Vascania

[Pragma]

Far-right tops poll amid poll violence
18 December 5713

In one Vascania's most violent election in its history, a far-right nationalist party - Vascanian Resurgence - has come first in both seats and votes. The political right has a majority if united, but the two main centre-right parties (the liberal All-Vascanian League/AVL and the conservative Vascanian National Party/VNP) have differing opinions on their willingness to cooperate with Resurgence. 

With the AVL all but wiped out by the moderate-progressive New Vascania, the numbers are there for a Resurgence-VNP coalition with a majority of just 3 seats. Resurgence leader Aakesh Kunder would be the likely choice for Prime Minister. If confirmed by parliament, Kunder will likely seek to implement a modified version of his electoral pledges - which included mass-rearmament, reindustrialisation, an expanded national service program and a diversion of funds from social services to purchasing equipment for the oil industry.

Violence was the central theme of the election, with far-left and far-right activists fighting outside polling stations. At least 18 people were killed during the campaign, with four of these deaths caused by a member of the far-left Red Tigers group who drove his car into a crowd of Resurgence youth activists. The incident was condemned by the parliamentary left, and the Red Tigers have been condemned as a terrorist organisation by the AVL, VNP, Resurgence and New Vascania.

The tight four-way race saw a level of geographic division that harkened back to the decline of the first Vascanian Empire. Bhaporistan and Utsal, long the bastions of the left, went by overwhelming margins to the socialist Workers' Front, while the deprived rural areas of northern Rajuttistan, northern Khond and Hamal Pradesh swung strongly towards the far-right. In certain inner Bhapor constituencies, the only significant challengers to the Workers' Front were even more radical far-left forces such as the separatist Communist Party of Bhaporistan. The idea of a far-right-led government has already led to massive demonstrations in Bhapor and the Utsari city of Ekasha, before all constituencies have even been ratified.

The vote in Rapa Pile was marked by the clean sweep of pro-independence parties, who achieved less that 50% of the vote in each constituency but had agreed to stand one united candidate against the fractured unionist parties. Many independence supporters do not vote in general election in Rapa Pile in protest.

The Kamalata Times is a Vascanian daily national newspaper based in Kamalata