Valruzia

[Aethan]

Sejm to vote on popular initiative to constitute "Valruzian Kingdom"

Valruzian Constitution allows for "Popular plebiscites" when over 2% signatures are collected

July 5706

Proponents of the Popular legislative initiative bringing the petition to the Sejm

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It's official. For the first time since the democratic transition, the Sejm of Valruzia will officially discuss the transformation of the Valruzian Republic into the "Valruzian Kingdom", under the Nowik family. 3.5 million individual signatures have been collected, over the 2% of the total population of Valruzia, as it is required by the Valruzian Constitution, which under its Part X, related to Referenda, allows for the calling of the so-called "Popular Plebiscites" under that condition. According to it, 

The Valruzian Ombudsman can initiate a Popular plebiscite after proposing it to the Sejm if they have received a popular petition with at least two million signatories. A simple majority of the Sejm (50% + 1) must vote in favor of the organization of the Plebiscite. The Ombudsman proposing the Plebiscite is responsible for overseeing its organization and its results. They can be organized on any topic, and as an act of primary legislation they can be subject to judicial review by the Constitutional Court but may not be overturned. Should the Plebiscite be found to violate the Constitution or international treaties, the Constitutional Court may issue a declaration of incompatibility, and the Sejm shall have the ability to accept the Court's ruling or reject it and amend the text of the Plebiscite.

These plebiscites shall not carry the force of law until it is implemented as legislation by the Sejm, although the Sejm is not obliged to implement the results of the Plebiscite into law.

For this reason, the upcoming vote in the Sejm is less of a final verdict and more of a high-stakes gatekeeper. While the collection of 3.5 million signatures – roughly above the 2% of the Valruzian population – guarantees that the proposal reaches the floor, it does not guarantee a crown for Valruzia. Now, it's up to the Marshall of the Sejm, SPR's Anna Piechowska, to set up a date for the debate on the national floor on the initiative. If the Sejm achieves a simple majority, the Ombudsman will be tasked with organizing a nationwide vote that could fundamentally alter the nation’s identity.

However, even if the Sejm gives the green light, the "Valruzian Kingdom" faces a rigorous legal gauntlet. Under the current framework, several factors remain in play. First, the judicial review, as legal experts suggest the Constitutional Court will likely issue a "declaration of incompatibility" almost immediately. Transitioning from a Republic to a Monarchy inherently conflicts with the Preliminary Title of the Constitution, which defines the state's democratic nature and explicitly defines Valruzia as a "Parliamentary Republic". As such, there is also a lesser issue: Per the same Constitution, even a "Yes" victory in a popular plebiscite does not automatically dissolve the Republic, as the Sejm retains the sovereign right to ignore the results, though doing so after such a massive signature campaign could spark a significant political crisis.

Still, there's a third wheel of the issue: according to the very own family, the Nowiks have not been contacted in any way or have given their consent for their names to be included in the proposal. The family's most prominent current politician, Nowogard mayor Józef Nowik, has expressed his opinion against this proposal, but less known members of the Nowik family have expressed their support for this initiative and for their family to become the "rulers of Valruzia". 

Political Reactions
After news broke out, most parties represented in the Sejm have already made clear their position, and it increasingly looks like the result on whether to allow or not this plebiscite to go ahead will lie on the hands of a handful deputies. Forward Valruzia, the largest party in the Sejm and leader of the opposition has announced their intention to vote in favor of the plebiscite, although some senior figures internally express their dissatisfaction with allowing the Nowik family – with no known member ever belonging or sympathizing with the party – to become Kings of Valruzia. Sovereign Valruzia, for their part, is inclined to vote in favor of the proposal too, in line with their "direct democracy" party ideology, although they are more prone to give their deputies a free vote on the matter. For this reason, and although Forward Valruzia and Sovereign Valruzia already have over 50% of the deputies in the Sejm, for the proposal to go ahead it better secure the support of other minor parties. 

KPW's leader and current Deputy Chancellor, Judyta Kram, has categorically rejected the proposal, saying that the party "will never vote in favor of a regressive institution not submitted to the will of the people of Valruzia", a position shared by Workers' Vanguard. The Socialdemocratic–Agrarian Party is already discussing the issue internally, but it looks like they will also give a free vote to their deputies. The two smallest parties, the Yeudi-based Our Homeland and the regionalist People's Front of Kampania, have kept their opinion tight closed, but there are no expectations on a support from the regionalists.

Now, the debate is scheduled to begin this Tuesday, with a final vote expected by the week's end, as the Ombudsman prepares the formal presentation.

Public reaction
On the streets, reactions to this announcement are divided. Many citizens feel like this will tarnish Szymon Nowik's legacy – a fighter against the Valruzian Unitary State and a well-known republican, one of the minds behind the current State structure – and answers more to the interests of his descendants that his own will. Others, on the other hand, believe that this would put an end to a political system that, since the end of the Dictatorship, hasn't found a proper way to deal with the nation's head of State, resulting in multiple changes in the span of just a few decades. Outside the Sejm building, supporters of the proposal have performed a manifestation, and called for the Sejm to rule "as fast as possible".

According to express polls, if the referendum was to be held today, 62% of Valruzians would vote against it. Among those who would vote in favor, 68% say they would support the Monarchs to come from the Nowik family, while 11% would prefer another family and 21% don't have a formed opinion on the issue.