Gylian federal election, 1995
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All 500 seats in the Chamber of Deputies All 400 seats in the Senate 251 Chamber of Deputies seats and 201 Senate seats needed for a majority | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Turnout | 95,5% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Federal elections were held in Gylias on 22 January 1995, to elect the 500 members of the Chamber of Deputies and 400 members of the Senate.
The incumbent Mathilde Vieira government was re-elected with minor changes in seats, amidst an atmosphere of renewed national optimism after the wretched decade. This was the last election for the Senate, which was subsequently reformed into a sortition-based body, and the only federal election to coincide with a presidential one.
Electoral system
Both chambers of the Gylian Parliament were elected through single transferable vote, using the Droop quota.
The Chamber of Deputies was elected using 5-member circonscriptions, drawn by Elections Gylias based on regional populations.
The Senate was elected by regions, each electing 20 senators.
Parties were not allowed to nominate more than one candidate per seat. Candidates were not allowed to run for both chambers simultaneously.
Parties
Background
The 1990 federal election had brought in the greatest realignments since the Golden Revolution: a breakthrough for Non-inscrits as voters punished established electoral blocs for the wretched decade, the destruction of the Revolutionary Rally and Front for Renewal of Order and Society, the Union for Freedom and Prosperity split from the National Bloc, and the fallout from the dérive au droite and neoliberal conspiracy. The formation of Mathilde Vieira's "plural coalition" was also groundbreaking in its minority status and resilience.
Mathilde's government succeeded in rejuvenating the economy following the doldrums of the 1980s, implementing initiatives such as nationwide public works projects, the Social Partnership Program, and massive investment in computers and the internet, which had a major impact on Gylian society. Mathilde's success in advancing such an agenda in the context of a "liquid Parliament" and her notional minority was owed to her proficiency at parliamentary negotiation and dealmaking. Economic recovery was well under way by the time of the election, with a growth rate over 6%, falling unemployment, and the þaler stabilised in the Common Monetary System.
The election marked the last gasps of right-wing populist "molehill parties" after the dérive au droite. The Party of Consumers for Freedom was established in opposition to resource minister Aishwarya Devi's policies of reducing consumption for sustainability purposes, while the Coastal Rally for Fishing Preservation attacked the government's policy of shutting down fishing and replacing it with aquaculture. Neither gained much traction with the public, tainted by association with the dérive au droite and the highly unpopular UFP.
Due to a quirk of timing, 1995 was the only year where a federal and presidential election fell on the same day. The government adopted special regulations to alternate campaign days, but the concurrence still provoked fears that the presidential election would be overshadowed or affected by the federal one. The only real beneficiary of the simultaneous elections was Ilona Stahler, who was both foresitter of Love, Nature, Democracy and a presidential candidate.
Campaign
The incumbent Mathilde Vieira government went into the election with formidable advantages. Economic growth had resumed, an atmosphere of renewed national optimism had formed, and Mathilde herself enjoyed high approval ratings. The government's re-election was seen as a foregone conclusion by many. Ŋéida Vaşad commented that the government had managed to firmly occupy the centre ground with eclectic policy mixes like the SPP, ending GNBS' monopoly, and a strong push for environmentalism.
Whereas in the last election Mielikki Salonen had taken centre stage in the New Alliance for the Future's PPBs, this time she shared the spotlight with the popular finance minister Mireille Boulanger.
Love, Nature, Democracy benefited from a significant sympathy vote after the recent death of Moana Pozzi, which her colleague Ilona Stahler ably capitalised on.
The "liquid Parliament", which blurred the line between government and opposition, proved a disadvantage to the National Bloc and Centre Group. In addition to overcoming the aftereffects of the dérive au droite and searching for a leader to match the figure of Lea Kersed, the NB and CG were forced to thread the needle between positioning themselves against the government and having supported several of its policies, in particular the SPP.
Results
In accordance with electoral law, the results were embargoed until the full counting and transfers were completed, and were released all at once on 25 January.
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| Parties and blocs | Chamber of Deputies | Senate | |||||||||
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| FPV | % | ± | Seats | ± | FPV | % | ± | Seats | ± | ||
| Non-inscrits and independents | 2.726.113 | 25,1% |  0,4%
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250 | 5
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3.854.880 | 35,5% |  0,3%
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170 | 1
| |
| Liberal Union | 2.248.229 | 20,7% | 0,5%
|
68 | 4
|
1.791.705 | 16,5% | 0,3%
|
60 | 1
| |
| Progressive Alliance | 2.074.452 | 19,1% | 0,3%
|
64 | 1
|
1.780.846 | 16,4% | 0,1%
|
59 | 1
| |
| National Bloc | 1.976.703 | 18,2% | 0,2%
|
62 | 2
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1.769.987 | 16,3% | 0,1%
|
58 | 3
| |
| Centre Group | 1.509.680 | 13,9% | 0,1%
|
53 | 2
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1.346.493 | 12,4% | 0,1%
|
50 | 
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| Union for Freedom and Prosperity | 195.498 | 1,8% | 0,2%
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3 |
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217.176 | 2,0% | 0,1%
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3 |
| |
| Revolutionary Rally | 108.610 | 1,0% | 0,3%
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0 |
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65.153 | 0,6% | 0,2%
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0 |
| |
| Front for Renewal of Order and Society | 21.722 | 0,2% |
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0 |
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32.576 | 0,3% |
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0 |
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| Total | 10.861.008 | 100% | — | 500 | — | 10.858.816 | 100% | — | 400 | — | |
| Registered voters and turnout | 11.473.752 | 95,5% | |||||||||
Analysis
The election set the record for least changes compared to the previous Parliament. No bloc experienced a swing of more than 0,5% in first preference votes, and cumulatively only 7 seats in the Chamber of Deputies and 3 seats in the Senate changed hands.
The Non-inscrits again won a plurality of first preference votes and seats, aided by the Minor Party Alliance, and the New Alliance for the Future repeated its overall third place finish. The established blocs' standing remained practically unchanged, although Mathilde succeeded in keeping the Liberal Union larger than other blocs. The election was a disappointment for the NB and CG, whose collective total of deputies remained unchanged.
At the regional level, there were minor shifts in support, and 13 regions returned the same pluralities as the previous election. The number of tied regions remained 8, although some of these changed. Tandar, Envadra Region, and Aðuna now returned ties, the PA gained pluralities in Kausania and Arsad. Tomes changed from a PA plurality to a non-inscrit plurality. The NB managed to gain a plurality in Ḑarna, although their repeated tie in Nerveiík-Iárus-Daláyk was used by analysts as a sign of their continued weakness.
Aftermath
The new Parliament was sworn in on 1 February 1995, and the Mathilde Vieira government was returned to office.
Significantly, this was the last federal election for the Senate. After previous failed attempts at reform or abolition in 1971, 1981, 1988, and 1991, the NAF succeeded in getting a Senate reform approved in a 1997 referendum, which would turn the Senate into a sortition-based body. The change took effect starting from the next election.
This would also be the last election for a Parliament with a 5 year term of office. Its term was fixed at 4 years starting in 2000, consolidating the modern Gylian electoral calendar.
