Politics of Chatten and Leucen
| Federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy | |
 | |
| Constitution | Constitution of Chatten and Leucen |
|---|---|
| Country | Chatten and Leucen |
| Legislative branch | |
| Legislature | Chalcish Parliament |
| Meeting place | Horessen Palace |
| Executive branch | |
| Head of State | Monarch |
| Head of Government | Prime Minister |
| Appointer | Megysmund XI |
| Headquarters | Horessen Palace |
| Departments | List
|
| Judicial branch | |
| Court | Supreme Court of Chalcain |
| Seat | Magnanon Hall |
Chatten and Leucen is a federal parliamentary and constitutional monarchy, where federal legislative power is vested in the bicameral Chalcish Parliament, divided into two elected chambers: the House of Baronies (representatives of the kingdom's federal states), and the Assembly of Commons.
The Social Democratic Party of Chalcain, since 1945, has been the incumbent party of the kingdom until 2004, where the Nationalist Party won the 2004 general elections during the controversy period of the SPDC's support on the Federal States' War on Terror by ratifying the Act of Agreement and Support for the War on Terror. The judiciary of the Northern Kingdom is independent of the executive and the legislative, and it is very uncommon for the members of the Parliament to become associate judges. While it is legally allowed, it is met with extreme suspicion. The basic foundation and workings of the Government is laid out in the Constitution of Chatten and Leucen, a collection of laws, precedents, previous acts, and statues which was ratified in 1949 near the end of the July Revolution. The leader of the biggest party on both the House of Baronies and the Assembly of Commons combined would be given the privilege of choosing the Prime Minister. Since 2022, the current prime minister is Saiah Dunwille.
The constitution was compiled in the wake of the revolution to clearly defined the powers of the Monarchy and the Parliament, asserting parliamentary sovereignty. It defines the division and strict implementation of roles between the legislative, executive, and judicial branches and limits the power of the Monarch to dissolve the Parliament, now requiring a supermajority vote on the Parliament in order to do so. This is to ensure that the Monarch would not be able to overhaul the entire parliament and his ministers in a single stroke, a lesson learned after the July Revolution. Furthermore, the constitution become an opportunity to ensure Individual liberty for all citizens. It also includes a catalogue of human and civil rights that aims to protect the citizenry against the possible emergence of an oppressive, authoritarian government.
History
Constitution
The Crown
The Chalcish monarchy, currently King Megysmund XI, is the head of state of the government. An institution spanning more than a thousand years, the Crown has little influence over the legislative and judicial branch. Instead, the main responsibility of the King is to give royal assent, an executive power by which the Monarch resides. The Monarch also has royal prerogatives, a set of privileges and immunity by which they were given off according to the 1949 Constitution. They can use those powers to a wide variety of things, such as the dismissal of the prime minister, issue or withdrawal of passports, or even a declaration of war. These powers can be given to their ministers, officials, or any person in authority, with or without the consent of the Parliament.
The Prime Minister, the head of the government, meets with the Monarch periodically to warn, express, or converse with each other behind close doors, in ultimate secrecy.
The 1949 constitution defines two types of power: domestic and foreign power, both of which resides with the Crown.
Domestic power
- The power to either withdraw or bestow royal assent to bills (making them either valid or invalid)
- The power to appoint a Prime Minister
- The power to grant honours
- The power to issue royal charter to establish any type of organization or corporation
- The power to command the Chalcish Armed Forced as the kingdom's commander-in-chief
- The power to commission officers into the army
- The power to issue or withdrawal of passports
- The power to offer a prerogative of mercy to those bestowed with the highest forms of capital crime
- The power to appoint ministers to the Long Table (King's cabinet)
Foreign power
- The power to declare war or grant peace
- The power to issue, ratify, or reject treaties
- The power to recognise states
- The power to credit or discredit foreign and domestic diplomats
Former prerogative powers exists before the ratification of the 1949 constitution. These are the power to dissolve, summon, or prorogue the Parliament and the power to deploy the army overseas (still in effect, but requires a supermajority with the Parliament, not including the Prime Minister).
Political parties
The liberalization of Chatten and Leucen under the rule of Nethany III & I allowed for the development of the kingdom's first political parties. Since 1902, two political parties have dominated the political landscape: the Social Democratic Party of Chalcain and the Nationalist Party, inhabiting both ends of the political spectrum. The Social Democratic Party of Chalcain, abbreviated as SDPC, is the largest party in terms of membership, trailing behind is the Nationalist Party, and the third is the Liberal Party, which is popular on Chatten, Rustav, and Corkees.
The modern Nationalist Party traces its roots to the Chattenian political parties, namely the Federalist Party, which advocated for decentralization, and the Char Funnein, a Chattish nationalist party advocating for independence. Both parties merged in 1899 with similar platforms and views, and the Nationalist Party was formed. Unlike the radicalism at that time, as evident by the existence of the National Front Party, the Nationalist Party steadily gained power between 1902 and 1912. In the onset of the July Revolution, the Nationalists are the only party in the political right that joined with the Left, an opposition group composed of political and social groups of different groups. With the disbandment of the NFP and other similar far-right groups, the Nationalists replaced the NFP as the principal conservative political party of the Kingdom. They are also known as the "Counters", whose name originated from the brown counters they like to use during parliamentary sessions. An offshoot of the Nationalists, called the Alternative for Chalcain, emerged in 1980 in response to immigration and corruption, described as neo-fascist by some opponents and commentators. They remain the minority government from 1945 up until 2004, where they overtake the SDPC to become the majority government.
The Social Democratic Party of Chalcain is a centre-left party that emerged in 1878 as a party for the working class. Originally a political group of the National Association of Trade Unions (NATU), it grew to become the kingdom's principal leftist party after it starts accepting members of all backgrounds, opening its doors for other ethnic groups and leftist groups such as the Suffragette Party, Syndicalist Party, and the more moderate wing of the Communist Party of Chalcain. It became the prominent party during the July Revolution, helping to establish the Left as a coalition, convincing the small liberal wing of the Church of Great Chalcain to oppose the stance of the Church, and aiding the academic population barricading themselves in their universities against the military, known as the University Blockade, during the revolution. The party has been the majority government since 1945, losing the position to the Nationalists in 2004 and regaining the position again in 2015. They are known as the "Benchers" due to their iconic use of brown benches during parliamentary sessions.
Minor parties also hold seats in the Parliament:
- Liberal Party, a centrist party, has 10 MP's in both chambers. They are known as socially progressive and fiscal conservatism, being the first party to propose a bill legalizing same-sex marriage in 1978 and advocating for a general ban on CFC's and products containing cfc's. They are an offshoot of the early SDPC, offering an alternative for moderate voters who doesn't find both parties appealing.
- The Greens, the local chapter of the general Callyssian Greens, advocates for the protection of the kingdom's national parks and nature reserves, protection of endangered animals, and advancing research in renewable energy. They are center to center-left in the political spectrum, who shares many of the policies of the SDPC.
- Ard Fein is a far-left party founded in 1888 in Humboldt. It is an offshoot of the Syndicalist Party of Chalcain.
- Communist Party of Chalcain is a communist party founded in 1861 by Vartin Megel and Colart Ein Freiden. It adheres to Colartist-Megelist communism and is the oldest known communist party in the world. It has 2 MP's in the Assembly of Commons and 3 MP's in the House of Baronies.
- Syndicalist Party is the far-left party that emerges from the Chalcish labor movement of the 19th century. Though synonymous with the Communist Party, they deviate from Colartism and Megelism in that they do not believe in permanent revolution and the dictatorship of the proletariat
- The Fascist Tent is a coalition of fascist political parties around the kingdom. Some of its most prominent groups include the Chalcish Front (CF), Chalcish Movement, Leucish Defense League, and the notorious The Black Arrows.