Saridan

[Rogue]

Koeistad - The Saridanese Nationalistiese Party (SNP for short) has won a suprise victory in this election, having risen in popularity following consecutive failures by the Federalist government, the party has managed to capture a absolute majority in the Volksraad. The incumbent "Federal Party" lost its previous majority and has captured second place, with minor parties like the Progressives and Social Democrats dividing the spoils. SNP leader Andries Pienaar congratulated supporters at the party its celebration party and announced a "new era" for the federal republic. The SNP had been a political force for 3 years now, having a breakthrough after their candidate won the Pietersburg mayoral election last year. Since then it has benefitted from the Federal party its demise, capturing voters from both the left and right. 

Pienaar himself ran on a platform of renewal, promising a agenda of nationalism, economic liberalization and strengthened defense. The SNP has since been classified as a nationalist party with left-leaning economic policies and a right-leaning set of social policies. One important point for the party was defense. While the country has been running a surplus thanks to Federal Party cuts, the defense sphere was one of the hardest hit by these cuts. With instability elsewhere on the continent, specifically Rildanor, and refugees from these areas entering the country, defense suddenly became a "hot topic". The SNP has promised to significantly invest in all security branches, combined by a set of liberalizing economic reforms. "We need growth and defense, we can do it, im sure of it, but we need leaders with vision and determination to make it work" said Pienaar. The party also advocates for political reform, seeking to make the Volksraad more important and the Minister-president more influential. They also seek to reform the Volksraad, introducing a system of mixed-member elections where half of seats is elected through single-member districts and the other half through proportional representation. This way the SNP seeks to strengthen the influence of local communities and provinces on federal decisionmaking. 

State President Amelia Smit (Progressive) has announced that she will appoint Pienaar as Minister-President and invite him to form a government. Smit herself was elected 4 years ago on a joint Progressive-Social Democrat ticket, also riding the anti Federalist wave. In just one year time she will face potential reelection, with the Pienaar government now forced to work with her for the first year of this term. 


The election results, with the SNP capturing 84 of the 150 seats