Every four years, Valersians head out and vote for their parliamentary representatives and the president. Politically, the nation has never been more divided, with minor parties such as the Revival Party and the Freedom Party rising rapidly, while the People's Party and Democratic Party continue to lose support. Francesco Ludovico hopes to get re-elected, but polls show him losing against every right-wing or centrist candidate. With party primaries over, the first round is looking like this.
Democratic Party - Francesco Ludovico
The Democratic Party, rallied behind President Francesco Ludovico, is a left of center social democratic party. The party is the successor of the Republican and Progressive parties, the former being the largest party in the north pre-unification and one of the two main parties in the United Republic, and the latter being a major powerhouse in early post-unification. Ludovico has long been at the helm of social democratic policymaking, encouraging first president Lena Guererrio to legalise same-sex marriage in the 1990s, and he himself later pushing anti-discrimination and pro-equality laws in his presidency. Ludovico has came under fire for his economic policy however, as he has tried to repeal bills that have attracted large foreign companies to Valersey.
People's Party
The People's Party, this year choosing Bernard di Vitis as their candidate, is a centre-right, liberal conservative (and commonly viewed as the right-wing establishment) party. They are the successors to the National Democratic Party and the Christian People's Party, the former was the rival party in the United Republic, and the latter being a key force in both Free Republic and early post-unification politics. di Vitis and many other establishment figures have moderated their social policies a lot, taking the party towards the center, resulting in a huge blow to their conservative support base. They lost six key stronghold constituencies in the south that they had never lost before as a result, and they are projected to take another huge hit.
Socialist Party
The Socialist Party has chosen Nasario Sabino as it's presidential candidate this year, proclaiming a radical left-wing socialist platform, supporting abortion and heavy regulations on the government. Nasario however is undergoing fraud investigations and two high ranking officials of the party were arrested for rape and murder earlier this year. Projections put the Socialist Party to lose several key list seats and not to make it through the first round of the presidential election.
Liberal Party
The Liberal Party is Valersey's main centrist party. In a heated primary, they chose ex-Vice President Isabella Crasekov by just three thousand votes to represent the party. Despite being historically one of the largest parties in Valersey, they only held the presidency in the Democratic Republic twice, the Free Republic once and post-unification once. They've recently experienced a growth in support, their membership now growing by 8.5% p/a, despite a series of disappointing performances in the last 12 years. Their motto of "Unite, Don't Take Sides" has resounded with a lot of moderates and they're expected to do very well.
Freedom Party
The Freedom Party, this year represented by Davide Generinno, is a libertarian nationalist and right-wing populist party that's been experiencing a growth of support with the anti-establishment wave. The party has came under heavy criticism for it's anti-immigration, traditionalist policies, but is still expected to make a sound impact, Davide Generinno currently leading polls against every candidate if he makes it to the second round. His main support base is in the center of the nation, with a lot of opposition from establishment leftists and right wingers alike.
Revival Party
The Revival Party, for the first time rallying behind a presidential candidate is a new party, gaining two seats in the last election. Founded as a merger of the Reform Movement, the National Party and the Populist Party. The party is the second main anti-establishment populist party along with the Freedom Party, and is it's main rival for the position in the second round. Their socially moderate policies combined with their economic nationalism have won them a lot of support in the last 6 years, and they're hoping for a successful campaign.
