Overview

The Terran Republic was founded with the promise of an elected lower chamber, the General Assembly and a partially elected upper chamber, the Senate. In addition, the General Assembly would then elect the new President 

Second Republic Electoral System

As of the constitution of 2594, the President would now be elected by a direct vote of the people of the Republic. It would require a candidate to have sufficient signatures to back them to be added to the ballot, along with their running mate. In addition, a person would need signatures on at least 75% of all member worlds. The election would then see a direct election of all presidential candidates. The top two candidates with the highest number of votes will proceed to a second ballot, unless one candidate achieves 51% of the vote in the first ballot, in which case they are elected President. In the 2nd ballot, held just one week later, the electorate would then vote on the two remaining candidates with the winner being elected President of the Republic. 

Parties

There were a large range of political parties standing the election, including several parties which were standing on just one world. The major political parties were: 

• Social Democratic Party (SDP) -a centre-left party that proposes a “Big tent” left wing platform of state intervention and the construction of a welfare state. The SDP has attempted to portray itself as the "natural progressive party of government".
• Republican Centrist Party (RCP) - a moderate to centre-left party that has generally taken a Federalist tone. Over the last 10-20 years it has rebuilt its alliance with the Hansa but its overall support has started to dwindle.
• Heart of Terra (HOT) -the most conservative party in the Republic, it was formed after a merger between the socially conservative Terra Undivided and the libertarian Ravenheart.
• Onyx (ONX) -the largest centre-right party in the Republic, Onyx were formed after a merger between Vishnu Elpis and Valiant to form a centre-right, somewhat religiously minded party.
• Valtinist Popular Party (VPP) -a moderate to left wing party of Valtinists and affiliated persons.
• Kasr Aleajala (KA) - a radical anti-Hansa party that was considered by many to be left wing insurgent party.
• Imperial party (IMP) -a centre-right party that aim to bring back the Empire, via a constitutional monarchy.

Joint Lists

Two joint lists were formed in the 2630 election.

The RCP and the SDP formed the "Democratic League" list which put democracy, the rule of law and economics stability at the forefront. There was, as the election went on, talks of the two party's merging.

IMP, ONX and HOT formed the "National Patriotic" list, a conservative list that looked to put national defence, conservative values and economic progress at the forefront.

KA and VPP both declined to be involved in either joint list.

Campaign Finance Laws

The Republic banned parties with no "vested interest" in the Republic from raising and donating money for political parties. The Emergency Delegates sent before the election set up a campaign finance board (RCFB) which was given broad oversight powers. 

New tougher laws on campaign finance had been passed during the Noah Averssen administration which gave the Attorney General more powers to deal with campaign finance violations. The regulations introduced in by the Isolationist Party made it illegal for parties, including corporations outside the Republic to donate to the campaign. It also set a limit of 4 billion adjusted dollars per campaign in the General Assembly and 2 billion at a planetary level. In 2559,

Vishnu Elpis introduced a new campaign finance law that would limit total spending during a ten year term to five billion adjusted dollars. This was voted through the General Assembly and then subject to a legal challenge on behalf of Valiant. The legal challenge saw the bill referred to the Senate, which was then delayed by filibusters and procedural road-blocks to prevent the bill from becoming law in time for the 2560 election but were effective for the 2580 election onwards.

Possible Supreme Court Challenge

There was an expected legal challenge against the campaign finance laws to the Supreme Court.

Campaign finance laws were finally challenged by the rulings in Winterton v Federal Election Commission which ruled that the federal laws on campaign finance do not apply to planetary level campaigns (governorships and planetary legislatures). This removed the cap on spending for these elections, though planet level laws could still apply.

Another ruling in Pruitt V New Corinth Government ruled that if a party dropped out of planetary level campaign, then it was out of all of them. This would mean no more governor or senate swaps, whole planets would have to be dropped. This would not, however, remove the party from the GA ballot.

General Assembly

Each member world would be assigned seats in the General Assembly based around its population, with proportional representation then deciding how the seats would be allocated. A party required a minimum of 5% of the planet's vote to be considered for a seat, any votes to parties with fewer than 5% would then be discounted. The 5% threshold value was also expected to face a challenge in the Supreme Court at some stage. 

Senate

After the 2594 constitution, all words were allowed to appoint or elect their senators at their discretion, with many of the hereditary governors choosing to appoint at least one, if not both Senators. 

Increasingly over the last few elections, more and more senators have been appointed and a full quarter of the 2620 senate class were appointed rather than elected.

Presidential Election

The President of the Republic is now elected by a direct vote of the electorate and assumes power after the election. They are free to appoint their own cabinet, though cabinet officers are now subject to approval by the legislature. 

Candidates

The 2620 presidential election drew a large field of candidates, with each party having a different system for selecting its nominee.

• Connor Williams -SDP - former Union lawyer, one term GA rep and one term Senator. Senator WIlliams won the SDP nomination at the convention and was seen as the clear front-runner for much of the election
• Senator Elsa Elkholm - HOT - former prosecutor and Vanheim based conservative lawyer. Won the HOT nomination at their covention.
• Senator Yardley Banks -ONX- former airball player, coach and two term senator. Was expecting to retire from electoral politics but was persuaded to run for President.
• Senator Hinton Maguire -RCP -former banker, corporate insider and real estate magnate.
• Rep Raleigh Burgess - KA - retired Marine and one term GA Rep. Was a surprise choice as the KA nominee in 2630.
• Senator Salazar McQueen - IMP - charismatic former Marine and one term Senator.
• Senator Violetta Garza - VPP - hugely popular former teacher and two term senator who was first elected under the STW ticket in 2610.
• Senator Hyco Tidell - IND - conservative frontier lawyer and former member of the Isolationist Party. Initially looked to run as a "conservative unity" candidate but after failing to gain a groundswell of support, he dropped out and endorsed HOT.

Former President Wren Dando (ONX) declined to seek her party's nomination and gave a clear statement she would "under no circumstances run for a second term."

Her Vice President, Owain Bendis (ONX), was initially thought to be the Onyx front-runner but instead was appointed to a Senate seat on Fort Verekker

Former marine General Cordell Griffon (IND) was rejected by the FEC due to the candidate had sufficient seconders on many worlds, there were many entries which could not be verified. Therefore we have rejected this candidate for the 2630 ballot."

Mergers and Changes

There were no party mergers in 2630 and no party's changed identity.

New Party's

There were no new national party's registered in time for the 2630 election. Former Allied West COO Jennifer Taggart, a former member of the SDP, had proposed forming a new "Third way" political party but in the end she endorsed the SDP and the Democratic League.

She would form a new party in 2635, the centrist - socially liberal party Vertice.

On Theta Draconis, the Chohan formed the new regional party Chasmir, a nationalist Chohan centric party, which eventually formed an affiliate arrangement with the VPP

Former Gurava candidate and Governor of St Lawrence Payden Hickcock formed a new liberal party on St Lawrence called Del Miro, who formed an affiliate arrangement with the SDP.

On New Berlin, the radical right wing New German Republican party was formed by the allies of late Governor Madolyn Weston and her Bunde-Schutzen allies.

The Campaign

The 2620 campaign got underway with the normal five week window between starting and the 1st ballot, with a total of six weeks campaigning in all.

Interaction with Oversight & Select Committees

The sheer number of ongoing Oversight & select committee hearings contributed to the dreadful polling for Onyx and leading to some cross-over between the "legal" approach and the partisan effects of these oversight hearings.

Attorney General Gbane McDaniel (HOT) received some criticism for "holding over" the results of a special prosecutors investigation until after the election.

New Berlin Problems

Acting Governor Gunther Reiss (NGR) confirmed that the NGR would appoint the planet's two senate seats in 2630. Election monitors were deployed to the planet and the ongoing crisis seemed to worsen.

Former ambassador Finn Knottman (SDP) became the SDP nominee on the planet, only five years on from the death of his sister.

Record Fund-Raising and Record Spending

Due to the decision in Winnerton, all major party's raised massive sums of money, with twenty plus billion raised by the SDP, Onyx, HOT and Imperial during the 2630 cycle.

This also led to record spending too, with final 2630 campaign spending exceeding one hundred and thirty adjusted dollars.

SDP Momentum Slows

As the campaign went on, the SDP lead held but did not grow. Meanwhile, Heart of Terra saw their support increase further and further and most pundits seemed to feel that it would likely be an SDP / HOT showdown in the 2nd ballot.

VPP's Violetta Garza also proved to be a very popular candidate and VPP enjoyed record high polling at points.

Onyx slowly began to recover as the campaign went on, whilst the RCP seemed to struggle.

The Presidential Debates

The 2620 debates followed a very similar format to the 2620 debates, with four debates held on four different subjects.

1st Debate

The first presidential debate of the 2630 election took place from the University of Chicago on Earth and was hosted by PrimePulse. Dalton McCabe, approaching his retirement but still sharp and the most respected journalist in the Republic, was the primary moderate, joined by his protégé, Elliot Hale.

The candidates lined up on stage, the order they entered based on polling with the RCP and Imperial party candidates the last to enter the stage. Senator Connor Williams (SDP) made a point of warmly shaking the hand of his opponents, including Senator Elsa Elkholm (HOT), seen as the most likely to meet him in the 2nd ballot. Senator Violetta Garza (VPP), wearing a cyan coloured headscarf, was seen laughing and joking with Senator Hinton Maguire (RCP) on stage and she offered a friendly hug to Senator Yardley Banks (ONX). However, there was a palpable coolness between her and Senator Elkholm.

Rep Raleigh Burgess (KA), tall and straight backed, had been pegged by some pundits as the outsider in the debate. As a GA rep, he’d not have taken part in the long, free-wheeling senate debates and he had no background in law or media. However, on stage, he did not looked fazed and whilst he offered business-like handshakes to all his opponents, he had a steely focus at all times. Senator Salazar McQueen (IMP) cut an impressive figure too. Tall, handsome and possessing an innate “control” of the stage, there was an image of him towering over Senator Williams that was reposted by lots of right wing media outlets. The debate, focusing on the economy, was expected to be the most widely viewed one of the entire campaign.

The event began with some soft-ball questions around taxation and the wealth tax. Things took an explosive turn as Rep Raleigh Burgess launched an impressive and passionate broadside against the Hansa, calling them “Nothing less than a cancer in the body-politic of the Republic.”

He accused the Hansa of “encouraging disrespect of the rule of law, political and corporate corruption due to the revolving door between the capital and K-Street and of outright getting Terran sailors and marines killed due to their selfishness. The Republic is doing well right now, but without the Hansa, I suspect we’d be living in a golden age.” Rep Burgess effortlessly deflected attacks from Senator Maguire and Senator Elkholm and battered away at the conservative bloc all night. It was a passionate, measured and truly astonishing performance that took a lot of people by surprise.
During one exchange where he accused “all the moderate party’s of being far too close to the Hansa”, Senator Garza was seen applauding his answer and nodding.

Senator Salazar McQueen of the Imperial Party also had a good night. The charismatic senator had a sound-bite for every occasion and offered a much cooler and friendlier face than Rep Burgess. He defended the rights of “corporations to make money” and said that “this money ends up in the pockets of the ordinary people. The products they make end up in the kitchens of ordinary people. They employ ordinary people. The Hansa needs reform, no doubt. But to call for a whole sale rearrangement of capital is simply unfair on those who have worked hard for it.”

Senator McQueen pivoted a lot of his answers to “the broken Republican system” and when pressed on this by Senator Garza, he responded that “The Republic works, after a fashion. The Imperial plan wouldn’t be to throw the baby out with the bath-water. A Second Terran Empire would function in some ways in a very similar way, we’d just have consistent, non-partisan leadership like we did under Emperor August Solarin or Empress Regina valane. And I think history bears me out that those were glorious days for the Terrans.

Senator Violetta Garza had some good moments too. She caught Senator Maguire off-guard when she quizzed him on “well how much is a litre of milk these days Senator? “ The Senator clearly had no idea how much everyday staples cost. She also accused Senator Elkholm of “trying to position her vision as moderate when she’s a radical right wing candidate.” Senator Elsa Elkholm struggled to get all her points across but she had a couple of notable moments. She battered Senator Banks on taxation policy at one point, saying that “Onyx had the most incoherent tax strategy in Republic history. And they still crashed the economy.” She also accused Senator Williams of “trying to lurk in the shadows” rather than put forward positions.

With a seven person stage, it was hard for all of the candidates to get time in the spotlight and most pundits agreed that Senator Maguire, Senator Banks and Senator Williams all had quiet nights, without being embarrassed or giving bad answers. But most agreed that Senator Williams in particular had played it safe. All pundits agreed that the night belonged to Rep Raleigh Burgess.
Helmar Monroe of Complete Picture called it “An astonishing debut performance by a politician emerging onto the national stage”. Former Mayor Anna Bezerides (SDP) said that “he had given the sort of performance that the left has been crying out for. He was inspiring.”

Former candidate Dr Erica Guerin (KA) expressed “my deep felt pride in Rep Burgess. I always knew the man was a lion but he’s also got the soul of a poet and a spine of steel. He looks like a President to me and I think the people of the Republic will agree”. Some conservative pundits highlighted the impressive media performance of Senator McQueen and called him “the real winner” of the debate.
The mainstream party’s had largely under-performed in front of the largest televised audience expected for this series of debates, with an impressive 3.15 billion people tuning in for the debate. All the party’s went straight to spin mode as they tried to downplay the result or highlight their own big moments.
Senator Elkholm acknowledged that “Not my best night. Senator Williams was able to hide behind Senator Garza and Rep Burgess all night”. Reports in Cydonia are that another debate-show, hosted by PrimePulse and focusing on “commander in chief tests” could be coming up. Whether all the candidates will be invited and whether PrimePulse can be seen as impartial remains to be seen. Political pundits predict that KA will get a major boost from the first debate but that “without significant spending and action, this momentum won’t be enough to carry them to the 2nd ballot.”

2nd Debate

The candidates arrived at the campus of Cydonia College and its prestigious Media College for the second debate. The event was hosted by Connect AC and moderated by veteran journalist Egan Kane. There was a nervous air between the candidates this time around and Senator Williams (SDP), whilst friendly, had a look of definite focus on his face after failing to make an impression during the first debate. Rumour had it that he had drafted in retiring Senator Layla Kadebe (SDP) for his senior campaign staff to help him with debate prep. Senator Salazar McQueen (IMP) looked confident going into the debate and he was seen joking with his “National Patriotic” allies Senator Yardley Banks (ONX) and Senator Elsa Elkholm (HOT).

The subject of this debate was foreign policy and some had predicted it would see a much smaller audience than the prior debate on the economy. Senator McQueen had another very strong performance. Slick, charismatic but clearly well drilled on the subjects, he talked up “Terran exceptionalism” and that “As President, I would look to ensure that all Terran foreign relationships were focused on the positives for the Republic.” He refused to criticize the decision of President Canazarro (ONX) to pull out of the CCN Alliance though he questioned the way he had done it. The Senator also said that “an Imperial government would have to spend less time dealing with domestic politics. Therefore the Emperor would be able to spend more time focusing on foreign policy.”

Senator Elsa Elkholm (HOT) was far more effective. Her answers were precise, her questions were like surgical tools, cutting through the vague answers of her opponents and then targeting weakness. She attempted to cut down Rep Burgess (KA) on foreign policy but made many pivots to strike at Senator Connor Williams, whom she accused of “lacking the gravitas or policy knowledge to be a good President, when it comes to foreign policy.”

Senator Violetta Garza (VPP) also had a strong performance. She talked up her personal relationships with foreign leaders and said she would “focus on making closer ties with those powers we are already close with, like the Gannid Commonwealth”. She also said that a VPP led government would aim to “keep the peace in the quadrant and avoid needless fighting or bloodshed.”

Rep Raleigh Burgess (KA) had a quieter night than his hugely impressive performance in the first night and he did, at times, seem to be taken off balance by the sharp elbowed attacks from Senator Elkholm. Senator Connor Williams, the front-runner, showed more fire and precision in the second debate. However, he often seemed rehearsed and overly careful. Senator Elkholm tried to pin him down on the question of Vodhyna and he managed to avoid being forced to make an off the cuff answer.

Senator Yardley Banks had another quiet night, though he did give some slick answers here and there. Senator Violetta Garza (VPP) also had a strong performance. She talked up her personal relationships with foreign leaders and said she would “focus on making closer ties with those powers we are already close with, like the Gannid Commonwealth”. She also said that a VPP led government would aim to “keep the peace in the quadrant and avoid needless fighting or bloodshed.”

The host of the event at times struggled to contain the candidates and had to make strong use of the “mute candidate” button. Senator Salazar McQueen was the most often muted candidate by some margin. Pundits agreed that Senator Salazar McQueen was the winner of the debate, though Senator’s Elsa Elkholm and Senator Violetta Garza had also done very well. After the event,

Senator Hinton Maguire was contrite, calling it “a bad night for me and the campaign. I’m sorry I let people down. “ The audience figures were much lower than the first debate, with just seven hundred million concurrent viewers.

Nevertheless, sound bites from the debate appeared on almost every major network with Senator McQueen’s better answers and Senator Maguire’s error being clipped the most often Two more presidential debates remain, along with the Vice-presidential debates.
Recent polls have shown the SDP’s first ballot lead starting to shrink, though they still show 3-4% ahead of Heart of Terra and VPP.

3rd Debate

The Presidential debates moved to Titan in the Jovian Belt for the third debate. The focus this time was on law and order. TruNews was hosting the show, with Rene van de Burgh serving as the host and the moderator. There was a electric atmosphere for this debate, with the 2630 campaign starting to hot up.

Senator Williams (SDP) still greeted Rep Burgess (KA) with a warm handshake but there were a few terse exchanges between the two during the debate. Senator Elsa Elkholm (HOT), who was the firm favourite for this debate, appeared somewhat subdued at the start and looked pale. Her campaign staff confirmed later that she had “been suffering with a cold”. Senator McQueen (IMP) attempted to take control of the centre stage again and there was a sharp exchange between him and Senator Maguire (RCP) before it was defused by a joke from Senator McQueen.

The debate was tightly controlled this time, with Ms van de Burgh stepping hard on any candidates that excessively interrupted or wandered off the format. She even had a tough exchange with Rep Raleigh Burgess when she asked him, firmly, to “keep your answers to time or risk being muted.” To the surprise of many, this night belonged to Senator Violetta Garza (VPP). Dressed in a cyan headscarf, she was on magnetic form. Her answers were crisp, simple and all accurate, with not a single fact check overturning an answer. She was also very personable throughout, with a mixture of warm smiles, clear empathy and emotional availability.

Senator Yardley Banks had his strongest night of the debates so far. He talked openly and frankly about “his brushes with crime” during his youth and that “but for the Valtinist communes and a sports scholarship, I likely would have been lost in that churn.” He talked about the need to deal with drug addiction and the narcotics trade and he talked up his administration’s successes in dealing with “Torment and the Yakuza”. CTD below

This was also the first big performance by Senator Connor Williams, who was energetic, precise and at times, fiery in his exchanges with Senator Elkholm and Senator McQueen. Senator Williams stressed the need to “deal with addiction and the drug trade as two separate but connected problems. Our opponents want to wage war on drugs but that is a war on our own citizens.” Senator Williams also praised the efforts of “the Dando government” to try and reduce poverty in the Republic and he accused the Imperial Party of “attempting to delay funding just to score political points.” To his credit, Senator McQueen acknowledged this and called it “a significant political error.”

Senator McQueen continued to perform well in the debates, with smartly worded, though sometimes glib, responses. He backed Senator Elkholm in her call for “a Federal death penalty” and he called for “More money and more powers for the RFP so that we can break the back of terrorism and the narcotics trade”. Senator Hinton Maguire had another night to forget. He seemed agitated and was caught off guard by a few counter-points, including a bruising exchange with Rep Raleigh Burgess.

Senator Maguire was also unable to give a satisfactory answer on his own history of being involved in “shady land-deals.” Rep Raleigh Burgess had a quiet night, often struggling to break through and make a very clear point. He clashed a couple of times with Senator Williams and Senator Garza had to play peacemaker.

However, pundits appeared to concentrate on a bad night for Senator Elsa Elkholm. Whilst she gave smart, crystal clear answers, she often came off as disdainful, dismissive and outright rude. She was the most often silenced candidate in the debate and there was lots of B-footage of her rolling her eyes or tapping her rostrum impatiently. According to a major focus group, audience members said that “she comes across as lacking the patience or character of the other candidates.”

Pundits agreed that this was a win for Senator Violetta Garza. Polling consistently shows her as the most personally popular candidate in the 2630 field and she has been a major boost to the 2630 VPP campaign. Senator’s Maguire and Elkholm had tough nights and their worst moments were broadcast in clip form over and over on many networks. Senator Connor Williams also had his strongest performance yet in the debates and looked far happier coming off stage at the end. He gave credit to “Rep Cursic and Senator Kadebe for helping me to prepare for tonight.”

The 3rd debate attracted around one point two billion concurrent viewers and clips were extensively shown on many major networks. The Vice Presidential debates are next up, with most pundits saying that “they are very unlikely to make any real difference in the 2630 campaign”.

4th Debate

The fourth and final Presidential debate of the 2630 campaign was held on the campus of Jefferson City College on Eden. The candidates were now very much au fait with the format and the expectations of appearing in a televised debate.

Senator Elsa Elkholm (HOT) sought out Senator Connor Williams (SDP) during the initial walk out and handshakes and the two exchanged what appeared to be a joke. It was clear from his body language that Senator Williams was feeling confident and that if Senator Elkholm was trying to rattle him, it didn’t appear to have worked. Lynxx Media hosted this event, with Caroline Caruthers the host.

The economist turned journalist proved to be a tough moderator, using her muting privilege more than one hundred times. The subject of the debate was “corruption” and this was expected to be a particularly explosive debate and so it proved with some truly bone crunching exchanges between the candidates. Senator Elsa Elkholm was a fiery presence on stage, pouncing on any weak answers and offering a tight cross examination of her opponents. She also offered some well thought defences of her Onyx partners in the “National Patriotic” joint list at times. However, her attempts to skewer Senator Connor Williams were all batted away. Senator Williams had his best debate of the entire series on this night. Whilst he was imperious on defence, drawing clever comparisons between the allegations against the SDP during the Schilling administration and those of the Dando and Canazarro administration, he was very effective on offence. He hammered away on the issue of political corruption and saved his most passionate answer to hit hard against the NGR on New Berlin, whom he outright called “fascists”.

The other candidates struggled to cut their own niche into the debate, with most of them able to get a few interesting answers in here and there. Senator Garza (VPP) talked about “the damage that corruption does to the public trust”. Rep Raleigh Burgess (KA) pushed the angle that “we need to create a clear firewall between government and K-Street. We can’t have people finish a role in the Dept of Defence and walk into a consulting role at the Athens group.” He also called for “an end to politicians having two jobs.”

Senator Salazar McQueen (IMP) worked alongside Senator Elsa Elkholm as they battered Senator Hinton Maguire (RCP) but otherwise he had a fairly quiet night. Senator Yardley Banks (ONX) had to, as expected, focus on defence. He defended the record of the Dando government and was contrite on some of the issues, saying that “the changes made to voting laws under President Canazarro were a disgrace and I am very sorry that I backed him as President. His actions were truly shameful.”

As mentioned, Senator Hinton Maguire had an awful night. Looking pale and often confused, he had to endure a series of attacks on his character and the tight relationship that the RCP has with the Hansa. He was unable to offer anything like a sensible defence beyond “freedom to make money”. As the debate wrapped up, Senator Elkholm made another push to hit Senator Williams on corruption calling his “solutions the naïve doodling of a student politician.” Senator Williams hit back firmly saying that “I’ve spent more time in Republican politics than Senator Elkholm and I served on the General Assembly’s Ethics committee. I think she’s trying to hit me to distract from the fact that Heart of Terra have been backing the corrupt Onyx administration for the last twenty years”.

As the night concluded, there were some warm handshakes and Senator Garza, now wearing a bright green headscarf, actually gave the clearly worn Senator Maguire a hug, which saw her get a round of applause after the event. Senator Williams made a point of seeking out Senator Garza as the event ended and the two were seen in close conversation.

The fourth debate attracting around six hundred million concurrent viewers and clips were broadcast on almost every major network. Pundits agreed that whilst Senator Elkholm had likely “won” the debate, Senator Williams had kept pace with her and due to the difference in expectations, he may well have edged it. All agreed that Senator Hinton Maguire had another disastrous performance and that the debates may have done significant damage to the RCP campaign A new round of polling, expected later in the week, will show what effects, if any, the 2630 debates have had and some pundits have suggested that perhaps “the Presidential debates could be scaled down to just one or two in 2640”.

The VP Debates

The Presidential debates took a break as the VP candidates took to the stage. This debate was hosted from Sunrise City on New Corinth. The event was hosted by Complete Picture and hosted by Kem Ala’Las, the Chohan host of its regular news show .

The seven candidates lined up together, some looking distinctly uncomfortable and others seeming more at ease on the stage. The GA Reps, Casavila (SDP), Clemenza (VPP), Gorman (ONX), Monroe (RCP) and Beaumont (HOT) all looked reasonably confident on stage whilst Mayor Alice Buckner (IMP) did not look at all fazed by the pressure and the environment.

Maya Sendino (KA) looked very uncomfortable on the stage and there was a brief moment when Rep Augustin Clemenza was seen putting an encouraging hand on the shoulder of the former RepInt analyst. The questions were a scattershot across multiple subjects and the VP candidates were asked to speak on the economy, foreign policy, law and order and their vision of the Republic and its future, all in less than three hours.

Rep Casavila had an excellent night. The tall, straight backed Indirian Navy officer looked calm, poised and gave intelligent, well thought answers all night long. Whilst he clashed a couple of times with Rep Gorman, he generally appeared patient and reasonable throughout.
He gave a particularly strong answer when pushed by Rep Carolyn Beaumont to defend his party’s position on social welfare stating that “the right always says that we must have a huge navy to protect our people. Whilst I do not disagree that we must be able to protect the people of the Republic, we must also protect them against social injustice, poverty, starvation, disease and crime. The argument between right and left in the Republic is far too reductive and I would want to try and work with our opponents rather than create political logjam for positive press coverage.”

After a quiet start, Maya Sendino (KA) sprang to life with superb, precise answers. She was outstanding on security, foreign policy and law and order, giving detailed but understandable answers and doing live fact checking on answers given by others. As the debate wore on, her confidence appeared to grow as well allowing her to seem more lively and less confounded by the cameras.

Rep Wendell Gorman (ONX) was a bullish presence on stage, determined to challenge “the Federalists” at every turn. He was aggressive towards Rep Casavila, who appeared unfazed and towards

Rep Castor Monroe (RCP), who looked lost and got increasingly rattled as the debate went on. He was also the most often muted candidate, due to his interruptions of other answers. Rep Augustin Clemenza was no shrinking violet either. The former police officer gave tough answers on law and order and accused other candidates of “trying to talk the problem away.” He said that “every politician says that they are going to reduce crime but no one ever knows how their going to do it. It drives police officers mad that politicians like us will tell them how to do their jobs. Well my intention would be to give them funds, give them direction and then let them serve justice in the Republic.”

Mayor Alice Buckner, the youngest and least experienced on stage had mixed fortunes. She came across as friendly, engaged and gave short, simple answers. But she was caught out twice on a lack of policy knowledge.

Rep Castor Monroe (RCP) had a night to forget as he gave muddled and often rambling answers. Thrown off his game by interruptions and tough questions from Rep Gorman, Castor Monroe never really seemed to recover and was seen on several occasions shaking his head, seemingly in frustration at his own performance

Rep Carolyn Beaumont (HOT) also had a disappointing night. Whilst she came across as personable and possessing some interesting ideas, she was also caught out on a lack of policy knowledge and had a particularly bruising exchange with Maya Sendino, who was forced to correct her on foreign policy and security.

As the debate finished, it was clear that Rep Casavila had a star making turn and he even managed to appear gracious when he was swamped by the press afterwards. Maya Sendino had also managed to create a narrative around herself, with her increasingly strong performance. Her running mate,

Rep Raleigh Burgess (KA) joked that “if there’d been a second VP debate, Maya would have shredded them all”. Several of the candidates had a weak night but the press did not appear to be overly interested in that and audience figures never broke 250 million concurrent viewers. Whilst clips would circulate, focusing on the impressive statesmanlike performance of Casavila, the sharp mind of Maya Sendino and the bullish and aggressive performance of Rep Wendell Gorman, even these clips would rarely make the focus of a news cast. With the VP debates over, there’s just one debate to go which will focus on political corruption. Recent national polls saw the SDP’s first ballot lead shrink to its lowest level, with SDP at 20% and HOT at 18%.

RPC is Battered

There was a series of negative leaks relating to the RCP. Many of these leaks relate to fund-raising, behind the scenes deals and graft Whilst a number of the stories relate to current members of the RCP, many of them relate back more than twenty years to members of the RCP who are retired or have passed away.

Senator Hinton Maguire (RCP) and his dealing with the Earth and Jovian real-estate market, as well as somewhat shady moves, was also brought back to life. Senator Maguire went into damage control, stating that "he had broken no laws" and that he had previously addressed the matter

Former Rep and Intelligence Secretary Hyle Debicki (RCP) called the recent news stories "a clear attempt at trying to sink the RCP. The far-right are concerned that the progressive Democratic-League will be making changes that do not profit them. So they are using stories that date back 20 years to try and hurt us." Never the less, these negative stories will further damage the flagging polls of the RCP who poll at around 6-7% nationally.

Later in the campaign several independent media sources alleged that "As a Senator, Hinton Maguire has taken illegal donations and donations in kind from corporate allies." The Senator, who is the RCP nominee for President, has overseen a disastorous campaign and he has seen his numbers drop to around 1% nationally. There are also allegations that "members of the RCP have been involved in infringements of procurement laws in the Republic."

Prime Pulse Interviews

PrimePulse news held a series of major media events where they hosted in depth interviews with all seven major party’s tickets, speaking to both their presidential and vice-presidential nominees. The show was hosted by Dalton McCabe but the interviews were carried out by younger journalists, with Esme Warren,

Thornton Black and Aemon Ross all hosting interviews with the candidates. According to statements put out by PrimePulse and then later confirmed by the campaigns, all questions had been shared in advance and the interviews would focus partially on the candidates personal history and the second their vision for the future of the Republic.

Rep Raleigh Burgess (KA) had a very strong interview. The tough nosed former Marine came across as genuine, thoughtful and relaxed. He spoke candidly about his time in uniform and the blood-shed he’d seen and the need to avoid future wars if possible. He was outspoken in his fierce criticism of the Hansa, calling them “the biggest threat to the future of the Republic, followed by the attempts to bring back the Empire.”

Senator Salazar McQueen (IMP) also interviewed well. Confident, well turned out and slick, he talked up the need for “radical change to the Republic.” He said that “ultimately, we do believe that we would benefit from the return to the Empire, we still believe that democracy would form a part of any new Empire and that the stability brought by constitutional monarchs is a net positive for the Republic.” The Senator rejected the notion that the Imperial party is “anti-democratic” stating that “we were dead set against the attempts by other party’s to short-circuit the democratic process”.

Senator Yardley Banks (ONX) also fared extremely well in his interview. He spoke at length about his time on the streets, his involvement in gang culture and his brushes with drugs. He said that “I’ve been extremely lucky, I can play Airball and I had coaches and teachers who stuck by me. Then I had a Princess of Mars who had faith in what I could do and I’ve been lucky to be a Senator for the greatest world in the Republic. I feel extremely blessed and I’d like to see more people benefit from the Republic’s opportunities.”

Senator Connor Williams (SDP) had a solid interview. He talked about his strong passion for Republican politics and that he grew up idolizing liberal icons like President Walt Schilling and Marise Cho. He refuted the claim by the interviewer that “you’ve been involved in politics your entire life, you’ve never lived the life of an ordinary citizen.” Senator Williams said “I wanted to give something back and I wanted to get started straight away. I was honestly surprised to get a spot in the GA in 2610 and that I did as well as I did. I am determined to help make the Republic a better place”.

Senator Elsa Elkholm (HOT) had a weak interview. She came across as stiff, uncomfortable and at times spikey during her interview with Esma Warren. She sharply contested the idea that “she had grown up in a wealthy family” and refused to answer some questions about her time as a prosecutor. She also gave a muddy answer on AI rights and whether she still believes some of the statements she had made in the past, regarding banning AI colonies. Senator Garza (VPP) also had a rare weak interview. During the personal half of the interview, she acknowledged that she had “slept around” after her husband walked out on her. She said she was “very young and very confused” and that she regretted any harm she did.

She also struggled to fully explain her vision of the future of the Republic and stumbled over some of her answers. Senator Hinton Maguire (RCP) had yet another poor interview. The Senator came across as smug, insincere and out of touch and almost all pundits agreed that the interview would do “even more damage to the RCP campaign”. The interviews were broadcast on PrimePulse and the full two hour interviews, plus one hour interview with the VP candidates, were broadcast in full with clip shows shown elsewhere and shown in affiliation with other networks. Viewer figures for the show were middling, with around two hundred million concurrent viewers turning in for at least three of the seven shows. Never the less, key moments from the interviews have shown up as clips all across the Republic’s media. Senator Connor Williams (SDP) and Senator Elsa Elkholm (HOT) are due to take part in the “Commander in Chief” show, hosted by PrimePulse. The decision to invite just the top two candidates to the show has drawn sharp criticism from some in the press, as well as Rep Raleigh Burgess (KA) who said that “PrimePulse doesn’t get to set the agenda for a national debate.”

Progressive Conference on Leander

The leadership of the SDP, RCP, VPP and KA met today in a conference of "Progressive party's" from Leander. Hosted at the Burack Palace Casino and Hotel,. the event saw the four party's talk about strategy, policy and discuess their visions for the future of the Republic. The presidential and VP nominees for the party were not in attendance but senior figures in each party's leadership were there, as well as the press who reported on "a spirited exchange of ideas" and "an optimistic vision of the Republic's future."

The RCP rejected the notion that "this signals a potential KA role in a future SDP administration". Senator Violetta Garza (VPP), speaking whilst on the campaign trail on Avalon, said that "the progressive party's need to show some common cause. But this recent conference does not signal VPP joining a Joint List, nor any sort of concession that this race is over. We still intend to make the second ballot and I still intend to be President."

Federal Case against Senator Maguire

Federal prosecutor Alton Morris, from the RFP's Earth desk has confirmed that he will "begin investigations into Senator Hinton Maguire and his connections to several Earth and Mars based lobbying firms." Morris, a graduate of Cydonia Law School, has been a prosecutor for the Dept of Justice since graduating law school and became the Desk Chief of the White Collar Crime Bureau for the Earth-Desk.

Gorse McDonnel, chief counsel to the RCP campaign, has lodged a complaint, calling the investigation "politically motivated" and that "the timing of this campaign is clear interference in the 2630 election." The Earth Court of Appeals are expected to hear a potential injunction against the case.

Alton Morris, who turned 35 this year, answers to the Deputy Director for Operations of the RFP.. Both operate under the orders of the Attorney General. This is the latest negative news story to break against the RCP, whose campaign has gone into freefall, with polling falling to around 3-4% nationally.

Shanko Pranks

Media personality Omar Malouf's show "Shanko" pulled off a successful on-air prank of two different political candidates during the 2630 electoral cycle. The first was carried out on Rep Raleigh Burgess (KA). Omar Malouf's frequent guest-host and collaborator "Gonblem" posed as a potential KA donor known as "Terrance Barnfield Fak-Nam".

He met with a local KA leader and managed to get a short meeting on Whitworth with the GA Rep as he was campaigning. Rep Burgess very quickly saw that something odd was going on, whilst Gonblem asked strange and increasingly tangential questions.

About two minutes in, Rep Burgess asked "Is this a prank? " and Gonblem cracked and started laughing. Gonblem and Omar Malouf congratulated Rep Burgess on spotting it so quickly. Rep Burgess smiled but didn't laugh but he shook hands with both of them saying that "Totally Blatant Fake Name is a bit on the nose?"

Meanwhile, the luckess Senator Hinton Maguire (RCP) was caught in a different prank. As he and his team attempted to book into the Rawlings Hotel on New Silesia, Gonblem and Omar posed as the hotel reception, having bribed the night receptionist to take the night off.

They pretended not to know who the Senator or his entourage were and asked questions like "How many pairs of boxer shorts did you bring" and "Are you sure you'll need a double bed?" Gonblem also asked the Senator for ID to "prove your who you say you are. I'm sure I'd recognize a famous Senator." Senator Maguire lost his cool at this point and demanded to speak to the manager, whilst his advance agent attempted to calm the situation. As the manager arrived, he instantly recognized that the two pranksters did not work at the hotel and he had security escort them away. Senator Maguire rejected a handshake from Omar and called them "f***ing idiots" Omar Malouf has refused to endorse any candidate saying that "Politics = Dull" Shankos regular audience is now around 500 million

President 1st Ballot

The 1st Presidential ballot saw, as expected, Senator Connor Williams of the SDP finishing top of the 1st ballot. Heart of Terra finished second, ahead of VPP

1. Senator Connor Williams (SDP) - 23%
2. Senator Elsa Elkholm (HOT) -22%
3. Senator Violetta Garza (VPP) -17%
4. Senator Yardley Banks (ONX) - 15%
5. Rep Raleigh Burgess (KA) - 12%
6. Senator Salazar McQueen (IMP -10%
7. Senator Hinton Maguire (RCP) -4%

Expose on Helios

Complete Picture released a shocking expose on political corruption within the Republic and the corporate world, focusing on the prison and security corporation "Helios"

According to documents and anonymous witnesses, Helios has been involved in indoctrination of prisoners, extremely harsh prison conditions and breaches of legality through the political ties between House Corvo, their Senators and Helios Quoting a document from Helios to investors, the corporation promises "Long-term strategic alignment with the Ashen Church, granting Helios unparalleled access to conservative frontier communities and a pious, disciplined workforce."

It also offers "Political insulation via First Light’s senatorial bloc and Church ties" Legal expert Dr Benhard Vossler (IND) said that "this in itself represents a promise of political corruption, which is a crime in and of itself." Former RFP Director Shelton Goldberg (IND) called the allegations "at the same time shocking and deeply predictable."

He mentioned that "Baron Corvo has a suspended five year sentence for political corruption already." The show, which has been praised for its quality journalism but criticized for "being a hit piece" has been aired on several networks. A spokesman for Heart of Terra said that "complete Picture is the hatchet shop for the SDP and the radical left. They cannot be considered impartial" Never the less, the show has landed a heavy blow on Heart of Terra and has been construed as an attack by the SDP.

Attacks against Finn Knottman

Heart of Terra launched a blistering attack against the SDP today, targeting Gubernational candidate Finn Knottman (SDP) and attempting to tie his actions to the rest of the party.

An attack ad, first broadcast on Lynxx, has been picked up and clips have been shown on other networks that suggests that "Finn Knottman carried out industrial sabotage against a major corporation, putting jobs at risk" It also alleges that "Finn Knottman, whose all for freedom of the press, has sued Connect AC, to prevent the broadcast of a documentary about this very subject.

Finn Knottman and the SDP are hypocrites, not fit for government." A spokesman for Senator Connor Williams (SDP) called the attack advert "a typically brutal and downright illegal advert by Heart of Terra. Our legal department will be taking action against this blatant lie" Finn Knottman, who is campaigning for governor of New Berlin, is running behind Torsten Emmerhard (IMP for Governor

Senator Connor Williams (SDP) responded "I have met Mr Knottman many times and I consider him to be a man with good intentions. Whilst he is a maverick, he's always had the best interests of the people at heart As to the alleged events that Heart of Terra have alluded to, they are unproven and date back before Mr Knottman's membership of the SDP. That Heart of Terra have nothing better to do than throw this sort of dirt at us to distract from their issues, is just typical of them and their debunked campaign. Mr Knottman's legal issues regarding these allegations are his own. I do not intend to speak to them further,"

Senator Williams Shanko Interview

Senator Williams took the risky approach to appear on the hugely popular media show "Shanko" hosted by Omar Malouf. Despite the irreverent and childish questions from Mr Malouf, the show appeared to be a success with Senator Williams hailed for his poise and that he may have drawn an additional younger audience, including first time voters.

Princess Valane Leaves Onyx

In a press statement from Mars, Princess Sofia Valane confirmed that she was "leaving Onyx". The rift that had developed between House Valane and the social conservative wing of Onyx had begun during the 2630-2635 period when the full extent of the changes made under President Jose Canazarro came out.

This eventually led to Senator Ivy Valane leaving Onyx and confirming she would "stand as an independent going forward."

Princess Valane's decision to leave Onyx appeared to be a signal to the moderate wing of the party that she was disatisified with the direction and actions of the party.

New Berlin Coup

The chaos on New Berlin reached a new level as Acting-Governor Gunther Reiss (NGR) suspended the New Berlin gubernational election, citing concerns with outside influences.

This decision was criticized by almost the entire political spectrum. Two days after polling day on the 2nd ballot, the chief of staff of the Bunde-Schutzen, General Hafir, was assassinated and the planet's professional military, the Federal Guard, launched an attempted coup, which plunged the planet into civil war.

President 2nd Ballot

The 2nd ballot was incredibly close, with the first count coming in at less than 1% difference between the two candidates:

• Williams / Casavila (SDP) - 45%
• Elkholm / Beaumont (HOT) -45%
• Abstain / Other -10%

There were then two recounts, which saw the final result confirmed:

• Williams / Casavila (SDP) - 45% - 6.335 billion votes
• Elkholm / Beaumont (HOT) - 45% - 6.324 billion votes

After the second recount failed to show Heart of Terra with any more votes, Senator Elsa Elkholm (HOT) formally conceded the 2630 election and Senator Connor Williams (SDP) was named president-elect.

General Assembly

The 2630 General Assembly election results were confirmed.

1. HOT- 25%
2. SDP -22%
3. VPP-16%
4. ONX-16%
5. IMP-12%
6. KA-9%
7. RCP-0%

As the RCP finished below 5%, they did not receive any seats for the 2630 GA. Heart of Terra coming out top in the GA would present significant challenges to the SDP

RCP Wiped Out

As the RCP won no seats in the General Assembly and lost all but one senate seat, they were essentially wiped out as a national party.

Campaign Spending

Total spending in the 2630 election was 130 billion adjusted dollars.

 Senate 

• Imperial - 16 Senators (+5)
• Onyx - 15 Senators (+2)
• SDP - 14 Senators (+5 )
• Independent - 10 Senators (+2)
• Heart of Terra -7 Senators (-4)
• KA -6 Senators (-2)
• VPP -5 Senators (-3)
• New German Republican-2 Senators (New Party)
• Alexandran -2 Senators (NC)
• RCP -1 Senator (-2)

The Alexandran and Isolationist Senators confirmed that they would caucus with the Imperial Party.

Senator Ivy Valane (IND) said she would "caucus with the Independents".

Senator Espar al Awfran (RCP) changed his party affiliation to the SDP.

Senate Oversight Chair

XXXX

The New Administration

President-elect Williams was sworn in on the XXXX of June 2630.

• Vice President - Casavila (SDP)
• Attorney General - Vondell Hopkins (ONX)
• Secretary of Defence - Kevan Sondeheim (ONX)
• Treasury Secretary Haswell Reisnner (SDP)
• Foreign Secretary - Dr Carpenter Rufus (VPP)
• Intelligence Secretary -Connie Baxter (SDP)
• Interior Secretary -Violetta Garza (VPP)
• Culture Secretary - Sita Panikkar (SDP)
• Trade & Transport Secretary - Bradley Newsome (SDP)
• Director of RFP - Eldridge Woods -(IND)
• Chief of Staff to the President -Rep Martina Cursic (SDP)