1954 Election in Hansa
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The 1954 Hanseatic presidential election was the first quadrennial presidential election in the Hansa Federation. It was held on monday March 1st 1954 though voters had all of the month of February to submit votes. Adrian Gower won a nearly unanimous vote by the Council of Hansa alongside his runningmate Nena Glassmeier. Gower was essentially unopposed except in the state of Wustiech which was controversially allowed to participate in the election. As proclaimed in the recently passed 1954 Constitution each member of the Council of Hansa (for this election carreid over from delegates of the consitutional convention. Every member would have one vote based on the popular vote from their state. The ticket that recieved one over majoirty (22) votes would be the winner of the election. The only opposition to Gower was the Wustiech Independence party led by Francis Madner. The Wustiech Independence Party was controversial however and extremely unpopular outside of Wustiech.
Gower recieved 38 Council of Hansa votes out of 42 possible votes. While Madner only one four from his home state of Wustiech.
Candidates
Gower is generally held by historians to have run unopposed in Hansa. However his strategy of combining every existing party and bringing Glassmeier on the ticket brough this as previously the Communists were opposed to his rule. (Though Glassmeier left the communist party in 1956 bringing controversy to the next election). Meanwhile no other group from the transition period was able to get strong enough to run a significant candidate. In Wustiech Madner formed the new Wustiech independence party based on the principle Wustiech should be independence. Despite calls for the party to be banned they were still allowed to run by the Council before later being banned on accounts of treason. The nominee from the WIP (Wustiech Independence Party) Francis Madner was arrested for treason in 1957 after inciting a riot in Fork.
Campaign
Once the first Hanseatic election was planned in 1952 convention member and war hero Adrian Gower worked tirelessly to bring unity into Hansa stating that the first election would either build the nation or destroy it. Communists were staunchly opposed to Gower on ideological differences and political reasons but the communists reluctantly agreed to participate in the election fairly or be banned. It was not until Vice President Nena Glassmeier, a communist moderate was selected as Vice President that the communists were fully on board with Gower. (They were planning on running their own candidate). After Glaasmeier was selected the Communists had no meaningful person to rally behind and joined the newly formed Recovery party.
In Wustiech the population was still angry at the transition government for their put down of the Wustiech Rebellion in the early 50s. Though they were extreme they were still allowed to run as part of the compromise of 1953. Led by Madner they ran on a platform of Wustiech independence which recieved little to no support outside of Wustiech.
Results
Gower was elected nearly unanimously recieving votes from every state except Wustiech. Madner only recieved support from Wustiech. After the 1954 election other parties started to form in government and the Recovery party would shrink in the mid 50s after the Communists left and various other parties rose up.
See Also