Delkoran federal election, 1959

Delkoran federal election, 1959

7 June 1959
All 425 seats of the Chamber of Representatives 213 seats needed for a majority
Registered	58,923,446
Turnout	48,317,725 (82%)
First party Second party Third party   Leader Mette Elvensar Sofia Westergaard Thalbius Sörbengaard Party National Labor Liberal Conservative Leader since 1948 1932 1959 Leader's seat Southern Cybria Greater Jaerevik Eastern Banderhus Seats before 110 86 123 Seats won 243 77 54 Seat change 133 9 69 Popular vote 27,057,621 8,213,513 5,795,423 Percentage 56% 17% 12%   Fourth party Fifth party Sixth party   Leader Einar Markussen Otto Elkjær Verner Mørk Party Radical Front Agrarian National Revival Leader since 1952 1956 1958 Leader's seat Norenstal-South Upper Norvia N/A Seats before 14 68 Did not contest Seats won 23 17 7 Seat change 9 51 7 Popular vote 2,902,963 1,932,509 724,565 Percentage 6% 4% 1.5%   Seventh party Eighth party   Leader Hávarður Arge Arvid Kruse Party Lebøvian Republican Party The Moderates Leader since 1948 1956 Leader's seat Lebøvenland At-Large Middle Cybria Seats before 2 22 Seats won 4 0 Seat change 2 22 Popular vote 356,895 5,773 Percentage 0.74% 0.01%
Chancellor before election Thalbius Sörbengaard Conservative Elected Chancellor Mette Elvensar National Labor

The 1959 Delkoran federal election occurred on 7 June 1959 after a successful motion of no confidence against the government of Thalbius Sörbengaard. The election resulted in a landslide victory for National Labor, which won a rare outright majority. The resulting government led by Chancellor Mette Elvensar began implementation of the New Kingdom reforms, which would radically restructure the Delkoran economy.

The election marked the beginning of the so-called National Labor Hegemony, a term used to describe the period from 1959 to around 1975, when National Labor was dominant in Delkoran politics at the federal, state, and local levels.

Background

The late 1950's were characterized by widespread civil unrest in the major cities as people unsatisfied with the Conservative government's handling of the ongoing economic depression took to the streets in protest. Rioting, combined with targeted bombings carried out by the Labor Underground, prompted Chancellor Hjalmar Madsen to declare a state of emergency in 1958 and order the Federal Police to begin arresting the far-left activists responsible for organizing the protests.

This escalation prompted retaliatory strikes from several labor unions and led the General Labor Confederation of Delkora to call for Madsen's resignation and threaten a general strike. National Labor leader Mette Elvensar spoke in support of the GLCD, and continued to promote her party's New Kingdom program as an alternative to Madsen's austerity policies.

Following the assassination of Madsen in February 1959, he was succeeded as chancellor by Thalbius Sörbengaard. Almost immediately upon taking office, Sörbengaard faced calls to dissolve parliament and call an early election. He rejected these demands, largely maintaining the hardline stance of his predecessor. In a televised speech after being sworn in, he vowed to "restore law and order." Still, his support quickly began to erode as the situation in the cities continued to deteriorate.

A turning point came on 1 May, when Home Guard soldiers attempted to disperse Labor Day demonstrations in several major cities at Sörbengaard's direction, leading to hundreds of arrests and injuries. The following day, the General Labor Confederation of Delkora voted to authorize a general strike.

The militancy of the general strike prompted the swift collapse of Sörbengaard's parliamentary majority. With economic activity virtually ground to a halt by striking workers seizing control of businesses and shipyards, idling factories, and blocking off highways, Sörbengaard was forced to resign after a vote of no confidence on 15 May. Parliament was dissolved later that day and an election was scheduled for 7 June.

Opinion polling

Numerous polls were conducted in the run-up to the election, all predicting a large seat gain for National Labor and showing that a large plurality of voters preferred Elvensar to be the next chancellor. Westergaard's numbers remained high on account of her strong personal popularity, and she consistently remained a distant second behind Elvensar, while Sörbengaard's numbers continually declined throughout the campaign.

Preferred Chancellor

Date(s)	Polling organization	Sample size	Elvensar	Westergaard	Sörbengaard	Markussen	Elkjær	Kruse	Arge	Other
May 21-23	University of Norenstal	2,551	42.5%	25.1%	15.1%	10.6%	3.2%	1.4%	0.1%	2%
May 29-31	Ibsen Gruppe	3,502	45.6%	24.2%	14.2%	12.7%	2.3%	0.3%	>0.1%	1.6%