National Congress (Mordusia)

The National Congress is a party in the Republic of Mordusia. Currently it controls 56% of the Assembly and has six seats in the Cabinet.

History
In 2171 Ioannes Lombas, professor emeritus at the University of Bayonne, founded the Lombasianist Party. Guided by the principles of Machiavellism and liberalism, Lombas favoured an authoritarian regime with laissez-faire elements. His wife, Elisabeth Lombas, was elected head of state in 2209. After the death of Ioannes in 2217 and of Elisabeth in 2232, the party went a more libertarian course. In September 2289 the party named itself National Congress due to her permanent majority of seats in the Mordusian Assembly. From that year on the National Congress also delivered the President of Mordusia. The province of Sammodra is still the party's stronghold with the Umquas located in its capital Bayonne.

Former Party Leaders

 * Ioannes Lombas - 2171-2217
 * Elisabeth Lombas - 2217-2232
 * Libertarian Octet - 2232-2266
 * Johan Servaas Millauqette - 2266-2279
 * Jan-Willem van Sweys - 2279-2285
 * Quinten Matseys - 2286-2290
 * Jean-Paul Simonin - 2290-2294
 * Paulus Horta - 2294-2299
 * Charles Emmendael - 2299-2301

Martinus Swartendyck
The current party leader of the National Congress is Martinus Swartendyck. Born in 2376, Swartendyck is the youngest citizen ever to lead the party. He was elected in october 2301 after Charles Emmendael finished his term as Chancellor of Mordusia and as a result had to resign from the Umquas as the Party Canones prescribe. Martinus is married Eefje Saatebro, a former Minister of Finance. The marriage has been the centre of many gossips. Saatebro is twenty-two years older than her husband, and has two children, Humbert and Elisa, from a previous relationship.

Role in Mordusian Politics
After the dissolution of the Country Labor Party and the Moderate Party, the National Congress remained as the only laissez-faire minded, conservative party. This reflects itself in the number of votes the National Congress has received in elections since.

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In 2289 and 2301, the impact of both dissolutions can be seen.

Presidents of Mordusia
Since 2289, the National Congress has delivered the President of Mordusia. Currently Frederik van Zyl Slabbert occupies the seat. A complete list:

2209-2213 2217-2218 2225-2228 2228-2231 2272-2276 2276-2280 2289-2291 2291-2293 2293-2295 2295-2297 2297-2299 2299-2301 2301-(2303)
 * Elisabeth Lombas
 * Ann Frenjes
 * Hugo d'Amosse
 * Dagobert Huse d'Amuy
 * Isabelle Beyen-Smaes
 * Johan van Raesberg
 * Frederik van Zyl Slabbert

Charity
The National Congress is widely known for its support of charity. Its Karel Asch Foundation coördinates projects from delivering internet access to poor villages to setting up day cares and handing out food packages.

The Millauqette Deal
In 2267 Johan Servaas Millauqette, who was the Libertarian Party's leader at the time and an incredibly rich business man, bought himself a majority share of one of the country's leading broadcasting and publishing networks. A couple of days after the deal was closed, an anonymous source leaked letters and bank notes to the press that showed Paulus Horta, Minister of Trade, had provided Millauqette with government subsidies to do so.

However, after causing riots and protests against the government, it became clear that the bank notes were fake and the letters concerned were pulled out of context. Horta's honour was restored, but Millauqette decided to sell his shares and start his own media concern.

The Hertzog - Kafuristan Case
In 2301, shortly after the Mordusian declaration of neutrality, the Economic Party of Kafuristan froze all diplomatic relations with Mordusia. After an informal meeting with other party leaders, the National Congress Minister of Internal Affairs James Hertzog ordered to close the borders for all Kafuristani goods and citizens. However, two courts annulled that order on grounds of it being unconstitutional. The National Congress decided not to dismiss Hertzog, but his popularity has since dropped enormously.