Liberal Union (Gylias)
Liberal Union | |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1960 |
| Ideology | |
| Political position | Centre-left |
| Colors | Yellow |
The Liberal Union (French reformed: Union libérale) is an electoral bloc of liberal parties in Gylias. Formed in 1960, it is the main liberal electoral bloc in Gylias.
History
The bloc developed out of the existing NUP–NLP–PRRA alliance that emerged after the 1958 federal election. It was officially established soon after electoral reform and the creation of the Centre Group. Two further parties formed in the bloc — the LLR and FSP — as part of a general consolidation of 5-party electoral blocs.
The LU was the junior member of the Darnan Cyras government coalition, and played a supporting role in the Golden Revolution.
The LU was badly hit by the fracturing of its alliance with the Progressive Alliance in the 1976 federal election. It suffered severe losses, plunging to fifth place, behind the Non-inscrits bloc in the Chamber of Deputies.
Having spent most of its existence in government, the bloc had difficulty adjusting to an opposition role during the wretched decade. An internal fracture emerged: some parties frustrated with the PA's participation in the Aén Ďanez government sought to form an alignment with the Centre Group and National Bloc, but this was fiercely resisted by the left-leaning LLR and FSP in particular. Its support in municipal and regional elections flatlined throughout the 1980s.
Opposition disunity allowed Aén to remain in office as a caretaker until the Ossorian war crisis of 1986, after which the opposition banded together and formed the Filomena Pinheiro government. The LU held a primary election in 1989, won by Mathilde Vieira.
The 1990 federal election proved to be a breakthrough for Non-inscrits, as voters punished the established blocs for their role in the wretched decade. The charismatic Mathilde proved a major advantage for the LU; she ran an energetic campaign with the unofficial slogan Chega de Saudade, gaining the LU a plurality.
Mathilde formed a "plural coalition", including several ministers from blocs not formally in the coalition. Her government played a key role in supporting the revival of national optimism and economic recovery after the wretched decade. She proved a popular Prime Minister and a shrewd negotiator, presiding over a "liquid Parliament" period in which the other blocs took an ambiguous role, alternately supporting and opposing her government depending on issues, blurring the line between government and opposition.
She was succeeded by Kaori Kawashima in 2008 as LU leader and Prime Minister. Kaori led the LU to its best election result in 2008. Her elegant image appealed just as much to voters, and she abandoned the "plural coalition" approach in favour of restoring the PA–LU alliance.
The LU's two-decade winning streak ended in 2012, when it was surpassed by the PA and NB. It returned to a junior role in the Toni Vallas government coalition.
After the coalition narrowly lost the 2020 federal election, it is currently in opposition to the Lena Haidynraix government.
Composition
| Party | Main ideology | |
|---|---|---|
| National Unity Party (NUP) | ||
| National Liberal Party (NLP) | ||
| People's Radical Reformist Alliance (PRRA) | ||
| Left Liberal Rally (LLR) | Liberal socialism | |
| Freedom and Solidarity Party (FSP) | ||
Ideology
The LU is the main liberal bloc of Gylian politics, complemented by various liberal Non-inscrits. The bloc includes parties with Donatellist, ordoliberal, reformist, liberal socialist, and market anarchist positions. It is considered centre-left.
Common platform planks include support for economic interventionism, dirigisme, social liberalism, and progressivism.
Symbols
The LU uses the colour yellow as its common colour.
Electoral results
Gylian Parliament
| Election | Chamber of Deputies | Senate | Government | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FPV | % | Seats | FPV | % | Seats | ||
| 1962 | 1.362.548 | 30,0% | 64 / 285
|
1.354.262 | 29,8% | 89 / 300
|
Coalition |
| 1969 | 1.403.853 | 24,6% | 57 / 285
|
1.341.682 | 23,5% | 84 / 300
|
Coalition |
| 1976 | 786.188 | 11,2% | 35 / 395
|
963.248 | 13,7% | 61 / 300
|
Opposition |
| 1980 | 839.385 | 10,6% | 33 / 395
|
952.479 | 12,0% | 51 / 300
|
Opposition |
| 1985 | 1.067.475 | 12,1% | 55 / 520
|
1.067.583 | 12,1% | 60 / 300
|
Opposition |
| Coalition | |||||||
| 1990 | 1.988.472 | 20,2% | 64 / 500
|
1.653.612 | 16,8% | 61 / 300
|
Coalition |
| 1995 | 2.248.229 | 20,7% | 68 / 500
|
1.791.705 | 16,5% | 60 / 300
|
Coalition |
| 2000 | 2.495.088 | 20,5% | 70 / 500
|
N/A | Coalition | ||
| 2004 | 2.794.878 | 21,2% | 70 / 500
|
Coalition | |||
| 2008 | 3.216.935 | 22,2% | 80 / 500
|
Coalition | |||
| 2012 | 3.243.468 | 20,3% | 75 / 500
|
Coalition | |||
| 2016 | 3.666.424 | 20,9% | 76 / 500
|
Coalition | |||
| 2020 | 3.038.938 | 15,9% | 52 / 500
|
Opposition | |||
