List of political parties in Mesogeia

This article lists political parties in Mesogeia

History

Court to Bullfighting Factions

The history of political parties in Mesogeia is almost as old as the empire itself with the modern day political parties having their origins in the social factions and chariot racing teams of the ancient times. The first such instance of political factions in Mesogeia formed sometime around the fifth century BC, with the loose establishment of two rival factions, the Aristoi and the Demoi factions during the long reign of Artaxerxes III.

The Aristoi faction consisted of land-owning nobles who advocated for a strong aristocractic faction at the expense of the central government (and by extension the emperor) and traditionally supported established traditions, isolationism, and rights for nobles. Their rivals the Demoi consisted of a wide array of aristocrats, wealthy land-owners, merchants, and commoners who advocated for a strong central government at the expense of the nobility while favoring expansionism, land reform, and welfare projects directed at the common people. By the 1st century AD, the loose connection that held the Aristoi and Demoi factions together had collapsed, replaced altogether with four factions, the golds (Chrysoi), the whites (Leukoi) greens (Prásinoi), and the blacks (melenoi); who identified themselves and finacially supported corresponding bullfighting factions who competed in the Hippodrome and across the empire. Overtime Emperors would switch between favoring one faction over the other, eventually the Golds and the Whites emerged as the most powerful of the four factions.

Overtime the golds and like-minded factions consolidated into one faction; and the Whites did likewise with like-minded factions. Overtime the Golds and the whites developed unique and specific stances pertaining to military, political, social and theological matters. The Gold Coalition upheld traditional values and conservative ideals supporting the state church with strong support from the hellenistic aristocracy and the old Farsian nobility; while its rivals the Whites coalition favored the gnostic Aletheic Nazarist Church, with support from the wealthy merchants, disillusioned nobles, the common people, as well as segments of adherents of the old faith.

Over the course of the next nine centuries, the Golds and Whites dominated the political landscape of Mesogeia, routinely clashing and rioting over various social, political, theological, and economic issues. Michael XII, the first Emperor of the Chalkidinos dynasty had them disbanded soon after his accession in 1072 beliving them to be a threat to the centralization of political power in the hands of his family and his supporters, all primarily drawn from the military aristocracy.

East Versus West

What replaced the bullfighting factions of the early and middle medival age, were two competing factions, the Orient faction and the Occident faction, both with very different outlooks on the direction Mesogeia should take. These two factions came to dominate Mesogeian politics into the 1800s, forming the precursor for modern political parties in the country.

The Orients believed the country's future laid in the east, they generally supported traditional values and ideals such as respect for a hierarchal patriarchal society, the idealization of Eastern leaning Mesogeian culture as well as traditioanl farming over industrial and commercial industries. The Orients drew support from agriculturalists, the minor nobility, wealthy landowners, staunch royalists, and large segements of the established Apostolic Church of Mesogeia.

The Occident faction on the other hand believed the country's future lay in the west and supported fairly liberal leaning policies, such as a sharing of power betweent Parliament and the monarch, free trade, military expansionism, soldifying of key social reforms. The Occident drew support from the high nobility with key aristocratic families championing the faction, in addition to civil aristocracy, emerging industrialists, and the mercantile class such as shipping magnates.

Over the years political stances have altered between the two, a prime example of this is the fact that currently while the Occident's successor party the National Democratic Party supports religious toleration, during much of the 1700s, its members geneally upheld the continued disenfranchisement of adherents of Olympianism, and Nazarism as key to the empire's success while the Orient faction, the precursor to the modern People's Party held strongly isolationist views which contradicted most strongly with its expansionist polices undertaken in the 1800s and 19th century.

Modern Age: Poltical Parties

With the opening of the 19th century, the Orient and Occident factions, the two dominant political factions in the Mesogeian empire had emerged as recognizable political parties through the union of various interest groups and previously hostile forces.

The Orient faction evolved into the modern People's Party; a party that historically favored conservatism, monarchism, nationalism, territorial expansion, and a liberal economy. While its rival, the Occident faction evolved into the National Democratic Party; which has historically favored national liberalism, nationalism, republicanism, and a curtailing of the powers of the monarchy.

The third major pary, the Progressive Socialist Party, emerged in the twentieth century, with its supporters advocating social welfare programs, government regulation of the economy, and more representative democracy.

Minor political parties in Mesogeia include the Palydian People's Union, the Aerionese Nationalist Coalition, the Alcaenic Unity Party, Regionalist Party of Pharosia, the Ardistanid Nationalist Bloc, and the Cimmerian Front, which are primarily involved in promoting regional rights, federalism, and futher participation in the national government by non-ethnic Helianic.

The majority of political parties in Mesogeia tend to lean right or centre, and are only slightly left leaning on certain issues due to the traditional nature of Mesogeian society.

Current parties

• National Democratic Party (1800s-present)
• People's Party (1800s-present)
• Progressive Socialist Party (1970s-present)
• Palydian People's Union (1970s-present)
• Aerionese Nationalist Coalition (1970s-present
• Alcaenian Unity Party (1970s-present)
• Regionalist Party of Pharosia (1970s-present)
• Voreian Forum (1970s-present)
• Tauric National Party (1970s-present)
• Ardistanid Nationalist Bloc (1970s-present)
• Cimmerian Front (1970s-present)

Defunct parties

• Aristoi faction (5th century BC - 1st Century AD)
• Demoi faction (5th century BC - 1st Century AD)
• Chrysoi faction (1st Century AD - 11th century AD)
• Leukoi faction (1st century AD - 11th century AD)
• Orient Faction (11th Century AD - 1800s)
• Occident Faction (11th century AD - 1800s)
• Workers Party (1845-1900s)
• Unionist Party (1920-1970)