Conservative Party of Kirlawa

The Conservative Party of Kirlawa, sometimes referred to as Páirtí Coimeádach de Kirlawa in Kilani, is a centre-right, liberal conservative and radical centrist party represented in the General Assembly of Kirlawa. It was founded in April 3785 by Malagasy Thatcher and Alexander Magnum. The party's main aim is to "withdraw Kirlawa from all major international treaties".

Generally, the party has a laissez-faire economic attitude, and are moderately secular. Their social policies are conflicting - although it is officially stated to be centrist in nature, it has veered drastically from progressive to conservative, depending on the era and leadership. The party is relatively militarist and traditionally leans towards small government, although they classify themselves as Third Way at various times. The party is anthropogenic in terms of environmental policies.

The Conservatives currently hold three governmental posts, under a broad coalition, and has had three Presidents of state (Alexander Magnum from 3790 - 3794 and 3818 - 3819, and Malagasy Thatcher beginning from 3901.)

Beginnings (3785 - 3821)


The party initially began in April 3785 as a liberal conservative party, with liberal economic and social policies. Started by a consortium of intelligentsia, including Alexander Magnum and Malagasy Thatcher, the party had its roots in populism and libertarianism. It contested the 3787 Kiralwan elections and won 90 seats and 12.85% of the popular vote, unprecedented for a new party at the time. This continued for a while, and Alexander Magnum, the Chairman of the Party, was elected as President from July 3790 to January 3784.

The initial hype surrounding the party gradually declined and settled around 6-7% of the popular vote for around twenty years. Following this, the party embarked on a heavy campaign and shifted its focus to increasing civil liberties and adopting progressive policies, resulting in sharp, consecutive rises in vote share from 3809 to 3818. Alexander Magnum once again became President after an astonishing victory of 148 seats and 20.64% of the vote share. His tenure only lasted for one year, after which a snap election was called and the CPK fell in the polls.

Alexander Magnum retired from his capacity as Chairman of the Party in 3821, triggering the Party's first leadership elections. His son, Alexander Magnum II, won the most votes and subsequently succeeded his fther.

Social conservatism and Isolationism (3821 - 3832)
Alexander Magnum II's reign was marked by drastic shifts in party policy, moving it closer to the right both socially and militarily. He also began "Kirlawan Isolationism", an ideology synonymous with the CPK to this day. He advocated for the withdrawal of Kirlawa from major international treaties that bound the legislature to international regulations. This drew widespread support within the Party, and the "Isolationist Group" was founded in 3825. It soon became the biggest subgroup within the party.

This was not well-received by voters, however; although the Conservatives regained several seats in subsequent elections, its performance was tamed compared to previous results. The inability to revitalise the Party from its previous errors, and the increasing stagnation of the leadership, led to a vote of no confidence for Magnum II. He lost that vote, triggering yet another leadership election. Malagasy Thatcher, who served as Leader since the Party's founding, contested and successfully won the elections, thus serving concurrently as Chairman and Leader.

Laissez-faire Economics and Deregulation (3832 - 3875)


Malagasy Thatcher moved the party from a populist to a convictionist platform. Her resounding speeches and unwavering beliefs drew support from both inside and out of the Party. She promoted "free-market economics", which included privatisation of large chunks of the state and deregulation of various industries. She also continued on with her predecessor's isolationist and militarist policies, although she moved the Conservatives back from the right to the centre in terms of social policy.

Her efforts began to show in the 3838 and 3842 elections, where the Conservative Party won 153 and 181 seats in the General Assembly. The 3842 elections were the best for the Conservatives ever, earning the second largest margin of the popular vote and becoming the largest opposition in the GA. From there, the Party's performance was mixed and varied greatly. This could be attributed to a flux in the political climate at the time as a swathe of new parties entered the scene.

The party failed to contest the July 3857 presidential and general elections. A failure to renew their registration with the electoral database led to their inability to run a candidate in either election. It is not recorded in the Electoral Results tabulation below. The Conservatives soon rebounded back to triple digits in 3861.

The party's worst defeat came in 3864. Abstentions were rampant and discipline not tightly enforced. Vote share fell by 13.21%, and the Conservatives were left with only 19 seats. They rebounded quickly in the next elections, increasing the seat count to 106. However, many issues still remained. The seat count fluctuated between double-digits and the lower 100s. The party did not run a presidential candidate from 3861 to 3874, initially endorsing another party's candidate, and then not participating in the process at all either directly or indirectly after 3861.

By the 3874 elections, Malagasy Thatcher stated her desire to retire and abdicated from her post as Chairman in April of 3875, followed by her post as Leader in September. The first elections for the post of Leader, and the first dual leadership elections were held.

Thatcher was never either Prime Minister nor President of Kirlawa during her 90 years in the Party.

Internationalism and Progressivism (3875 - 3900)
Li Guanyao won the post of Chairman whereas Malthus Mabella won the post of Leader. However, Li Guanyao retired in 3882, without citing a reason. It is believed that he wants to "wait it out" and only take on the mantle at the party's peak. The General Election Committee handed the post back to Malagasy Thatcher, who now remains as Chairman of the Party.

With the election of the new leaders, the party embarked on a bold policy of renewing its purpose and direction. The party attempted to court the permissive and progressive vote, by introducing new laws to expand civil liberties, some of which greatly angered the Traditionalists faction. A vote of no confidence was attempted against the Leader and Chairman in 3881, but it never came to fruition and the perpetrators' whips were withdrawn.

The party's efforts were initially rewarded handsomely with 128 seats in the July 3884 elections. However, this number gradually dropped, to 103 and then to 101, during the 3886 and 3889 elections respectively. The Conservatives suffered its biggest loss during the January 3893 elections, where its vote share fell below 10% for the first time in 30 years. The failure to gain seats is attributed to a split in focus on party policy, as the Conservatives attempted to court the Progressive vote in Dirlana while maintaining its stronghold of Nuchtmark, eventually losing both.

As a result of the 3893 elections, two leadership elections were fronted against Malagasy Thatcher and Malthus Mabella respectively. Many stalking horse candidates contested, but both Thatcher and Mabella emerged with over 50% of the vote in the Chairman and Leadership elections respectively, thus second rounds of voting were not warranted.

Since the 3893 elections, the Conservatives' seat share has risen steadily. It achieved 19% of the popular vote for the 3879 Presidential Elections, the largest increase from a previous presidential election since over 100 years ago.

From 3895 to 3899, the Conservatives released its largest manifesto, the Conservative Party of Kirlawa: Manifesto for the 40th Century, to outline its plans for the year 3900 and forward. It was hoped that the manifesto would increase the Conservatives' visibility on various issues, and hence helping its popularity and electability.

Before the century ended, the Conservatives were included in a government coalition. This is the first time that the Conservatives would hold government ministries. The Ministries of Defence, Justice and Science and Technology were taken up by Li Guanyao, Benedict Cambridge and Winston Hague respectively.

40th Century (3900 - )
Worry began to arise over the feasibility of the electoral strategy to introduce such a large manifesto. It was observed that other parties began adopting similar positions to the Conservative Party. The lack of differentiation between the parties could split the vote heavily, and may leave the Conservatives with a worse result than previously.

However, the strategy paid off handsomely in the first election of the 40th century, held in January 3901. The Conservatives won 102 seats, an increase of roughly 35, and became the third largest party in Kirlawa's legislature once again. Moreover, Malagasy Thatcher was finally elected as President, winning roughly 53% of the vote in the second round, and thus became the first Conservative in the post since Alexander Magnum in 3821.

The results improved even further with the 3903 elections, where the Conservatives' share of the popular vote increased 6.5% to 20.51%, and the number of seats rose to 149, the second highest ever since July 3854 (158). Malagasy Thatcher was elected for a second term as President, and received endorsement from another party for the first time since the late 3790s.

Key Figures

 * Malagasy Thatcher (Leader: 3785 - 3875; Chairman: 3834 - 3875, 3882 - ): Founded the party, along with Alexander Magnum II. She embraced the free market and adopted a centrist social policy, but maintained the isolationist foreign policy of her predecessor. Halfway through her tenure, she moved violently from a populist approach to a convictionist one. She won the leadership election for Chairman and served concurrently as Leader and Chairman until 3875, where she died of old age, triggering the party's first dual leadership elections.


 * Alexander Magnum (Chairman: 3785 - 3821): Founded the party, along with Malagasy Thatcher. Adopted a progressive social policy and embraced permissive rights while pursuing an internationalist foreign policy. Abdicated, citing old age, calling the party's first leadership elections.


 * Alexander Magnum II (Chairman: 3821 - 3832): Son of the previous leader, and first to be elected by popular vote. Moved the party closer to the right in terms of social policy, and restricted freedoms for stability. Pursued an isolationist foreign policy. Lost a vote of confidence, triggering a snap leadership election.


 * Malthus Mabella (Leader: 3875 - ): Became Leader of the Party alongside Li Guanyao. Has expressed a desire for an internationalist foreign policy and progressive social policy.


 * Li Guanyao (Chairman: 3875 - 3882 ): Became Chairman of the Party alongside Malthus Mabella. Has expressed a desire for increased civil liberties.

Divisions
Although the party is considered to be very unified in their approach to various policies, there maintains to be a number of divisions within the party itself with differing beliefs. Members may overlap between divisions; they are not mutually exclusive.

Magnumites
The Magnumites, also known as the Isolationists or Withdrawals, are the followers of Alexander Magnum II's isolationist foreign policy, in which he stated his desire for Kirlawa to withdraw from legislatively binding treaties. Currently, they hold the most power in the party, with the most prolific member being Malthus Mabella, the present Leader of the Party.

The Magnumites' official bloc within the party is known as the Independence Wing of the Conservatives (IWC). It grew out of the 3794 elections, when the Party realised that most legislation was inhibited by international treaties. Beginning with only 100 members, it grew steadily, until Alexander Magnum II, son of the then-Chairman Alexander Magnum, joined in 3810. This propelled it to the Party spotlight, and by 3820, it became the most popular bloc in the Party, with 84,000 members. The large group is believed to be the main factor in Magnum II's election during the first Chairman elections.

Free-Marketers
The Free-Marketers believe in free-market policies and maintain the ideals of deregulation and less red tape. Malagasy Thatcher is a Free-Marketer.

Within the Free-Marketers, there are Thatcherites and Absolutists. Generally speaking, Absolutists are a more extreme form of Thatcherites.

The overlap between Free-Marketers and Progressives is designated to be the unofficial "Libertarian" grouping. Most Free-Marketers are based in Nuchtmark, the party's stronghold.

Thatcherites
Thatcherites are followers of Malagasy Thatcher's neoliberal teachings. They were born out of her dual reign from 3834 - 3875, where heavy deregulation of the market took place. They are more committed to curbing the power of trade unions and are more socially conservative than their Absolutist counterparts. A good number of Thatcherites are also Magnumites, and Malagasy Thatcher herself declared herself to be an "Isolationist", although she was not part of the IWC.

Absolutists
Absolutists are the more extreme Free-Marketers, with a dominant theme of anarcho-capitalism. They intend to ensure that the market has as little regulation as possible, including the areas of Health and Safety, which Thatcherites oppose altering. Absolutists were born out of a fringe group of Thatcherites at about 3850, when some radicals were dissatisfied with the progress of economic reforms. An official bloc exists within the Party, known as the Free Market Wing, although this is not to be confused with Free-Marketers in general.

A majority of Absolutists are Libertarians, and are present in the Permissive group. Absolutists in this Libertarian grouping are colloquially referred to as Anarchists or Lunatics. Malthus Mabella, the current leader of the Party, is believed to be a semi-Absolutist.

Permissives
The Permissives refer to the socially liberal members of the party, who advocate for increased civil liberties and more permissive rights. This may range from pushing progressive causes (LGBT rights and abortion laws) to calling for liberties which conservatives champion (greater gun rights and hunting laws).

The overlap between Permissives and Free-Marketers is designated to be the unofficial "Libertarian" grouping. The strongest Permissive support base is in Uwakah, followed by Dirlana.

Militarists
The  Militarists' main aim is to enhance the international standing of Kirlawa as an international power, by having a strong military and isolationist foreign policy (although not necessarily overlapping with the Magnumites). They were previously powerful from 3834 to 3875, coinciding with the twin reign of Malagasy Thatcher, but have since dwindled in numbers and influence due to a shift in military policy. Most Militarists are based in Merkan.

Regions
At a local level, the Conservative Party of Kirlawa is represented under several "franchises", or branches. All provinces except for Merkan have at least one Conservative branch. There may be more than one franchise operating in a province, as under the Party Constitution, a franchise can be formed with only 25% of members in that area voting for its creation.

Franchises in a single province unite to compete in local elections under a single Conservative Party of Kirlawa banner, unless only one franchise operates in that area. Franchises do not compete in national elections, but rather the Party as a whole.

Merkan
The national Party's headquarters is located in Indrala, Merkan. The party has performed fairly well in national elections, often achieving its highest share of the popular vote in the region during the Malagasy Thatcher era, where the Militarist branch of the Party attracted widespread support from the masses. Currently, it stands relatively low.

The Conservative Party of Kirlawa does not have an official local franchise operating in Kirlawa. There are, however, several unofficial franchises operating in Merkan that do not come under the jurisdiction of party HQ. The Provincial Conservative Party of Merkan, abbreviated to PCP(M), often contests county and council elections. 28% of all Merkan members are registered with that franchise. The Merkan Conservatives, or MCP, also contests some county and council elections. 25% of all Merkan members are registered with the latter franchise. The PCP(M) and MCP have ever contested state elections in their names, during the 3814 and 3847 Merkan Provincial elections respectively.

Dirlana
There are medicore results for the national party in national elections to Dirlana's seats. On average, Dirlana ranks as the second least popular province for the party, just ahead of Dirguzia.

The Provincial Conservative Party of Dirlana, abbreviated to PCP(D), is the main Conservative franchise in Dirlana. As with its national counterpart, there are mediocre results for the franchise in local elections. Other franchises in Dirlana include the Dirlana Conservative and Unionist Party, the Dirlana People's Party, the Conservatives of Nisira and Kiria, and the Progressive Conservative Party.

Dirguzia
The Provincial Conservative Party of Dirguzia, abbreviated to PCP(G), is the main Conservative franchise in Dirlana. It is also home to most of the Party's Progressive grouping members. Despite that, it has also done very poorly in local elections, and province often ranks among the lowest in the national Party's popular vote among all regions in national elections.

Other franchises in Dirguzia include the Progressive Conservatives of Dirguzia, the Democratic People's Party, the Dirguzia Conservative Alliance, the New Conservative Faction of Dirguzia, and the Dirguzia Conservative Party.

Uwakah
The national party's performance is relatively high here, and among the five regions, is the second most Conservative-friendly in the country.

The Provincial Conservative Party of Uwakah, abbreviated to PCP(U), is the main Conservative franchise in Uwakah. Other franchises include the Uwakah Conservative Party (UCP), the Progressive Conservatives of Uwakah (PCU), the Parti Uwakah Conservatif (PUC) and the Conservative and Unionists of Uwakah.

Nuchtmark
Nuchtmark has traditionally been a Conservative stronghold, with as much as 50% of all seats in the province going to the party in both local and federal elections, amassing a difference of over 40% over the next party. The Nuchtmark Conservative Party, or NCP, is the main Conservative franchise in Nuchtmark. It is the best performer out of all franchises of the Conservatives.

Other franchises include the Provincial Conservative Party of Nuchtmark, or PCP(N), the Nuchtmark Conservative and Unionist Party, the Business Party, the New Conservative Party and the Nuchtmark Party (NP).

Economic
The Conservative Party staunchly believes in laissez-faire economics, with some radicals going so far as to support an anarcho-capitalist agenda. Heavy deregulation of the market is at the forefront of economic policy, although important components such as Health and Safety remain untouched. Some such laws include allowing the use of genetically modified organisms (GMOs), ameliorating forest clearance laws and lowering pollution standards.

The party is also committed to curbing the burgeoning influence of trade unions. This includes an end to collective bargaining, outlawing secondary strike action, allowing employers to fire at their own accord, and only allowing open shops to be legal.

In terms of taxation, the party wishes to establish a new tax band of 5% for those earning >5000SEN, remove tax bands above 70%, followed by tax bands above 60%. They also seek to introduce a new 5% sales tax on essential goods and services, while lowering the tax on luxury goods to 35% and corporate tax to 25%.

Despite the sometimes isolationist policy of the Party, free foreign trade and investment are championed by Conservatives.

Social
Unlike traditional conservative-minded parties, the Conservative Party of Kirlawa has a very liberal approach to social issues. The party is strongly in support of civil liberties, but it varies heavily in its morality, ranging from conservative (expansion of gun rights and deregulating hunting laws) to progressive viewpoints (support for gay marriage and pro-choice).

From a religious standpoint, the Conservatives are moderately secular. In its Constitution, it states that it "adopts a secular social policy, by considering all religions (or lack thereof) as equal under the law." Freedom of religion is emphasised in its manifestos, with calls for the deregulation of religious institutions and communities.

While the party accepts the precedent of climate change and global warming, its environmental record has been largely anthropogenic. It calls for the lowering of environmental standards and the removal of subsidies to renewable energy research. This is largely to appease the Free-Marketers and traditional support base of the Conservatives, as environmental sustainability is yielded to economic progress.

Although the Conservatives have a large Militarist support base in Merkan, it currently adopts a pacifist and internationalist stance to its politics.

Political
The Conservative Party's current main aim is to return Kirlawa's sovereignty by removing ourselves from major international treaties which inhibit the right of the legislature to make new laws. This means withdrawing Kirlawa from as many legislatively binding treaties as possible.

The party seeks to reduce the legislative size to an even number, preferably 700 or below., and is committed to proportional representation, with a D'Hondt system using Open Party Lists. There is also a desire to reduce legislative terms from 42 months to 21 months, to enable more responsive governments.

Presidential

 * The party did not contest nor endorse another candidate in presidential elections on July 3857.
 * From January 3861 to July 3874, the party failed to list a candidate for the presidential elections to focus on gaining parliamentary strength. An endorsement was given to another party up until July 3867. The party did not contest nor endorse another candidate during the January 3871 and July 3874 elections.
 * The position ranking represents the party's position in the *latest* round they had competed in. If they had achieved 1st in the first round of voting but 2nd on the second round of voting, the position will be listed as "2nd", and vice versa.
 * The President elected, in both the July 3790 and January 3818 elections, was Alexander Magnum. The President elected in the January 3901 and January 3903 elections was Malagasy Thatcher.