Dundorf

[Drax]

WERNER IV BUNDESKABINETT WILL BE DSDP, GPP, PPD AND TLD

 ODERVELD – LEUCHTFEUER
 
Bundestag, November 29, 5702 (backdated): ODERVELD – LEUCHTFEUER sources have learned that Federal President Franz Johanssohn asked Federal Chancellor Matthias Werner to form a fourth Bundeskabinett and that he has been able to do so.
 
It appears that Werner has has been able to form a governing coalition consisting of Werner’s Social Democrats (DSDP), the Greens (GPP), the Pirates (PPD) and the Liberals (TLD).
 
The full list of Ministry assignments by Party follows which includes GPP’s Franziska Niedermeyer as Deputy Federal Chancellor and Finance Minister, the PPD’s Hector Freilingsohn as Interior Minister and TLD’s Gunther Krancke returning to the Foreign Office.
 
Werner IV Bundeskabinett
Federal Chancellor – Matthias Werner (DSDP)
Finance Minister and Deputy Federal Chancellor – Franziska Niedermeyer (GPP)
Foreign Minister – Gunther Krancke (TLD)
Interior Minister – Hector Freilingsohn (PPD)
Defence Minister – Friedrich v. Schirach (TLD)
Justice Minister – Alice Boehner (DSDP)
Infrastructure & Energy – Alexander Paulsen (GPP)
Healthcare - Dr. Adele Wagner (GPP)
Education – Walther Wagner-Pohl (DSDP)
Labor and Social Services – Renate Reinhardt (DSDP)
Environmdent, Tourism & Territorial Protection – Simon Osterhaus (GPP)
Agriculture and Food – Rikkert Van Der Plaas (PPD)
Science, Research & Technology – Esther Schuurs (PPD)
Commerce & Industry – Magda Pflugbeil (TLD)
 
Der Rote Front (DRF) was not offered participation in the governing coalition although a part of Werner Bundeskabinett III


Bundestag

[Drax]

DUNDOF FOREIGN POLICY PERSPECTIVE
 
ODERVELD – LEUCHTFEUER
 
Foreign Office, March 29, 5705: After a senior staff meeting on recruiting foreign language proficient entry level staff, ODERVELD – LEUCHTFEUER asked Foreign Minister Gunther Krancke what if any changes in international relations  he expected the new government to pursue, and Krancke responded:
 

Honestly not many. While we have often had political factions wanting complete isolation, or relations only with socialist systems or with monarchies or successful democracies, the Foreign Office has long been dominated by a certain perspective which has generally prevailed regardless of what party was in power.
 
It is no secret the Dundorf Sozialdemokratische Partei (DSDP), the oldest continuously operating party in the Bundesrepublik, and Neue Dundorfische Zentrumspartei (NDZP), our oldest party, have jointly shaped this policy over the centuries. I presume you are asking me because Team Liberaldemokraten (TLD) is much newer and may be more inclined to innovation.
 
TLD supports the traditional policy which has several aspects.  First, we are not concerned with the structure of the regime of another other nations but rather whether it behaves with integrity and honors sovereignty and is not perpetrating aggression or abusing its own population.  If that is the case we very much would like to trade with it and are open to non aggression pacts.
 
Second, we are not looking for military conquest. But have responded successfully to attacks against us several times.  With the demise of the World Congress, we have been open to continental and regional responses to rogue powers such as those that attacked us. We have been in military operations with the Kundrati Union and the Holy Luthorian Empire as well  as Ikradon political factions.
 
Over the years, we have engaged in military technology trades and weapon development with the Triad, Malivia, the Kingdom of Dorvik, The Lourennais, and Royaume Uni de Kanjor. We have been open to Artanian or North Artanian defense agreements but most have not lasted.
 
Third, for many years there were two approaches with separate advocates. One favored Beiteynu and the other Dorvik.  The upshot was trying to deal with both without being dominated by either.  NDZP and DSDP would likely disagree on whether in particular instances that was always successful. 
 
Be that as it may, the fourth was the Humanitarian Alliance led by the Kingdom of Lourenne became our principal international association during its life and before the Lourennais withdrew from the Terran stage. We sent troops and planes and ships to support Lourenne when it was attacked by Seko.
 
But to your original question, there is unlikely to be a change in policy but we do see opportunities beyond those we have pursued in the past.  Particularly in Dovani and perhaps in Seleya and Majatra.

Foreign Minister Krancke

[TheNick]

Hans Meyer (NDZP) Defeats President Johanssohn (GPP) and Wins Presidential Election
May 5705

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President-elect Hans Meyer (NDZP) campaigning in Grozvic last month.

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Dunburg - In a surprising upset, the Nordenhausen Allgemeine Zeitung can project that the joint NDZP-KBP Presidential candidate, Hans Meyer, has won the second round of voting against incumbent President Franz Johanssohn, supported by the Greens, Social-Democrats and the Socialists. The current margin of victory is inferior to 1% and represents the closest Presidential election result since direct elections were reinstated in 5690.

Mr. Meyer, a Hosian Democrat member of Bundestag from Julstoch, married since 26 years with Brigitte and father to three sons, launched his campaign last December in what appeared to be a long-shot: the incumbent President had good ratings and was supported by a very broad leftist coalition. But during the campaign, Mr. Meyer campaigned heavily on his moderate persona and worked hard to secure the KBP's endorsement. This allowed him to "lock" more conservative voters on his side and convince enough voters through his moderate campaign that President Johanssohn was too much of an "activist" to serve as Federal President, and that he on the contrary had the right temperament. A Zeitung exit poll suggests that Meyer's victory is a result of unprecedented mobilitization of Pirate voters in the second round (where they usually abstain) which is a result of the general and growing dissatisfaction towards the DSDP-dominated Federal Government, with Chancellor Werner (DSDP) in the role since 5690.

Other candidates in the first round were Liberal-Democratic Friedrich von Schirach, who obtained some 12% of the votes and endorsed Mr. Meyer in the second round, and Pirate candidate Dr. Theodore Engel, a former heart surgeon turned politician, who won 10% of the votes but declined to endorse someone.

President-elect Meyer will meet his former rival at Karlottenberg Schloss next week, for a dinner and to start the Presidential Transition. Chancellor Werner privately congratulated Meyer through a phone call but has no plans, at the moment, to meet the President-elect: "we will cooperate closely with Karlottenberg Schloss with whoever is the President, I'll meet the President elect once he is sworn in", Matthias Werner said. Some commentators say that this election turned out to be some sort of "referendum" on the popularity of Chancellor Werner and his party. On this, there is growing talk among political insiders that the Chancellor might actually decide to step down as leader of the Social Democratic Party before the next Federal Election, scheduled for 5707, is held.

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Full Results of the 5705 Presidential Election:

2nd Round 
(turnout 76%, +3,2% vs 5696):

- Hans Meyer (NDZP, endorsed by KBP): 42.868.713 (50,4%) - elected Federal President
- Franz Johanssohn (GPP, endorsed by DSDP and DRF): 42.268.091 (49,6%) - incumbent, lost re-election


1st Round 
(turnout 81,5%, +1,7% vs 5696):

- Franz Johanssohn (GPP, endorsed by DSDP and DRF): 42.102.741 (46,1%) - advance to runoff
- Hans Meyer (NDZP, endorsed by KBP): 28.578.729 (31,3%) - advance to runoff
- Friedrich Von Schirach (TLD): 11.215.001 (12,3%)
- Dr. Theodore Engel (PPD): 9.387.099 (10,3%)

[Drax]

PRESIDENT RACE MAY PORTEND POLITICAL SHIFT
 
ODERVELD – LEUCHTFEUER
 
Charlottenburg Schloss, December 29, 5705: Asked by ODERVELD – LEUCHTFEUER if he was surprised by his win, Bundesprasident Hans Meyer replied:
 

Quite frankly, yes.  Leadership of Neue Dundorfische Zentrumspartei (NDZP) had offered to support the Konservative Bundespartei (KBP) candidate, and Team Liberaldemokraten (TLD) in point of fact did the same.  When none materialized, TLD and NDZP each fielded their own.
 
Former Chancellor Frieda Gimbel wanted to keep open the possibility of leading a government while former Defense Minister Bruno Steigerwald felt two losses were enough for him.  Honestly, NDZP expected President Franz Johanssohn to be reelected.  He certainly led the first round and we expected his lead would hold. 
 
The KBP endorsement appears to have been decisive in getting into the runoff; I certainly appreciate their support. 

In the runoff we must have attracted some Pirate Party vote, possibly because of similar views on fiscal responsibility.  Be that as it may, think electorate may be much less predictable than most experts have presumed.
 
I believe the Presidency is designed to help bring unity and respect for the law and for peaceful succession.  I will certainly treat this approach as the proper one in carrying out my duties.  I do note that often a President has a positive role to play in promoting friendly relations with other nations, and I look forward to working with he Foreign Office in this regard.

Karlottenburg Scloss

[TheNick]

Matthias Werner Retires as DSDP Leader, Declines to Seek Fifth Term as Chancellor
March 5706

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Chancellor Werner last week in Bundestag. He is serving as Chancellor since 5690.

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Dunburg - Federal Chancellor Matthias Werner will no longer be the leader of the Social-Democratic Party and will not contest the next Federal Election that will be held in November, effectively retiring from politics. In his announcement on social media last Saturday, Mr. Werner explained that his political cycle has come to a 'natural end' after 16 years in power as the Chancellor and the leader of the largest party. He said that he will not contest the Federal Election and will thus leave the Bundestag this November but he did not rule out seeking election to Karlottenberg Schloss, in the future: "if my party needs me, I'll be there, I am open to run for Federal President. But it's time I pass the torch as a member of Bundestag, party leader and Federal Chancellor".

Chancellor Werner's retirement now opens the succession battle for new leader of the Social-Democratic Party, which is currently suffering in the polls and continues to see a exodus of voters, mostly in favor to parties on its left: the Greens and the Red Front. The next leader will have the task to re-energize the base of the party and be able to recapture some of the support it has lost in these 16 years leading the Federal Cabinet. 

And it's on how to re-energize a party that the clash is happening: a older, more moderate wing of the party insists that the DSDP's role must remain one of moderation and institutionalism, whereas the younger generation of the DSDP demands bolder actions and a more activist approach to Government. Matthias Werner was elected as a Progressive, but as the years progressed he became more of a institutional figure, also due to the shifts in our political system caused by the founding of the Pirate Party that upended the traditional coalition politics and brought more instability.  

The candidates interested in running for Federal Secretary of the DSDP have time until May to present their candidacies to the public, and the internal primary election will take place some time this summer, just in time to prepare and launch the political campaign for this November's election.

[TheNick]

Rikkert Van Der Plaas Ousted as Pirate Leader in Shock Move
March 5607

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Supporters of the Pirate Party during a rally in Chontalen for the State Election.

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The 'Pirate Galleon', an executive council which manages the Pirate Party, has voted 9-0 to remove Rikkert Van Der Plaas as party leader. Van Der Plaas is the founder of the party, and appointed all nine members of the Galleon which was the reason every single political commentator and expert did not expect this to happen. Some are calling it ironically a 'mutiny' while the members who voted to remove him explained in detail why they took this decision in this press release:

We thank Rikkert Van Der Plaas for having had the courage to found this extraordinary movement. The Pirate Party represents Dundorf's real alternative to centuries of rule of the DSDP and NDZP, and their allies. This term, Rikkert Van Der Plaas agreed to join a coalition with the DSDP, TLD and GPP, with the condition of stopping the excessive spending typical of Socialist-led governments. This did not happen. We decided to move forward into next November's election with a new leader, capable of truly representing a credible alternative to the big government socialists and the bigoted conservatives. Dr. Theodore Engel, our party's candidate for President last year, will be assuming office as the new Leader of the Pirates and will lead our movement to victory.

Rikkert Van Der Plaas, who was vacationing in Egelion at the time of the vote, commented briefly: "I can't believe they would kick me out of my party. I wish Dr. Engel all the best, but I'm not done: I think this was an illegal removal and I will come back, sooner or later." The Nordenhausen Allgemeine Zeitung checked the Pirate Party's statute and found that the meeting of this council was regularly called, and that removal of a leader is possible as long as all members vote to oust the leader. Herr Van Der Plaas was removed by an unanimous vote.

Rikkert Van Der Plaas is the current Agricolture Minister and has stated that he intends to serve until the remainder of the term. Chancellor Werner confirmed he has no plans to fire him and that this whole issue is 'an internal matter of the Pirate Party and doesn't concern the Cabinet'. He is also serving as a MP for the Pirate Party but it remains to be seen if he wants to maintain his party membership and likely be a backbencher or join another party.

[TheNick]

DB Bids to Keep Control of Amudim's Trains, Werner Says
April 5607

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An old series DUT train still operates in Tel Bira.

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Fuchstal, Chontalen - In a visit to a company factory in Fuchstal, Chancellor Werner and D.B. (Dundorfische Bahn) CEO Damian Fuchs confirmed to the press that the Federal Government will assist the company in a bid to maintain control of the maintenance and operation of Amudimian trains. The contract was estabilished for the first time in the 5200s and it represented one of the first business operations between Dundorf and Amudim (back when it was called Beiteynu), and that operation actually permitted the opening of diplomatic relations.

Now DB, which in the meantime has changed partially its structure, seeks to maintain control of the Amudimian train network with a new multi-million contract which includes new train sales, maintenance and the operation of the network. Chancellor Werner said the Federal Government believes DB is a strategic asset to the Federal Republic and that because of this, it will assist the company in this operation: "[DB] generates millions in revenue for our country, employes lots of Dundorfians, and is a strategic partner for national scientific research and development. Of course the Federal Government has DB's back on this."

The new bid was submitted yesterday morning by CEO Fuchs to the Finance Office in Tel Bira, awaiting from a response from Amudim officials. As the news came out, the market reacted positively: DB's parent company responsible for R&D and commercial operations (Dundorfische Bahn Forschung und Handel AG) registered a +2.3% rise in value at the Nordenhaus Stock Market, where it is capitalized.

[TheNick]

DSDP Elects Renate Reinhardt, a Moderate, as Party Leader
June 5707

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Labor Minister Renate Reinhardt celebrating her victory in the DSDP Primary Election.

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Nicholas-Bauer-Haus, Dunburg - The incumbent Labor Minister Renate Reinhardt has won the internal primary election of the DSDP, called after the retirement of Matthias Werner, defeating the Minister-President of Dunlake, Kasper Brozovìc. The party rules say that if there are more than two candidates, an assembly of the party elected officials vote to advance two candidates in the public's vote. Since there were only two candidates, they advanced to the public's vote by default.

The candidates were Renate Reinhardt and Kasper Brozovìc, representing the Moderate and Progressive wings, respectively. Reinhardt, 48, is the Labor Minister in role since 5700. She is also an MP representing her home state of Oderveld since 5690, and before politics she worked as an attorney specialized in labor law, representing people who claimed to have been unjustly fired. She represents the DSDP's more institutional and 'moderate' wing, but said that she will continue cooperating with the Dundorfian Red Front 'without prejudice'.

Kaspar Brozovìc, 40, is the Minister-President of Dunlake since 5604, and before that was the Mayor of Oberegg, Dunlake. Before entering politics, he was a middle school teacher of math. He made history as the first second-generation Dundorfian-Kundrati person to ever run for DSDP Secretary, a role that in history has only been held by Dundorfian or Narik people. He represented the more activist and progressive wing of the party, insisting that the DSDP should not cooperate with parties belonging to the center-right coalition and should work more closely with the Pirate Party instead.

The main issues of this election was the DSDP's increasing difficulty in preventing voters to leave for more leftist parties like GPP or DRF but also on how to proceed with coalition politics, which after the debut of the Pirate Party have been increasingly instable and difficult to form. Reinhardt said that an experienced and institutional figure like her can 'work with anyone' from the DRF to the NDZP.  Brozovìc said that the party needs to re-discover its activism and boldness if it doesn't want to "become the red copy of the NDZP". 

Ultimately, Reinhardt's name recognition and promise to leave the door open to the DRF sealed for her the election, with 60% of the party members voting for her, officially designating her as the Federal Secretary of the Social-Democratic Party. Many soft-progressives ended up voting for her instead of Mr. Brozovìc because of her DRF position, which is different from other moderates. She will assume the role immediately and will immediately start working on the DSDP's campaign for the upcoming Federal election, her spokesman said.

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5607 DSDP Internal Primary Election:

Members eligible to vote: 1.562.740
Turnout: 1.413.442 (90,4%)

Federal Minister Renate Reinhardt (Moderate): 885.928 (62,7%) - elected Federal Secretary
Minister-President Kasper Brozovìc (Progressive): 527.514 (37,3%)

[TheNick]

NDZP Wins the 5706 Federal Election, Bundestag is the Most Fragmented Ever
November 5706

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A beautiful view of the Bundestag, from across the Ode River.

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Dunburg - The NDZP is projected to be the largest party after this Federal Election, ending a sixteen-year long rule of the DSDP under Chancellor Matthias Werner. The overall result of the election is very fragmented: NDZP wins this election with only 21,5% of the votes, ahead of the Social-Democrats by one point and a half. Four parties are battling for third place, all between 12 and 13 percentage points: the Pirates, the Greens, the Liberal-Democrats and the Red Front. Very bad result for the conservative ruralists, which fell under 10% and will not earn any delegate out of Chontalen, where their state list fell under the 5% threshold.

A fragmented electoral result also means that that the Bundestag is fragmented and thus, it will become very difficult to form a new cabinet, which will be mainly President Meyer's responsibility. Pirate leader Dr. Theodore Engel stated at the Piraten's election night watch party: "The Pirates are ready to assume resposibility as the third largest party. We will have a serious meeting with President Meyer and we will explain that our priority, at the moment, is to form a Federal Government with a responsible and austere fiscal policy capable of responding to 16 years of Socialist governments. It must be crystal clear that the Pirates will not renounce their social-issues liberal platform."
DSDP leader Reinhardt's statement was overall described as 'bittersweet' and one notable line from her speech was: "when I took the lead of this party we were polled at 16%. It appears that we will finish, in this election, over 20%. I am not satisfied of this result, but I am proud of the work Social-Democrats did to avoid a catastrophic loss. Congratulations to the NDZP on their well-deserved result, as well to the Pirates and our friends of the DRF."

Karlottenberg Schloss's Press Office announced that in the coming weeks, President Meyer will start meetings with leaders of all parties, looking for a way ahead and a possibility to form the new cabinet. For the first time in history, the Zeitung is not able to project "possible coalitions", given the level of fragmentation in this Bundestag, which will require a minimum 4-parties cabinet coalition.

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5706 Federal Election:

New Dundorfian Centre Party (NDZP): 19.289.591 | 21.5% and 138 seats (+0.9% and +7)
Social-Democratic Party of Dundorf (DSDP): 18.027.439 | 20.1% and 128 seats (-1.7% and -9)
Pirate Party of Dundorf (PPD): 11.702.894 | 13% and 82 seats (+2.4% and +15)
Dundorfian Red Front (DRF): 10.961.605 | 12.2% and 77 seats (+0.9% and +6)
Green Party for the Planet (GPP): 10.803.356 | 12% and 77 seats (-1.9% and -11)
Team Liberal-Democrats (TLD): 10.649.360 | 11.8% and 70 seats (+0.5% and +5)
Conservative Federal Party (KBP): 8.402.784 | 9.4% and 53 seats (-1.1% and -13)

Turnout: 89.837.029 (80.2%, -1.3%)

[Drax]

PRESIDENT ASKS NDZP'S GIMBEL TO FORM A GOVERNING COALITION
 
ODERVELD – LEUCHTFEUER
 
Presidential Residence, November 25, 5706 (backdated): ODERVELD – LEUCHTFEUER sources at the Presidential Residence have stated that Federal President Hans Meyer has been in contact with Pirates Pary Leader Dr. Theodore Engel, Center Party Leader Frieda Gimbel, Greens Leader Deputy Federal Chancellor Franziska Niedermeyer, Liberals Leader Foreign Minister Gunther Krancke and Social Democrats Leader Renate Reinhardt.
 
Further that, after extensive discussions with former Federal Chancellor Gimbel, he has asked her to form a governing coalition and that Gimbel is proposing a coalition of the Center  Party, Pirates, Greens and Liberals.
 
Further, ODERVELD – LEUCHTFEUER  sources indicate Gimbel wanted the Social Democrats to be part of the governing coalition, but the Social Democrats’s new Leader, Renate Reinhardt, preferred to be in opposition this cycle.


Presidential Residence