Aloria

The Democratic Republic of Aloria is a nation in Northwest Artania.

Geography
GEOGRAPHY

Aloria occupies Antaria's northwest corner. On Aloria's northeastern border is Dorvik; on its eastern border is Kirlawa; on its southeastern border is Dundorf; and along its southern border is Rutania. The blue waters of the Verranderlijke Ocean wash ashore on Aloria's west coast.

Aloria has five provinces:

Krentori
Krentori is Aloria's southernmost province. It is sometimes called "The Corn Belt," or "The Old South."



Sildar
"The Sunshine Province," Sildar, juts off a peninsula forming Aloria's western coast.



Demographics
DEMOGRAPHICS

Population
The most populous areas are in the north and east. The northern region consists the largest and most populated cities in the country. 25% of the population lives in the province of Ultran. The highest population is concentrated around the cities of Ultran and Port Liberty, wich are one of the largest towns in the country. The province of Kurmal, the largest province of Aloria, is also a very populated region. In Gavonshire, Sildar and Krentori the most populated areas are only concentrated in and around the large cities.

Origin
Kurmal has seen as the homeland of the Alorians. Alorians are a mix of Kurmal-natives (mostly Vetari and Concordia indians, and settlers from Dorvik and Kirlawa, who settle down in the Kurmal mountains around the year 0. This people were, and still are, considered as the native population of Aloria. During the 13th and 14th white explorers who traveled up the Antarian westcoast settled down on the Sildar peninsula, mostly colonists from the area of wich is now Rutania. More then thousand years later this resulted into a mixed white and native Alorian race. They now-a-days form the majority of the population, the native-Alorians are reduced to less then 5% of the population.

From the 20th century immigrants from other parts of the world came to Aloria, mostly from Istalia, Cildania and Darnussia. Until today those immigrants still form a minority in Aloria, but their cultural influences are very effective on today's society.

Language
English is the official language in Aloria, and is spoken by almost 95% of the population. English in Aloria is notable for its Alorian dialect, or the Alorian slang, wich is most common in the rural areas of the country. A small minority of native-Alorians in the easth still maintains their native language, wich is called Kurmali.

Religion
RELIGION

The majority of the Alorians is christian (almost 82% of the population). Early christian influences were brought to Aloria by foreign missionaries who settled down ages ago. Many of them build monestaries high in the Kurmal mountains. A second gulf of influence came from the many immigrants who came to Aloria since the 14th century. Except catholic immigrants, also a very large group of Jewish immigrants came to Aloria. The find support among 12% of the population. Libertia and Sildar City have large Jewish neighbourhoods.

The largest minority is the islam (6% of the population), who settled in Aloria since the 19th century. THey are mostly concentrated in harbor cities as Port Libertia, Port Aloria and Ceres.

The Archbishop of Ultran is the highest religious leader in the country.

Government
GOVERNMENT

Aloria is a federal republic: a nation composed of territorial sovereigns united under a supreme central government. Aloria's provinces are famously empowered compared to provinces in other nations. They are charged with a large share of Aloria's governing responsibility, enabling Aloria's federal government to remain relatively small.

Aloria's federal government is a parliamentary democracy with a split head of state. Carmine Delgado wrote a Supreme Court opinion discussing some of the differences between the duties of the Cabinet, which is a branch of the Parliament, and the President, which is Aloria's head of state. Generally, the President is charged with handling foreign affairs and military matters, subject to the laws of Parliament.

While there is some disagreement as to what matters the Parliament may properly regulate in foreign affairs, it is generally agreed that Parliament determines the size of the military and Foreign Affairs budgets; that the Cabinet Ministers decide how those budgets are spent except where mandated by Parliament; and that the President performs all executive functions in defense and foreign affairs--i.e., functions requiring prompt, decisive action. The President is also the Grand Mof of the Armed Forces.



The Alorian Cabinet
ALORIAN CABINET



The Alorian Cabinet is chaired by the Alorian Prime Minister. The Prime Minister is effectively the head of the Ministry of Head of Government. The Cabinet is also composed of 12 lesser ministries. Including the Ministry of Head of Government, the Alorian ministries are:

Ministry of Head of Government

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Ministry of Internal Affairs

Ministry of Finance

Ministry of Defense

Ministry of Justice

Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport

Ministry of Health and Social Services

Ministry of Education and Culture

Ministry of Science and Technology

Ministry of Food and Agriculture

Ministry of Environment and Tourism

Ministry of Trade and Industry

History
HISTORY

List of Presidents of the Democratic Republic of Aloria

From Libertarian Dominance to the Big Deal (2430-2474)


Throughout the 25th century, Alorian politics were dominated by the Moderate Libertarian Party (MLP) and the Constitution Party, who had largely similar laissez-faire ideological goals. Their signature legislation was the “flat budget,” in which all ministries were awarded the same low amount of funding each year. Midway through the centruy, the Democratic Rationalists (DRs) emerge as a force in opposition to such ideaology. Their motto: "A New Order for the Ages."

They begin scoring some victories, as their candidates, first Helmut Helmut and Solomon Kane are both elected President ). Both enacted their “Big Deal” economic reforms, which included provisions for a minimum wage, and some expansions in health and social service programs. Funding remained sparse, however, as the MLP/CP coalition defeated most tax and budget bills necessary to implement the reforms. Kane’s proposed “Treaty for International Wage Standards” gained some traction abroad, but is ultimately never approved by the Senate.

From Budget Wars to the Progressive Renaissance (2474-2527)
The Democratic Ratinalists ally with the Alorian Free Democrats to defeat the flat budget. A series of “budget wars” follow, as political battles are fought over how much funding each ministry would receive. Over the course of time, MLP and its allies enter into dominance, electing and re-electing for many terms as President Daniel Mansifeld. A few events, however came together to tip the balance the other way.

First, a new political Party called the Progressive Leagure for Advanced Nations (PLAN), starts to become a contender in the Presidential elections. In a shocking turn of events, PLAN candidate Jerome Resso is elected President in 2505.

Additionally, the election was the first that the newly formed Publitrican Party (later the Alorian Public Union) participated in. The party had begun as a movement in Ultran and to a lesser extent in Slidar, where a new political phenomenon known as the "Publitrican Movement" of social conservative and economic progressive principles was taking root. Various factions are merged together under the leadership of Colgate Herman Johnson, from the "Patrician Family of Ultran", who ran as the party's candidate in 2505 as well as in a few subsequent elections.

Jerome Resso was narrowly defeated in a rematch against Mansfield three years later. Out of the eigthy million votes cast, the two were sperated by less then a million. Mansfiel continues to cut the budget, and eventually all ministries were drastically cut. By 2520, Alorian federal spending accounts for less than %1 of GDP. One general calls it a “miracle” that Aloria is not attacked by foreign invaders.



Finnally, a Coalition consisting of the Democratic Rationalists, People's Reform Party (, the Publitrican Party (later Alorian Public Union), the Democratic Centrist Party and the Alorian Free Democrats united to implement reforms for an overall dramatic increase in the role of the national government in Alorian life. Over the course of about two decades, federal government spending rises from less than %1 of GDP to just under %20 of GDP. A mandatory living wage is enacted. Social Security, National Health Care, and National Welfare plans are enacted and sustained.

During this time, Democratic Rationalist Colton White and Publitrican Nelson Cudderboard ran the country together as President and Prime Minister, both serving each role while the other one was in the other role. The two were partners in the leadership of the Progressive Coalition and of Aloria throughout the Progressive Rennassiance.

The Politics of Polarity (2527-2551)
Despite their success in the Parliament, divisions within the progressive coalition prevented it from holding the Presidency, which the MLP regains after two terms of Colton White (who had decided not to run for a third term, instead selecting Prime Minister Cudderboard to run in his place as the coaltion canididate). Newly elected MLP President Jack Vincent attempted to reassert Libertarian power from the Presidential Palace when he ordered the Cabinet disbanded, and locks all Cabinet heads out of the Old Executive Office Building. Finance Minister Sojourner Smart challenged the lockout in court.

Chief Judge Carmine Delgado, an MLP appointee, wrote an opinion declaring that Aloria's constitutional "separation of powers" between the Head of Government and the President bars the President from unilaterally shutting down the Cabinet. Though Vincent complied with the decision, Cabinet business remained held at the Lambrecht Office Complex, a building rented during the lockout as a temporary Cabinet headquarters. The Old Executive Office Building was converted first into a homeless shelter, and later into a museum.

Vincent was not re-elected and the progressive coalition retook the presidancy. Nelson Cudderboard was President for two terms, with former President Colton White as his Prime Minister. After Cudderboard's two terms, the coalition collapsed over the issue of state-aknowledged religion. MLP recaptured the Presidancy with their candidate Vincento Vanzetti V, but libertarianism saw little overal success in its parliamentary bills and in crafting government policy. Hartsen Caddy of the APU assumed the Prime Ministership, as the old coalition parties sought to rebuild their alliance and regain the cheif executive seat. For decades however, Vanzetti is President, while the progressives control parliament and its Prime Minister Hartsen Caddy acts as the voice of opposisition to the Libertarian President.

At this point, the Democratic Socialist Party (DSP) emerged, they would later merge into the Progressive Coalition.

Vanzetti is finnally defeated as the newly formed Liberal Party bursts onto the scene, capturing the plurality of seats in the Parliament as well as the Presidential Palace in Libertia. However, Liberal Party support precipitously dropped off over the course of the next two election cycles. Historians still debate the causes and nature of this flash in the pan movement. Their one term President Albert Mora, sought to curb the polarity in politics, to little avail. Meanwhile, the DSP cemented it alliance with the Progressive Coaltion.

A Nation Divided (2558-2568)
In 2558, President Ben Thompson of the Democratic Centrist Party was elected as the Progressive Coalition rallies to elect its first President in years.

The War of Luthori Succession soon after comes to Aloria's attention. The Gerahon (Luthori) Imperial Diet had voted to amend its constitution to abolish the country's entrenched monarchy. Imperial forces rebeled, enlisting the aid of fellow monarchist governments from around Terra. As it appears Republican forces will be defeated, talk began in Alorian leadership circles of a possible intervention to "promote democracy abroad." Aloria's covert agency, DRACO, began operations in Luthori, the Ministry of Foriegn Affairs sent weapons and aid to the Republican Millitias, and 1,000 Alorian Advisors were sent as well.

The Moderate Libertarian Party sharply protest the idea of intervention. Terrorists allegedly affiliated with the MLP and Luthori monarchists struck, using explosives to destroy several military recruiting facilities across to protest possible Alorian intervention in Gerahon. MLP agents contacted numerous soldiers to encourage them to desert. Some soldiers do, though the exact numbers are disputed. In some provinces, however, recruiting increased as a wave of patriotism sweeps the nation in response to the terror attacks.



Articles of impeachment were submitted to the Parliament. Most parties did not vote on the bill. However, a majority of parties that did vote voted for President Thompson's impeachment. At his later trial, however, President Thompson was quickly acquitted of any wrongdoing. The MLP was then censured by the Parliament for its affiliations with terrorists and slanders of the President.

Much went into the next elections of 2565. Socialist Prime Minister William Fletcher, a big proponet of intervention in Luthori, ran as the candidate of the Progressive Coalition, the successor to President Thompson. The MLP ran former President and perenial candidate, son of the MLP President from decades ago, Jack Vincet Jr.

The Election was big win for Fletcher, who soon sent 150,000 Alorian Troops to Luthori. The country was currently in a ceasfire, the intent was to strengthen the Republican side of the peace talks. Eventually, the war came to an end, and while throughout their deployment their was a ceeasfire, 148 Alorian soldiers were killed in guerillia raids.

The Poltics of Coalition (2568-2580)
Tired of losing to the Progressive Coalition, conservatives in the United Republican Party, the Proud of Aloria Party, and the New Liberals banded together to form their own coalition, the Front for Liberty. Their goal is to appeal to center-right voters alienated by MLP's unyielding dogmatism. In 2568, Front For Liberty candidate Peter Alderson of the Proud of Aloria Party defeated President William Fletcher's bid for re-election, but the FFL coalition failed to win enough seats in Parlaiment to overcome the Progressive Coalition's majority there.

Peter Alderson's proved to be a weak presidency, and next election saw an overwhelming defeat and Socialist and Progressive Coalition Candidate William Fletcher's re-election to that office.

Once by far the plurality party, MLP now saw itself undergoing an identity crisis, as the old party leadership is usurped by a once minor Libertarain Socialist faction. Vincento Vanzetti VII and Vincento Vanzetti VIII, grandson and great grandson of the President Vinceto Vanzetti V and thus part of what is considered part of the party's aristocracy, soon after were found dead at their respective homes.

Due to the the suscipicous circumstances of the death, the Justice Ministry, on order from then Minister of Justice Horatio RIley Herman, began an investigation. MLP refused to cooperate even after havin been subpeonaed. When Herman ordered the Party's Lawyers disbarred and that the party lose its legislative privelages, the punishment was overturned by an independent court. The Investigations were eventually closed, the Vanzetti deaths ruled a suicide.

The recent controversy surronding the new party's leadership turned off many of MLP's old constituents. There was protesting and later riots at the party's convention in 2577, and soon the Libertarian Socialist faction was thrown out of its leadership role in the party. Former Libertarian President Jack Vincent Jr., now 83, again took up the mantle of party leadership, running as the party's presidential candidate later that year.

Next Elections proved to be decisive for the Progressive Coalition. A boost in government spedning on Health and Human Services had recently caused an overall economic boom in Aloria, and thiss boded well for the Progressive Coalition. For the first time in centures. Presidential elections did not go into a second round, the Coalition's candidate Democratic Rationalist Millicent Smith winning in the first round with more then 52% of the vote. The Coalition also won 446 seats in the 750 seat parliament, its largest majority yet. All provinces but the long Libertarian stronghold of Krentori voted to grant its plurality of parliamentray seats to a Progressive party. After the election, the FFL soon disbanded.

Libertarian/Conservative Dominance Revival (2580-2623)
The first issue facing the new President Smith was a second Civil War in the Luthori. Smith, espousing the principles of the "Fletcher Doctrine" of Alorian intervention on behalf of Artanian Self-Determination, sent a naval task force, the action was meant to send a message to the Alduria who were threatening to send a ground force to the county. Fortunately, Alorian intervention was never escalated, and despite heightened tensions, the issue was resolved and the force returned home uscathed and peacebly.

Meanwhile, internal struggles of fractionism were tearing apart the Alorian Public Union. APU Chairman Horatio Riley Herman (who had since resigned his post as Justice Minister) seeing this decided he would try for a Presidential run in the next elections. He had long had presidential ambitions, and saw this as his last chance. Incumbent Millicent Smith, however, had no intention of stepping aside. In a compromise, it was decided that Herman would wait until the next election and would meanwhile hold the position of Prime Minister

The Libertarian Party emerged as a party distinctly seperate from the old MLP. After Smith's second term, MLP and the Libertarian Party formed their own Conservative Coalition and ran their own candidate, Daniel T. President in the 2584 Election. Herman was unable to secure the Presidaancy that year, as his party was further disentagrating and was unable to run his campaign. Libertarian Daniel T. President was elected to the executive office, and soon after the Alorian Public Union collapsed.

APU politicians then soon after searched for other party's to join. Herman joinded the Democratic Rationalist Party, and Minister of Health Julian Thames joined the Socialist Alliance. Early elections were held, as APU was a full 1/5 of Parliament and that void needed to be filled. Democratic Centrist Richard Smith decisively beat out the incumbent of one term, Daniel T. President.

The first issue facing the new President Smith was an epidemic of the "Brenner Virus" in Calliope, Krentori. The city was quarinted, over the objections of the MLP and of the Krentori Provincal Legislature, but still the virus spread. A state of emergency was issued, and all areas infected with BV were then also quarantined, the country put on "lockdown" so far as international travel was concerned. The hardest hit area intially was by far Krentori. Krentorians were very dissatisified with the response of the national government, particularly the quarintine of Calliope, and a seperaist movement soon took control of the Provincal Government there.

From 2587 till the early 2620's, the MLP together with the Conservative Union dominated Parliament. Due to internal problems and crises, all other parties collapsed inthat years, first with the Liberals, followed by the Rationalists and the Socialist Alliance, giving the Libertarians and Conservatives the free hand to keep majority in parliament. Until 2625, Aloria was ruled by MLP-Presidents (Alvarez, Kirkwood, Jones and Franco) and CU-Presidents (Kennedy, Bush and Salvatore), on and on, and they have both swapped presidency and parliament pluralities with regularity during their conservative bloc reign over the past four decades.

But after almost 40 years of MLP/CU dominance, new parties rose to compete against the MLP and CU. First, new Socialist and Communist parties showed off, later neo-conservatives formed the ultra-right Nationalist Party, parties wich made an end to the MLP/CU-dominance in the early 2620's.

Rise of Nationalism(2623-?)
The elections of 2623 marked the beginning of a new era: after four decades the MLP and CU lost their majority in parliament, wich cleared the way for the nationalists, socialists and communists. The elections, however, caust an impossible political landscape in parliament, in wich no one of the political blocs gain a majority. Nationalists gained a tremendous electoral victory, when the new party won plurality in parliament from 0 to 220 seats, an event that only happened before when the Liberals entered politics in the 2550's. Although non of the parties wanted to work together with the ultra-nationalists, wich they considered as ultra-right and extremistic, this only gave the Nationalist Party more popularity. The political crisis, wich was caused when non of the parties was able to form a new government due the huge polarisation that existed, resulted in early elections. In March 2625, the nationalists gained presidency, when Bernard Rosenberg won the presidential elections, therefor making an end to the libertarian dominance in the Presidential Palace. After allmost four decades of minimalistic governments, the Nationalists started a new rightist program wich contained heavily anti-immigrant policies, alongside with economic and moral conservatism.

Alorian Personalaties
PERSONALITIES