about 30% of the electorate.
Freedom Party
The Freedom Party was formed from the farmer's movement that helped topple the last dictator. They are a generally right-wing party with a special emphasis on agricultural issues and strong ties to the Church. Their support comes mainly from rural voters. Opinion polls report their support at about 10% of the electorate.
Nationalist Party
The Nationalists are an extreme right wing party associated with a number of the dictators from the Interregnum. They are opposed to most democratic measures and can be extremely reacist and xenophobic as well. Their support is expected to come from hard line supporters of their previous regimes. Opinion polls report their support at about 5% of the electorate.
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