442.13 // Political Shifts in the new Legislative Session
The final votes have been cast and the newest Republic Senate has been sworn in. Chancellor Naka Rei maintained his position with an overwhelming vote, the only system in his sector that did not vote for him, ironically, was that of Tibrin.
As forecast at the end of last cycle, the nascent Free Soiler party has taken seats from the well-established War Hawk and Diplomat parties, bringing themselves as a third majority party in the Senate. Their message of stronger local government in the face of border tensions in the outer rim resonated with voters in the mid and outer rim where concerns over increased pirate, cartel, and criminal activity have caused people to call for more control over their own sector security forces while Coruscant continues to struggle with maintaining security across the breadth of their territory.
The Senate also welcomes their youngest member in over two centuries as sixteen-year-old Primsta Natsha Estillo defeated her incumbent opponent. An independent, she’s become a political celebrity overnight. After she was sworn in she held a town hall meeting at the University of Coruscant campus where secondary students from all over the planet came to meet her, ask questions about the future of Republic politics, and ask for autographs. She had this to say about her idea for the future of the Republic,
The Republic is an ancient institution. While we claim to be the third Galactic Republic, borrowing from the great system of state that existed for millennia centuries ago, and while we have adopted the charters from the Republic that was established after the reign of Emperor Palpatine, we are our own government that upholds all of those same values as those who came before while also learning from their mistakes and missteps.
Democracies are strong and healthy when the citizenry participates and feels they have a voice. When the people feel that they are ignored by the powers who influence change over their lives they become disillusioned, discouraged, and participation slows to a crawl… When that happens, opportunists gain the opportunity to leverage the powers of Democracy not for the benefit of all, but for the sole benefit of a few.
I hope that with my election a new generation of the electorate will see that there’s room for hope and optimism in politics. It’s not just committee meetings, backroom deals, and corruption. Those are the issues I’m going to tackle and dismantle. I aim to reinvigorate the faith of the people in our democracy, and I thank everyone who has supported me and who continue to support me, in that mission. Thank you.”
The Galaxy’s second largest democracy, the League of Sovereign Systems, also has gone through some reforms. In light of growing Cartel activity that’s disrupted trade outside of their territory and negatively harmed their international trade and GDP, the League Congress has drafted changes to their constitution that have been voted for and approved by the member worlds.
The amended constitution adds a second chamber to the legislature. In addition to the Hall of Representatives there will be a Senior Council that is made up of the founding worlds of the League as well as two seats that will rotate amongst new members. Moving forward, all bills must pass both chambers in the legislature and then be signed by the President in order to make it into law. As promised, President Zeublon Pyke did not run for a fourth term at the end of this election cycle. After a fierce presidential campaign, former Svivren President Skesteece-Hikataram Milaficat has been voted into the office, becoming the second president of the League of Sovereign Systems. They signed bills that welcomed a number of new worlds into the League including Cotellier, Wrea, and Shimia. Wrea and Shimia cited concerns over planets that have historically been hubs for criminality such as Socorro, Orvax, and Karazak being used as bases of operation for the Triellus League, a new organized Hutt Cartel that’s been jockeying for influence in the region.
Reporting from Coruscant, this is Quan Regal from the Associated Presses