"Party Conventions Begins," by Glüc da Dhi

There is a spike of political activity on Witt this month as two parties are holding their party convention. The republican ZRT is convening in Maritiimi-Maxhestic, while the Liberal Congress is holding its convention in Maricopa, where Maricopan Premieir Dr. Txec dal Nordselvă warmly welcomed then and invited the Lib members to take a tour of the province. Though there are still a couple of months left until the next General Elections, both parties seem already to be gearing up for the campaign as they discuss candidate lists for the Cosa, Senatorial endorsements and in the case of the ZRT a draft manifesto.

Public party conventions have become a regular occurrence since reunision, a trend that seems to have been started by the ZRT, quickly followed by the MRPT. At least three parties now have regularly scheduled conventions as part of their constitution or statutes, the RUMP being the only major party not to hold such a decision making event in recent years.

The conventions are a transparent way to give party members a formal democratic means to influence party policy and leadership. Decisions made on these occasions may significantly influence the course of Talossan politics. According to ZRT MC Moritz Fernaodescu the convention serves to “bring the current issues to light that Talossa is facing today and the improvement of our small but wonderful nation. But aside from the future of Talossa I also think the future of our very own party is a very important matter that deserves some attention.” Democratic decision making is not the only goal of the conventions though.  Publicity also counts. Lib MC Txosuè Éiric Rôibeardescù notes that the importance of the convention is also “a chance to recruit to the party”. ZRT member M.T. Patritz da Biondeu, who chairs the convention of his party, too, points out that the convention serves “to give citizens an opportunity to learn more about the party.”

During the convention current ZRT party leader and Fiôvân Senator Miestrâ Schivâ, UrN, who is also the current Distain spoke with satisfaction about the functioning of the current four party government, noting about  the criticism from the opposition that the government has not been active enough that “the RUMP hiss and spit, and hold us to account when we fall asleep, but they offer no alternative.” She also proposed a new draft ZRT manifesto for the coming elections and proposed that the party focus on the abolition of the two stage Cort system. This statement attracted the attention of the current Avocat Xherneral, Progressive Party MC Dr. Txec dal Nordselvă, who went on to address the convention with his thoughts about judicial reform.

The future of the ZRT may be uncertain though. Party leader Schivâ in a statement declared that if she were to be re-elected she would enter formal talks with the Liberal Congress which according to her may lead to “standing a joint list in the next Cosâ election, or even unification of the two parties.” She noted this would result in there being no republican party on the next ballot, but also had doubts about whether there were enough active republican supporters to “actually push forward towards a New Talossan Republic.” 

It is far from certain though, that Schivâ will be re-elected. Two other candidates are in the race for the position. MC Fernaodescu and fellow ZRT MC Gödafrïeu Válcadác’h, although the latter decided not to vote for himself but to give his vote to MC Fernaodescu. If MC Fernaodescu were to win the election it would be the first time that the ZRT was run by someone who was not a citizen of the Republic. When asked about his candidacy MC Fernaodescu stated that “I hope to become the next party president so I can contribute in giving the ZRT a new chance to live and also prosper. […] It might as well be that the ZRT needs a new name and a now face on the cover. Now, I am not be the Talossan with the most experience or vision. But any Talossan has the ability to pay enough contribution to the nation to make a change; and I want to prove that to any of you.” According to hin the ZRT should focus on “Talossa on a more cultural aspect. The language that should be spoken more within the borders of our beautiful nation, the traditions that should be kept alive and the history that must not be forgotten. With all the political diversities that Talossa has one might almost forget the most important thing that makes Talossa so different from most other small nations: a rich culture. Not only the culture of the Kingdom of Talossa, but let's of course also not forget the enrichment that we have received through the Talossan Republic.” He further noted that while he prefers the ZRT to remain, he would not oppose working with the Liberals if there was no other option.

(MC Válcadác’h could not be reached for comment. Senator Schivâ herself did not wish to comment on the ZRT convention to this newspaper, a response to cartoons being published by this newspaper that many considered distasteful.)

Despite these discussions, da Biondeu stated to this newspaper that he was “not at all” happy about the convention turnout and participation so far because “not many people are participating.” The Liberal Congress convention does not seem to have sparked a wave of political activity either, but Lib party leader and MC C. Carlüs Xheraltescù was happy about the turnout, noting “I'm pleased that so many people have turned out to vote in the constitutional amendments.”

The Liberal Congress is also currently electing a party leader. Two candidates are in the running. Current party leader MC Xheraltescù is facing opposition from fellow MC Rôibeardescù. When asked about why he wanted to be re-elected, MC Xheraltescù said: “I founded the Liberal Congress. It's something I built from nothing, and brought into government. If we can get into government after our first election, I think that under my leadership we could carry on at that trajectory and really make some amazing changes.” According to him the party should focus on “what we always focus on: placing liberal values at the heart of Talossan government, putting liberty first.” He described his opponent as “A nice guy, but I don't think he's the right man for the job right now.”

MC Rôibeardescù on the other hand, stated that “If i get elected I will continue with our goals for fairness and biscuits for all.” He was not at all happy about the suggestion of a potential Lib/ZRT merger, releasing a public stated in which he noted: “The ZRT strongly opposing the monarchy, compared to our agnosticism on the matter could tear us apart.”

MC Xheraltescù is more open to the discussion, but was also clear on the Liberal Congress position with regards to the monarchy: “I will not be compromising the constitutional agnosticism of the party, nor will I sacrifice our commitment to the principle of liberty.”  MC Rôibeardescù is not so confident about this however, talking about his opponent: “A very good frien

d, a worthy adversary for the position, but i feel is very biased towards this merger with the ZRT due to his extremely close ties to the party.”

Apart from the leadership election the Liberal Congress convention highlights so far included speeches from  MC Xheraltescù and new member Françal Ian Lux, a performance by Barry Manilow and a vote on a number of amendments to the party constitution. Both conventions are still going on as of this writing with neither of the leadership races yet being decided.