Deltaria

[Rogue]

Tsargrad - One calls it a unique situation, the other calls it the natural cycle of things, but one thing has become clear in the last few weeks: the KDU is closing in on its rival, the ruling SSD of Prime Minister Lazarescu. The ruling party has, despite their relative succes over the years, seen a small decline in polling as some voters seem vatigued by the policies of the party. Social Security 2.0 was a major succes, as were subsequent initiative in the diplomatic field. Prime Minister Lazarescu himself remains popular, but even with all those "wins", voters have started to show their dissatisfaction with a government that has started to push for the compromise instead of the ideological push for reform. Where the SSD in its first term introduced groundbreaking proposals, worked with others and still got their major policies through congress, the party is now seen as backing down on a variety of issues in a effort to maintain stability. Even with the recent constitutional reforms, SSD supporters blamed the Prime Minister for "giving in" to conservative demands on to many points. 

In comes the KDU, which ruled for the last time under Horvat some seven years ago and had so far failed to gain footing. The last "gamble" by appointing party hardliner Karlo Labas as leader failed to turn the tide, with the party losing even more seats three years ago. Since that election, the KDU has mostly focussed on the provinces, seeking to build the base of the party and win on local issues before setting sight on national government again. Even now, just one year before the election, the party has yet to name a party leader. This strategy, where the KDU doesnt really have a single face but rather runs on the party's image, has worked out well. Over the last year the KDU has steadily risen in the polls, especially after election wins such as Kelemen's victory in the Tsargrad mayoral race. Even without a leader, many voters view the KDU as a good alternative to the ruling SSD. Voters value the KDU's "connection to the community" and see their local KDU leaders as advocates for their own communities, while SSD politicians are often viewed as "out of touch" or "distant" in subsequent polls. 

Other parties have so far found it hard to break through as the two major parties garner a lot of attention. One exception is the Revolutionary Communist Party, which has managed to rise and benefit from left-wing voters moving away from the SSD. With just over 1 year to go till the next general election under the new electoral system, many wonder if Lazarescu can maintain his shrinking lead or whether this will be his last term as our national leader.