Kyo Defense Force

The Virtuous Alliance Dranland (Kyo. 유덕 동맹; Dran. Virtuosa Alianza Drania; Drad. Cynghrair Rhinweddol; Abbr. KDF) is a centre-left political party in the Republic of Dranland. The party formed out of the Kyo Defense Force, a student organization founded at Gongmangdo University following the 2/20 terrorist attacks on Gongmangdo-Comares.

Throughout the nation the party goes by the 'Virtuous Alliance' name, except for in the Elbian Province. Within this province the party maintains its original organization name as the Kyo Defense Force (KDF). Within Elbian all operations of the VAD are under the KDF name; nonetheless the two are one in the same and share the exact same leadership and structure.

Origins
Following the 20 February 3490 terrorist attack on Gongmangdo-Comares, which killed nearly 700, including former president Sun Gyeong-yun, the organization known as the Kyo Defense Force was founded. This group was established by Gongmangdo University (GU) students who had been affected by the 2/20 attacks and the KDF sought justice in the attacks. The KDF took up an active role in helping the recovery of the city and in lobbying for government assistance to the area. Later on the organization also became vocal in advocating for the banning of Exalted Phalanx for National Renewal (FERN) for their alleged election tampering and their connections to the 2/20 attacks. In March of 3492 the KDF was targeted by the National Revolutionary Army, FERN's paramilitary, in the bombing of a student apartment complex at Gongmangdo University. The incident resulted in no deaths, but injured 18 students.

Following the 3494 elections the KDF began to consider reorganizing itself as a political party. The recent elections saw a surge in the number of radical members of parliament and the KDF felt that the government was in an increasingly dangerous position. By July the planning had been finalized the Kyo Defense Force became a national political party under the name of Virtuous Alliance Dranland. However, the KDF named was maintained in Elbian. By the fall of 3494 there had been a collapse of a number of parties, including Werin Deg - The Fair Folk and the Dranish Hosian Democrats. And by this point, FERN had also been banned under a successful government initiative by Interior Minister Constance Woodhall. Due to this sudden exit of many members of parliament, early elections would soon have to be called yet again.

Into Parliament
Following the widespread demise of so many parties, early elections were held in August of 3495. This would be the KDF's first parliamentary election, and it was announced by the party that they would field a presidential candidate. Their candidate was Kwan Ji-won, the CEO of Haedodi Corporation; initially the KDF was not going to run in the presidential elections since the party's leadership was composed largely of very young individuals.

In the presidential election Kwan received an impressive 16.74% (10,914,872) of the vote. And for the KDF in parliament, the party received 50 seats, making in the third largest party in the Dranland. The KDF also won a plurality in the Valdor Province, and took the governorship in the region.

Following the August elections, there was another mass exit of members of government due to the collapse of another party. This forced early elections to be called yet again. These elections would occur in February 3496 and they marked the beginning of a political realignment in Dranland.

As in August, Kwan Ji-won stood for the presidency, this time taking 22.37% (14,755,141) of the vote in the first round, beating Rally for the Republic's Constance Woodhall. Kwan advanced to the second round and received 47% against the incumbent Lucas Manon. In parliament the KDF increased its presence to 90 seats, becoming the second largest political party. Following the February election the KDF joined the Manon Government.

War in the DAZ
In its role in the Manon Government, the KDF took the central role in escalating the military mission in the Dranish Autonomous Zone. After the 2/20 attacks on Gongmangdo-Comares, a mission has been established in the DAZ to target FERN, but Lucas Manon and his government did little to nothing regarding the DAZ. This changed when the KDF was placed in the Ministry of Defense.

General Park Jae-yung was appointed Minister of Defense and he became the Commander of DAZ Operations. From the moment he entered office, and until the end of conflict, Park spent most his time at Dranland's primary military base in the DAZ, directly interacting with troops on the ground. The mission in the DAZ was quickly escalating, and it was also faced by a new militant group, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of the Working Class (FRCO). In general, it was a difficult situation in the DAZ, not just due to the guerrilla tactics of the militants, but also the brutal cold weather and frequent blizzards in the winter.

Three years after taking over the situation, the Dranish military uncovered the central base of operations for FERN. This headquarters was located in the mountains of Carrina Massiff, and was in-part, built into the side of a mountain. In August 3499 a massive assault was made on the base, involving artillery, tanks, helicopters, and hundreds of soldiers. After hours of fighting the base was cleared and a number of FERN/ERN leaders were captured as well, including Francisco Havela, a radical FERN member who was once the Governor of Valdor. The primary target for capture was FERN/ERN's president, Zacarías Feras Quesada. During the fighting at Carrina Massiff Quesada and about fifteen of his elite fighters escaped through a tunnel system and retreated to safety; however Quesada did sustain some small injuries. A number of months passed, but eventually Quesada and his guard were spotted by a recon helicopter in March 3500. The military quickly mobilized and eliminated Quesada's guard and took the terrorist leader into custody. Afterwards he was transferred to a military detainment centre within Dranland, joining other captured FERN/ERN members. Defense Minister Park declared victory over FERN, commended the military for its success, and expressed his hopes for Dranland's future safety. As news spread of the capture, many citizens throughout Elbian and Loren took to the streets in celebration, especially in Gongmangdo-Comares and Llwybr Hawl, which were the two cities most affected by FERN's terrorism.

Leftist Split
Leading up to the 3500 elections, the KDF was openly dissatisfied with Lucas Manon and its other coalition partners. Even from within the administration, the KDF was unable to mobilize the Retsforbundet into caring about the DAZ conflict. And even beyond the DAZ issue, the KDF clashed with the Retsforbundet in debates of domestic issues; and the media frequently characterized the arguments as being like something seen between the government and opposition.

From these conflicts, the KDF decided that it would no longer promise a second-round endorsement to Manon's party in the 3500 elections, and instead it was decided that an agreement would be sought with Rally for the Republic. Initially the KDF was going to run Kwan Ji-won as a candidate again, but after a few months Kwan and the party decided it'd be in the best interest of the nation if he withdrawal. Causing this decision was the emergence of a new communist movement, in addition to the exist, and slightly more radical, existing far-left parties. It became the declared intention of all the communist parties that they would fully endorse Cecilie Rahbæk, Retsforbundet's candidate, for the elections. The KDF, despite being left-leaning, abandoned its previous ties to the other leftist parties, criticizing their willingness to work with extremist parties, including one which was connected to the FRCO militia in the DAZ.

The KDF also criticized the focus of the left on the sole goal of "defeating Rally for the Republic," instead of focusing on issues that actually concern the Dranish citizens and their well-being.

When elections occurred in February 3500, despite the left alliance's declaration of a "communist century, Earl Branstead-Smith won in a landslide, receiving 58% of the vote. After the elections, as the KDF had hoped, President Branstead-Smith sought to establish a centre/centre-right government. The KDF joined the Branstead-Smith Government, splitting from its previous alignments with the leftist parties.

DAZ Modernization
After the conclusion of the armed conflict in the Dranish Autonomous Zone, the new Dranish president, Earl Branstead-Smith, reestablished the position of High Councillor in the region. Being appointed as the second High Councillor was the KDF's Kang Min-hyuk, who formerly served as Minister of Infrastructure & Transport. Kang quickly began to lay out plans to modernize and develop the region; and he also began construction of a de facto DAZ capital, Enomoto-si. It became Kang's ultimate goal to create a modern transport system in the DAZ and to deliver stable internet to the people of the region. To help achieve his goals, Kang established public-private partnerships with groups like Haedodi Corporation. For the first time since the purchase of the DAZ from Indrala, the region was seeing specific action towards the development of the Dranish colony.

KDF Under Attack
Since its founding, the KDF had few enemies, especially due to its centrist stance. However, this changed drastically after the proclamation of the new Kyo monarchy, led by Ryeo Haesong. Ryeo and his family were descendents of the ancient Baekgu Dynasty and they had successfully built up support for the creation of a cultural monarchy. This cultural monarchy was declared to be compatible with the Dranish republic and it was something that acted as a symbol of the Kyo people, just like the sampa.

The Ryeo's cultural monarchy saw quick success, gaining support from national figures in Rally for the Republic and from officials in the government of Gongmangdo-Comares. They were also given permission to live in part of Beonyeongsalm Palace, but without any direct financial support from the government. Despite the successes, soon calls came from the Dranish Communist League to ban the Kyo monarchy, and the DCL was quickly followed in support by Retsforbundet and a number of prominent members of Frisinnede Venstre. Rhee Seung-uk also became a target of attack after she rebuked Cecilie Rahbæk for making direct insults against Peng Min, an Indralan representative who was expressing concern about her and other MP's comments regarding foreign monarchies. The Ryeo Family, Rhee, and the KDF all became branded as fascists and as Indralan puppets as a result of everything.

A few weeks before the 3504 elections supporters and sympathizers of the Ryeo family and the KDF took to the streets of Gongmangdo-Comares, countering all of the protest by Dranland's leftist parties. Hundreds of thousands turned out over the course of the day, including people who were not even KDF supporters, but who simply felt insulted by the vicious attacks made against the party and the Ryeo family.

Unsurprisingly, the KDF's performance in the 3504 elections was not their best and their presence in parliament was reduced to 31 seats. The KDF upheld its dominance among Kyo voters, but in all the recent controversy, it lost some of its non-Kyo voters to both coalition allies and newly emerged parties. And while it had lost a number of seats, the KDF remained in the government of the re-elected Earl Branstead-Smith.

The First Presidency
KDF's election performance continued to show a decline in the 3508 elections. However the outcome the election showed that while the KDF was performing poorly in parliamentary elections, it politicians on an individual basis would popular and mostly held high approval ratings. In 3508 the KDF continued its dominance over Gongmangdo-Comares.

However, the most important outcome in the 3508 election was the victory of Defense Minister Park Jae-yung in the presidential race. The incumbent Earl Branstead-Smith announced that he would not seek re-election and it was decided by the ruling centre-right coalition that it would back a candidate from the KDF. Park won in a landslide, earning almost 60% of the vote; while his primary opponent, Radical Liberal Union's Cecilie Rahbæk received only 34%.

Party Factions
There are various factions within the KDF, some more widely recognized than others. Within the party structure the factions have little meaning, other than representing the general ideological leanings of party members. Presently there are two major factions, along with numerous minor groups.

The first major faction of the KDF is the Progressive Bloc, which tends to be socially liberal and have social democratic leanings. This is regarded as the traditional faction of the party and it represents the ideology held by most of the founding members of the party. This faction has dominated the KDF in the Parliament of Dranland.

The second major faction is the Liberal Bloc. This faction is economically liberal and seeks cooperation between parties of the centre-left and -right. The KDF's first president, Park Jae-yung, belonged to the faction; and the KDF's first presidential candidate, Kwan Ji-won, is also of the Liberal Bloc. Since this faction has a sole focus on economic issues, it has often commanded great influence, even among the other factions of the party.



Current
President of Dranland - Park Jae-yung, 16 Feb 3508 to present

High Councillor of the Dranish Autonomous Zone - Kang Min-hyuk, 3 Nov 3501 to present

Minister of Foreign Affairs - Sun Tae-gun, 5 Jan 3505 to present

Minister of Science & Technology - Jay Choi, 5 May 3496 to present

Minister of Trade & Industry - Kwan Ji-won, 1 Jul 3508 to present

Former
Minister of Foreign Affairs - Rhee Seung-uk, 5 May 3496 to 5 Jan 3505

Minister of Defense - Park Jae-yung, 5 May 3496 to 16 Feb 3508

Minister of Infrastructure & Transport - Kang Min-hyuk, 5 May 3496 to 2 Oct 3500

Minister of Food & Agriculture - Kim Hye-sol, 5 May 3496 to 2 Oct 3500

Current
Mayor of Gongmangdo-Comares - Park Jae-kwon, Aug 3494 to present

Governor of Valdor - Chang Li-kun, Dec 3510 to present

Former
Governor of Loren - Ioan Saint-Lloyd, Feb 3496 to Feb 3500

Governor of Ulbrach - Ji Yulin, Feb 3496 to Feb 3500

Governor of Valdor - Chang Li-kun, Feb 3496 to Feb 3504