2020 Frislandian General Election

[Frislandia]

Still under a tight lockdown due to the coronarivus pandemic, Frislandians will be electing a new parliament by mail-in ballot, with all results to be tabulated by May 30th. The seven parties currently represented in the Allaþing (national parliament) are all polling above the 3% threshold necessary to be awarded seats, as is the currently unrepresented Pirate Party. These eight parties are listed below in descending order of current size.

Political Compass



Social Democrats – Soxalademokrated (SD)

Governing coalition – Senior partner
Leader: Murrta Ó Tuathaill (current prime minister)
Ideology: Social democracy, social liberalism
The Social Democrat-led coalition government, in office since 2016, legalized same-sex marriage with the Marital Rights Act last year following a “consultative poll” in which 61% of voters indicated their support. It has also modified the divorce process for the first time in four decades, making it easier for a divorce to be granted on grounds of one partner’s fault without their consent. Budget cuts in 2019 saw the annual subsidies paid to religious organizations (mainly the Catholic church) cut by half, as well as an unpopular freeze on social security rates. A 500-person basic minimum income trial, meanwhile, was declared a success, and the Social Democrats pledge to start implementing the program nationwide if they are reelected, with monthly payments of 100,000 FSK ($720 USD) for students and the lowest-income families to be put in the next budget.

National Liberal Party – Nasionta Liberala Parti (NL)

Official opposition
Leader: Swazig Esparza
Ideology: Progressive conservatism, populism
Having governed Frislandia for all but fifteen years of the 20th century, the National Liberals have found themselves in opposition or as junior partners in government since 2004. Esparza, elected party leader in 2015, has revamped the party’s image: in 2019, she announced that National Liberal MPs would be free to vote as they pleased on the Marital Rights Act, then unexpectedly voted in favour herself. She has also tabled multiple bills, passed with cross-partisan consent, imposing harsher minimum sentences for convictions of sexual and domestic abuse. The National Liberals support a basic minimum income with an opt-out, provided that it gradually phase out broad-net unemployment benefits. If elected, they pledge to create 10,000 new positions in trade programs by 2024.

Centre Party – An Zentra (Z)

Opposition
Leader: María Benediktadóttir
Ideology: Centrism, conservative liberalism
The Centre Party led the governing coalition voted out in 2016. Elected leader in 2017, María Benediktadóttir personally abstained from voting on the Marital Rights Act, though most of her party’s representatives supported it. During its eight years in government, the Centre Party repeatedly cut corporate tax rates, while tightening healthcare and education funding to maintain a balanced budget; now the party promises lower income tax rates on middle and lower-middle incomes, but opposes the basic minimum income program. They have also laid out an extensive plan to simplify the registration and inspection processes for over 80 categories of business, and proposed a constitutional amendment to give businesses with under 100 employees a separate commercial code.

Green Left – Verða Baur (VB)

Governing coalition, minor partner
Leader: Padrig Santxez
Ideology: Libertarian socialism, green politics
Traditionally strong in young, urban districts, 2016 saw the Green Left surge in rural working-class areas after their former leader was arrested for joining an unauthorized march of striking fish plant workers. In the past four years, the party has supported various initiatives by workers to buy out their employers. In 2018, they tabled the Workplace Accountability Act, which has made it much harder for employers to deny compensation to workers injured on the job. As Minister of Labour, Padrig Santxez has spearheaded a revamp of workplace harassment legislation, making it much easier for employees to file grievances against employers and coworkers for sexual harassment and assault. Since 2017 it has been illegal to dump sewage in Frislandian rivers, an initiative led by Miranda Yensen, party member and current Minister for the Environment. The party supports basic minimum income, provided it’s accompanied by an increase in the minimum wage and the setting of a maximum wage. The Green Left campaigned actively for the Marital Rights Act, and proposes to dramatically loosen the country’s abortion laws to allow abortions at any point in pregnancy for reasons of health and personal conscience.

Christian Alliance – Kristiana Bannlag (KB)

Opposition
Leader: Byørn Prigent
Ideology: Christian democracy, right-populism
Founded in 1990 as a merger of several social conservative parties, the Christian Alliance has lately tempered its stance on traditional “family values” issues: though the party opposed the Marital Rights Act, they have pledged not to repeal it without a second poll. They also support keeping in place the current provisions allowing for abortion in cases of serious risk to the mother’s life or health, and Byørn Prigent has called for the Vatican to be swifter and more thorough in investigating abuse of children by priests. The Christian Alliance agreed to the recent decriminalization of prostitution, on the condition of introducing minimum prison sentences for purchasing sexual services. They remain opposed to a basic income, promising instead an income tax reduction for the lower three-quarters of earners; they also propose to “rein in” the current welfare program by 50%, while creating a new ministry to support and coordinate charitable organizations.

Communist Party – Kommunista Parti (KP)

Governing coalition, minor partner
Leader: Itziar Gordon-Berrada
Ideology: Marxism-Leninism, ecosocialism, anarcho-communism (faction)
Though officially Marxist-Leninist, the Frislandian Communist Party pitches a wide tent across the far-left, accommodating a range of factions. The party does still agree on a common parliamentary and electoral platform: new among their pledges in 2020 is the reintroduction of mandatory chemical castration for repeat sex offenders. They unanimously supported the Marital Rights Act, though they propose collapsing marriage and civil union into a single legal category under secular control. The party also supports – and organizes – voluntary associations of workers and farmers running their workplaces as cooperatives; if a group of workers decides to do so, they propose, the state should sanction and aid their takeover without compensation for the owners. The party supports the basic minimum income program, but wants to expand it greatly, and set a minimum and maximum wage within 40,000 FSK ($28.80 USD) of each other.

Free Democrats – Saura Demokrated (SrD)

Opposition
Leader: Anton da Costa
Ideology: Market liberalism, right-libertarianism
The Free Democrats were founded by da Costa, a former Christian Alliance deputy, in 2011, and remain largely a vehicle for his political vision. Da Costa supported the Marital Rights Act, and is a vocal supporter of legalizing marijuana – the current government decriminalized it, but never tabled legalization due to internal disputes about rollout and regulation. The Free Democrats want to institute a flat income tax of 10%, eliminate unemployment insurance, and privatize healthcare and education. Da Costa virulently opposes basic income, calling it an “allowance for deadbeats and delinquents”.

Pirate Party – Na Pirated (PP)

Not in parliament
Leader: Hannibal Smið
Ideology: Pirate politics, direct democracy
The Pirate Party is still unrepresented in parliament, but has seen a surge in the polls since mid-2019, when a former Centrist cabinet minister was found guilty of misappropriation of government funds and vote-buying. The party’s main platform point is government transparency: they propose that all meetings of parliamentary committees, the cabinet, and two or more cabinet ministers be filmed and made available online. They hail universal basic income as a vital step towards “all-hands-on-deck democracy”, along with online voting and mandatory referendums for all changes to the first fifteen articles of the Constitution. The party supports same-sex marriage, abortion on demand, and the decriminalization of all recreational drug use and dealing.

[Geryth]

The Sultan and his Privy Council wish to extend their best wishes to the National Liberal Party and the Christian Alliance.

[Anatoliyanskiy]

Anatoliyanskiy supports the Social Democratic Party and the GreenLeft party being elected in office and wishes those parties best of luck.

[Frislandia]

The Sultan and his Privy Council wish to extend their best wishes to the National Liberal Party and the Christian Alliance.

The National Liberal Party and Christian alliance are grateful for the Sultan's well-wishes.

[Solarampa]

The Bright Solar President supports the Free Democrats and wishes them good luck.

[Frislandia]

Anatoliyanskiy supports the Social Democratic Party and the GreenLeft party being elected in office and wishes those parties best of luck.

The Social Democrats and Green Left are thankful for Anatoliyanskiy's solidarity.

[Frislandia]

The Bright Solar President supports the Free Democrats and wishes them good luck.

Anton da Costa wishes to extend the Bright Solar President his gratitude on behalf of the entire party.

[Darmen]

Darmen supports the Christian Alliance.

[Tinhampton]

As usual, the Tinhamptonian Government has no opinion. It does, however, request the publicisation of official answers to the following questions.

SECTION 1: CORONAVIRUS

• How many coronavirus cases and deaths have been recorded out of Frislandia's population of approximately 2.86 million? How many people have been tested?
• What is the nature of the current lockdown in Frislandia? When will it be lifted; and if in stages, then what is to be allowed when? How long is the mandatory quarantine for arrivals into Frislandia, if such exists? Are face coverings mandatory (yet)?
• Was the current lockdown was promulgated by law, statutory instrument or executive order? When?
• Why has the lockdown has made in-person voting inviable (for IRL contrast, note - for instance - Wisconsin and South Korea), and why was it not delayed until later in the year or 2021 (for IRL contrast, note London)?
• How can the Frislandian government be confident that postal voting (where, for IRL contrast, leftist parties have been consistently accused of benefitting from) will be successful?

SECTION 2: THIS ELECTION

• Where do each of the parties stand on when and how Frislandia should leave its lockdown?
• When must votes be mailed in by - given that the May 30th deadline is only for "tabulation," e.g. vote counting?
• How many seats do each of the seven parties have; and, by extension, how large is the majority of the government at present?
• What are the current corporate tax rates, income tax rates, and welfare payment levels?
• In 2016, a party called the Red-Greens took part in the election. Are they the forebears of the modern-day Green Left party? Some smaller parties from 2016 (the National Front, the Confederation of Regions) are not standing for election this year; have they dissolved?
• Does the Communist Party continue to support the establishment of a one-party state?
• Back in 2016, there were 209 seats "allocated based on a system of first-past-the-post that includes multi-member constituencies" (which was very confusing, since FPTP only really works in single-member constituencies). Which system is being used this year - I'm assuming it's something like STV or closed-list PR with a 3% threshold? How many seats are up for grabs?

SECTION 3: THE PAST FOUR YEARS

• In 2016, SD won election promising to end all oil and gas subsidies by the end of their term this year. Has this been accomplished?
• It is said that Z "tighten[ed] healthcare and education funding to maintain a balanced budget." What did this entail, how harsh were these austerity measures(?), and how large is the annual deficit under SD-VB-KP rule?
• By how many votes was the Marital Rights Act passed, and did it contain any provisions other than the legalisation of same-sex marriage and clerical corrections? Have civil partnerships been extended to mixed-sex couples, only available to same-sex couples, or abolished entirely?
• KP proposes "propose collapsing marriage and civil union into a single legal category under secular control;" are marriages in Frislandia required to be solemnised by a priest or does the option for a civil ceremony exist?
• The stance of the pre-2016 government on abortion was a ban thereof after three weeks (except for rape, incest, or danger to the mother's life). Has this changed under the present left-wing administration?
• Has coronavirus been invoked by SD as a rationale for getting their minimum-income experiment pushed through as soon as possible? How much do the "lowest-income families" earn? Are there any plans for true UBI, or only on the fringes?
• It is said that the KB "agreed to the recent decriminalization of prostitution, on the condition of introducing minimum prison sentences for soliciting." How does this inverse Nordic Model even work, or is this the decriminalisation of the purchase of sex?
• What is the maximum fine for possessing, growing, distributing and smoking marijuana recreationally? Is medical marijuana legal?
• When was chemical castration for sexual abusers abolished in the first place?
• How did the Z expenses fraud scandal of 2019 lead to the rise of PP? One of PP's policy positions is the organisation of "mandatory referendums for all changes to the first fifteen articles of the Constitution;" what do those articles pertain to and why are they different from Articles XVI onwards?

[Serpens Land]

The Dominion of Serpens Land would like to extend our best wishes to the National Liberal Party.

[Frislandia]

-snip-

The Frislandian Central Diplomatic Bureau, with the consent of all relevant parties, is happy to elaborate on these points:

1.1: So far, 77,500 Frislandian citizens and residents have been tested for COVID-19. 9,574 active cases of the disease and 429 deaths related to it have been confirmed as of 20:00 UTC. 6,733 people have also recovered from COVID-19.
1.2: Currently, public gatherings of more than 5 people are banned. The physical spaces of schools, universities, churches, and non-essential businesses remain closed. Face coverings are not mandatory in public, though most essential services have chosen to require them. A fourteen-day quarantine period remains in effect for all arrivals in Frislandia. The current lockdown-easing plan will see public parks reopen on March 31st at limited capacity, and negotiations are ongoing to create a local travel zone with Iceland, Denmark, Norway, Germany, and Ireland. Non-essential businesses will be permitted to reopen on June 15th at the earliest.
1.3: The lockdown, with its current terms, was promulgated by law on March 10th.
1.4: Cases of non-respect of social distancing in the Vezmanear council elections in late March by a handful of voters were the chief factor in the government's decision not to hold these elections in person. The Constitution states that elections for the Allaþing must be held within four years and one month of the last elections, unless a delay is approved by a parliamentary majority of three quarters - this measure would be hard to obtain and yet harder to stomach, since the provision was introduced in 1969 after an extensive history of partisan manipulation of election dates.
1.5: Postal voting has a long history in Frislandia: it has been allowed for Frislandians abroad since 1972, and on request for Frislandians living in the country since 1980. In 2016, 6.36% of votes were cast by absentee ballot, 40% of these being from within Frislandia. Parties send witnesses to supervise the counting of mail-in votes, and there is general consensus that the system is impartial; extending it to the whole electorate was judged the simplest solution bureaucratically.

2.1: Overall, there has been remarkable cross-partisan agreement with the official lockdown plan, largely attributed to the government's deferral to the non-partisan governing board of the Frislandian Medical Officers' Organization as both the authors and public face of the lockdown measures. On top of the current relief measures, which include a lump-sum payment of 100,000 FSK to all Frislandian households and the coordination of a nationwide volunteer-staffed grocery delivery program the Communists and Red-Greens have both pushed for the government to buy essential goods (flour, milk, preserved vegetables, feminine hygiene products, etc.) in bulk and distribute them to low-income households. The Centre Party and National Liberals have jointly called on the government to make face coverings mandatory in public. Alone among the major party leaders, Anton da Costa has expressed disapproval of mandatory business closures.
2.2: Votes are to be mailed in by May 28th. Votes arriving late, but post-stamped for the 28th, will be accepted up to May 30th at 18:30 UTC.
2.3:

2.4: The current corporate income tax stands at 24.8%. Personal annual income tax is structured as follows:
0-1,000,000 FSK - 0%
1,000,000-3,000,000 FSK - 22.5%
3,000,000-5,000,000 FSK - 29%
5,000,000-8,000,000 FSK - 36%
8,000,000-12,000,000 FSK - 40%
12,000,000-18,000,000 FSK - 45%
Over 18,000,000 FSK - 56%

The National Unemployment and Financial Duress Relief Program, which accounts for 95% of the Ministry of Social Development's budget, provides monthly amounts ranging from 100,000-300,000 FSK per person to households netting no more than 5,000,000 FSK annually (for most households the minimum is lower). In 2019, 4.2% of Frislandians lived in households receiving payments from the Program.
2.5: The Red-Greens were the major precursor to the current Green Left, which was formed when they were joined by the Confederation of Regions' parliamentary caucus and with the (smaller, unrepresented) Frislandian Farmers' Solidarity Front in a 2017 agreement. The National Front's leader and only sitting deputy, Geir Þorvalson, resigned his seat in April 2018 in the midst of a trial for sexual harassment in which he has since been found guilty; his seat was picked up by the Christian Alliance in a local by-election.
2.6: The Communist Party has saw a mass change in leadership at their 2018 general convention, the result of a decades-long factional rivalry within the party. The current charter and platform make reference to a Vanguard Party, but not to the elimination of other political parties.
2.7: The 2016 election was conducted under the general electoral system which had existed since 1817, in which some constituencies return one member, while other (more populated) ones return between two and five [for IRL reference, this used to be done to a lesser extent in Canada]. As per a referendum carried out in 2014 (which specified that the system would not come into effect until 2020), Frislandia has now adopted an STV system based on the Irish model.

3.1: This has been accomplished.
3.2: Between 2008 and 2016, the Ministry of Education's budget contracted by 12%. Eight high schools and 33 primary schools nationwide were closed and and amalgamated into larger ones, though this trend had been going on at a slower rate before and closures have only slowed moderately since 2016. The Ministry of Health saw its budget contract by 9% in the same period. Five rural hospitals closed, and 200 emergency beds in existing hospitals were cut; the latter have since been restored, but the hospitals remain closed. The 2020 budget deficit stands at 500,000,000,000 FSK (approx. 3,600,000,000 USD).
3.3: Civil marriage has existed in Frislandia since 1991, holding equal legal status with religious marriage. It remains distinct from a civil union, which can (still) be dissolved more easily and affects inheritance differently.
3.4: The current law has extended the limit to three months, with the same exceptions for later-term abortions. It should be specified that the Christian Alliance favours a return to the previous three-week limit, while maintaining the exceptions.
3.5: The SD have cited the emergency response benefits rolled out in response to the coronavirus crisis as further proof that UBI is fiscally and socially tenable. "Lowest-income" refers to households netting under 5,000,000 FSK annually, the same as the current uppermost cutoff for the main welfare Program mentioned above.
3.6: The decriminalization is on the purchase of sex. We apologize for what can only be termed a gross clerical error.
3.7: Marijuana possession and growth for personal use are now decriminalized. It can also be distributed to adults if no money is exchanged. Sale (and growth for sale) still carries a fine of up to 1,000,000 FSK (7,200 USD). Medical marijuana can still not be prescribed by doctors, though the current chair of the Frislandian Medical Officers' Organization has stated that they are exploring the possibility of introducing it.
3.8: Mandatory chemical castration was struck from the criminal code in 1992. Voluntary castration remains a condition available to offenders for possible reduction of sentences and/or hastening of parole, to be offered within fixed parameters at a judge's discretion.
3.9: The Pirate Party came within 300 votes of winning a seat in the 2012 elections; they are not completely new on the political scene. The Pirate Party's referendum pledge came after the 2019 fraud scandal; one legal expert wrote a widely-circulated editorial suggesting that a provision removed from Article VII of the Constitution in 2011, providing for more extensive reporting of the contents of meetings involving cabinet ministers, would have made it harder for the minister convicted to have made the illegal arrangements for allocation of funds which were uncovered ahead of the 2019 case. Chiefly, the first fifteen articles of the Constitution encompass the following: The basic governmental structure of the republic; the fundamental rights of Frislandian citizens; the powers and responsibilities of the Allaþing and of its members; the powers of the president and prime minister; the prime minister's discretion in appointing cabinet ministers; the oversight of those ministers by parliamentary and extra-parliamentary bodies; the power and oversight of the judiciary; and the process by which citizenship can be obtained or lost.

[Frislandia]

The Dominion of Serpens Land would like to extend our best wishes to the National Liberal Party.

The National Liberal Party thanks the Dominion for the support.

[Solarampa]

The Bright Solar President donates 350k drenits to the Free Democrats and talks about the Free Democratic on a Frieslandian radio show

[New Socialist South Africa]

Most South Africans aware of the election express their support for the Green Left and the Pirate Party.

[Frislandia]

Most South Africans aware of the election express their support for the Green Left and the Pirate Party.

The Green Left and the Pirate Party are thankful for South African solidarity.

[East Finbaert]

The East Finbaertic people and government endorse the National Liberals

[Pulsroth]

Pulsroth's Supreme Minister proudly supports the National Liberal Party and she wishes them the best of luck in the election.

[Ravenni]

Official Communiqué - Ministry for Foreign Affairs

On behalf of the United Communes of Ravenni, the Government of Ravenni offers its utmost solidarity with the Kommunista Parti of Frislandia. We applaud their efforts to the uphold the rights of the working class to own the means of production in which they work, and their work in advocating for a solution to income inequality. We are heartened to see the party work to heal the fractures of sectarianism that so often plague the revolutionary left by providing a broad church to all who oppose the forces of capital and reaction.

Yours in solidarity
Sebastian Romagna
Minister for Foreign Affairs

END

[Anatoliyanskiy]

Hello. It's me again. I was just wondering if any official results will be revealed for this election, as the time for voting has finished.

[Anatoliyanskiy]

Sorry for the double post, but I find it semi-necessary. The election literally ended like two months ago, and there are still no sign of results. I was just wondering what they are, as I would prefer to see who will form government and that my vote was not wasted.