Earlier today, former Foreign Secretary Sandra Pavía announced that she is set to lead a new political party, Together for Lauchenoiria, into the 2024 Lauchenoirian Elections. Twenty-two Members of Parliament have joined Pavía in the new party; all from either the Liberals or Conservatives. Each has also pledged to support any confidence votes in the current government until Parliament breaks up prior to the April elections, as part of a commitment to “stability and security”. This means that despite losing their majority, the governing coalition is now technically in a more secure position regarding confidence votes with the addition of the ex-Conservative MPs.
The creation of the new party came as a shock to Prime Minister Josephine Alvarez, along with leader of the Conservative Party Thomas Averforth. When the twenty-three (including Pavía) MPs announced their change of party allegiance in the Federal Parliament, both Alvarez and Averforth were seen looking blindsided and shocked – though Alvarez calmed down considerably once Pavía assured Parliament of the new party’s intention to support any confidence votes to ensure continuity of government and the stability of the country.
“This is not about bringing down the government, and each and every one of us in Together for Lauchenoiria are dedicated to ensuring that the current government remains secure until the end of their term,” Pavía said in a speech to Parliament. “Our goal is to provide Lauchenoirians with a full range of options at the next election, following numerous disappointments over the past four years. We have seen indecision and uncertainty, and we have seen pointless fighting over inconsequential issues. Our goal following the next election is to ensure that Lauchenoiria maintains a strong and coherent foreign policy, while listening to the will of the people on domestic issues.”
The new party’s policies, which have been published online, are primarily a mix of Liberal and Conservative policies, with a few surprising additions. Together for Lauchenoiria pledges to increase funding for the police and military, alongside creating stricter laws around disruptive protest; citing the WOE terrorist attacks earlier this year as necessitating a response. The party also pledged to continue involvement in Auria; but to consider future military engagements “very carefully” – a statement very open to interpretation.
On domestic policy, Together would speed up the final stages of the transition to a fully capitalist economy, privatising the last section of state-owned enterprises in one go, rather than the managed piece-by-piece system that has been in place since the capitalism referendum. They would, however, keep welfare payments and entitlements the same as they are currently. They would not change any existing policies regarding LGBT+ rights. On immigration, they would increase background checks on immigrants, but would not change visa requirements.
It remains to be seen if the new party will have any success at the election. The last new centrist to centre-right political party to form in Lauchenoiria, the Lauchenoirian Democratic Alliance, managed to win the presidency for a single year before fading into oblivion after Alex Marwick’s overreach and failures regarding the extradition crisis. However, unlike Marwick, Pavía is an experienced politician and was a steady hand – before now-disproven rumours spread that she was a Xiomeran agent. The election will take place in April 2024.
