Inquista Decides - 2023 Elections Centre

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The Contenders for Archbishop What They Mean For Europe

Mikaela Kligenberg

Archbishop Kligenberg has facilitated a large shift in Inquista's foreign policy, establishing a more outward-looking and collaborative foreign policy from her predecessor. Archbishop Kligenberg's foreign policy is largely driven by her interpersonal relationships with world leaders and a desire to avoid conflict.

Upon inheriting the Archbishopric seat, Archbishop Kligenberg found Inquista coming off hot skirmishes with the UNSR, tensions which the Archbishop quickly put under wraps and cooled, despite supporting Nicoleizian royalists. The Archbishop supports a peaceful reunification of Icholasen and has offered to lend herself to reunification negotiations.

The Archbishop has sought to rectify several of her predecessor's interventions. One of the Archbishop's early landmark achievements included granting the Sahrawi Union full autonomy by releasing it from under Inquista's protectorship. The Archbishop has lent significant aid and assistance to parts of Reitzmag that were impacted by the Reitzmic Civil War, particularly Copala City (Caspian City), which has been further supported through the signing the Caspian Treaty of 2021. Following destructive unrest in Copala City, the Archbishop came out to condemn those who contributed to the violence, called for Inquistan Orthodox residents to remain or return to the city, and opposed those who called for independence, reiterating that Copala City remains a part of Reitzmag.

Archbishop Kligenberg has signed a string of trade agreements, which include new bilateral trade agreements with Spain, Czech Slavia, Istkalen, Montenbourg, Reitzmag, and Nofoaga, among other European countries which have since left the Union (such as Mennrimiak and Strathae). The Archbishop also entered Inquista into the Telum Treaty, bringing Inquista into an alliance and free-trade area with Spain, the Duxburian Union, Inimicus and North Diessen (the former three of which Inquista already had existing trade agreements with). The Archbishop was also one of the founding signatories of the Treaty of Finisterre, creating the European Monetary Union (EMU).

In addition to Telum, Inquista has signed a defensive pact with Czech Slavia, which the Archbishop is alleged to have unduly assisted in obtaining an ENAA-approved nuclear weapons license. Since the Archbishop's allies are mostly derived from her interpersonal relationships, strong relationships with the leaders of Czech Slavia, Spain and Inimicus have meant those three countries have established themselves as Inquista's closest allies. A particularly close relationship with the Czech President for Life has meant that Czech Slavia enjoys perhaps the warmest of Inquistan relations, even above Telum, which has proved to be controversial.

The Archbishop has been a reliable and consistent backer of her allies, including supporting Spanish recognition of of their sovereign waters. The Archbishop has been keen to prove herself as an oath-keeper and as a "good friend" in an international environment driven by fickle relations and realpolitik. Despite supporting Spanish water claims, the Archbishop has nonetheless pursued friendly relations with Reitzmag and the United Duchies, demonstrating a willingness to work with them, despite their strong objection to Spanish strait claims.

Archbishop Kligenberg has publicly identified Istkalen and Leagio as two countries she is keen to build stronger relations with. The reasons for stronger relations with Itskalen are not yet well understood, but President Ran Mouri-Kudo's karate skills have imprinted a positive impression of Leagio upon the Archbishop.

Anja Emmerett

Bishop Secretary Anja Emmerett is Inquista's Secretary of State, and has been a key figure in implementing and advising much of the Archbishop's current foreign policy. Notably, Bishop Secretary Emmerett played a crucial role in pushing and negotiating for the release of the Sahrawi Union from under Inquista's protectorship.

Despite keenly implementing Archbishop Kligenberg's foreign policy objectives, the Bishop Secretary does have diverging views of her own. The Bishop Secretary is the political protégé of Chief Secretary Edward Firoux, and is known to have significantly more pro-European and integrationist views than the Archbishop. The Bishop Secretary has been at times frustrated with the Archbishop's willingness to only play a passive role in European affairs. For instance, despite attending several regional summits, the Archbishop has never pushed any objectives or agenda items of her own. The Archbishop has also sat on the sidelines while tensions have boiled over the Spanish straits, where Inquista has made no real effort to calm political waters. Potential Spanish breaches of European law - which the Bishop Secretary views as paramount - has alarmed the Bishop Secretary, and she would almost certainly reverse Inquistan support for Spanish water claims.

Inquistan-Czech relations are also a thorny issue for the Bishop Secretary, who would likely undo much of the relationship between the two countries. Private leaks have suggested the Bishop Secretary is deeply uncomfortable with the Archbishop's closeness with the Czech President for Life, and the Bishop Secretary does not view Socialist Republicanism as a friendly ideology. The Bishop Secretary was said to be disappointed by Czech plans to demolish the Church of John the Baptist in Kroměříž, and was astonished by Czech nationalization of foreign assets.

The Bishop Secretary is a former Premier Commissioner of the European Union, and has made further engagement and reform of the European Union a central piece of her campaign platform. The Bishop Secretary has called for a complete renewal of the European Union and its institutions.

Michael Cunard

A self-described Orthodox nationalist and Eurosceptic, Bishop Michael Cunard supports a weakened European Union with less powers, and has vowed to ignore and not implement any European law that he views as incompatible with Inquistan law.

Bishop Cunard served as Bishop Secretary for Trade under Archbishop Craticus from 2012 until 2020. During this time, he established himself as a shrewd negotiator who successfully crafted a multitude of trade agreements with many European states, often on terms that disproportionately favoured Inquistan interests. Central to many of his trade agreements included clauses on culture and education, which included protections or funding for the proliferation of Inquistan Orthodox faith schools abroad.

Bishop Cunard has described the Asianization process in Reitzmag as tantamount to "cultural genocide" and alleges that the Reitzmic government is actively engaged in diminishing the vibrancy of Inquistan Orthodox communities in the country. Bishop Cunard has called for increased autonomy for Copala City.

Bishop Cunard has articulated a strong preference for bilateral working relationships, and would would withdraw from multiple multilateral frameworks, such as the Treaty of Finisterre. Bishop Cunard opposes the use of the EMU and has advocated for fiscal and monetary independence.

Similarly, Bishop Cunard has also advocated for exiting the Telum Treaty, citing the Spanish administration of the straits, and general distrust of Spanish President Jesus Aguilar, who the Bishop has previously described as a "warmonger."

In addition to being critical of the European Union, Reitzmag, and President Aguilar of Spain, Bishop Cunard has also leveraged criticisms against the Roscoes, whom he has described as "the greatest threat to European civilization", and the Czech President for Life, who he described as a "tyrant" when her government announced plans to demolish the Church of John the Baptist.

Karinn Lallana

Bishop Karinn Lallana has been a permanent fixture of the Inquistan political scene since Inquista joined the European Union in 2009, reliably denouncing virtually all foreign wars and interventions, including those staged by the Inquistan Orthodox Church. Bishop Lallana subscribes to Marxist theories of international relations, which are generally reflected in her foreign policy positions.

In recent years, Bishop Lallana became notable for her strong and vocal support for the Nicoleizian Communist Party and the establishment of the UNSR. Within the Nicoleizian Communist Party, Bishop Lallana has allied herself with the green-oriented AEN faction, which narrowly survived being purged by the TANKIES by seceding from the UNSR and declaring the Federal Republic. Bishop Lallana has affirmed her allegiance to the AEN and has since shifted her support to the Federal Republic, but still supports reunification of Icholasen under one single communist government (that being the AEN, of course).

Elected to the European Council in a surprise and upset victory, Bishop Lallana has been a dependable foot soldier for the Party of the European Left, rallying for PEL-aligned Commissioners and working with PEL Councillors to write and pass legislation. Bishop Lallana often acts and votes in tandem with Councillor Sofie Čikarová of Czech Slavia.

The Bishop believes Inquista should withdraw from both the Telum Treaty and the Treaty of Finisterre, citing the treaties as vehicles for imperialism. Bishop Lallana opposes the Telum alliance, describing Spain as an "imperialist power broker", a label she has also uses for Reitzmag and for the ECON alliance.

Instead, Bishop Lallana supports Inquista's warm relationship with Czech Slavia, and advocates for Inquista to make deeper ties with the Federal Republic of Icholasen and with Istkalen, advocating for them to establish a new alliance to stand against "great power chauvinism and imperialism."

Bishop Lallana is particularly concerned with matters relating to ecology and climate change (which she has categorized as the greatest crisis facing humankind), and advocates for ambitious climate initiatives to be implemented at a multilateral level.

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Election Night

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May 31st, 2023
Saint Dominico, Inquista

[ ► Inquista Today intro plays ]

RB: Good evening and welcome to Inquista Decides, Inquista Today’s live coverage of the 2023 elections. My name is Rosemary Barker and I will be one of your hosts this evening. I am joined tonight by Kathy Vickers, who is covering her fourth Inquistan election with us. Wow, four already, Kathy?

KV: Yes - 2020, 2018, 2015, and tonight! Can you believe it? Welcome everyone, my name is Kathy Vickers. I'm glad to be here tonight as we watch the future of the Inquistan Orthodox Church be shaped by Inquistan voters.

RB: We are reporting live from Saint Dominico, Inquista. It’s approximately fifteen minutes past nine o’clock, which means polls have already been closed for an hour and fifteen minutes.

As this night progresses, there will be a lot of things to keep our eyes on. Which bloc, if any, will form a majority in the College of Bishops? Who could potentially become the next Archbishop of Inquista? Who will become the next Inquistan Councillor to the European Union? So much is at stake.

KV: Wow, an exciting evening, that's for sure. Yes, let's not forget the European Councillor election, which will be playing in the background for much of the night as we see results come in.

RB: We won't miss a beat, Kathy, so don't you worry. Anyway, should we set the stage of where things were before tonight?

KV: Yes, please!

RB: These were the results from 2020...

KV: So much has changed! These results are basically unrecognisable.

RB: Oh for sure. Let's very quickly catch everyone up to speed. The Reformist bloc saw Archbishop Kligenberg and 35 other bishops split to form their own Kligenbergist bloc, leaving the Reformists under Bishop Secretary Emerett with 98 members. 71 of the 73 formerly non-affiliated bishops went on to form the Pietist bloc under Bishop Cunard, and the Progressivist bloc renamed themselves the Liberationist bloc. Also, there are now 240 seats up for grabs, which are 10 more than the 230 in 2020.

KV: It's been an interesting time in Inquistan politics, that's for sure. I'm just hoping to see updated and improved election graphics since the last time.

RB: (laughs nervously) Er, right? One can dream. Anyway, results have already been pouring in as we've been talking. Let's take a look at a very important diocese that has just declared its results. Let's go to Swanridge Heights, the diocese of the outgoing Chief Secretary, Bishop Edward Firoux, who is retiring.

RB: Swanridge Heights has been won by Mr. Sollund, who has gained ground for the Pietists.

KV: Pietists getting their first pick-up here. Keep in mind though that Swanridge Heights is actually one of the most conservative dioceses of Inquista, and it was the only diocese the Reformists had won in the North of the Inquista. Chief Secretary Firoux won it in 2020 with 48.3% of the vote, barely edging over his opponent who had 48% of the vote.

RB: Right, it was a big risk that Firoux was even running there - in his childhood home diocese - which was the second safest Craticist seat at the time. He barely managed to squeak out a win in a nail-biting race. This time around, the fracture between the Reformists and Kligenbergists allowed Mr. Sollund to have a runaway victory.

KV: Without Firoux, whoever the Reformists were running didn't stand a chance. Kligenbergists not doing too badly, essential tying Reformist support. When Firoux exited the EPA in Europe, we saw the EPA collapse. Will the same fate hit the Reformists?

RB: We shall see. Let's take a bird's-eye view of the results so far. 27 results are in!

RB: Pietists leading with 17, Kligenbergists with 9, and Reformists with 1. Initial reactions?

KV: Well, it seems like most of the results are coming out of the north, which is reliably in line with the Pietists, so no surprise to see them winning most of the results so far. But wow, looks like the Reformists are getting equally hammered in the south by the Kligenbergists.

RB: Kligenbergists picking up all the seats of the former South and East Inquista. Popular vote so far seems to be splitting between the Kligenbergists and Pietists, but, as you mentioned, most of the results are coming from Pietist strongholds in the north.

KV: The Reformists only have one... can we take a look at it?

RB: Yes, of course - it's a very familiar face too. Here's a look at City Gates-New Chapel.

KV: Oh right, of course.

RB: First win for the Reformists comes from the leader herself, Bishop Secretary Emerett. While an expected result, she's held quite comfortably on to her seat. She's done well, down only 1.4% since her last election despite the Kligenbergists hemorrhaging support for Reformists elsewhere in Inquista.

KV: Good for her. She's leading the way for the Reformists, quite literally.

RB: Let's see if their luck picks up as the night goes along. We shall take a short break from the results as we bring you up to date on the latest news stories.

[Inquista]

RB: Welcome back to Inquista Decides. Let’s take a look at latest from the Inquistan ecclesiastical election this evening.

RB: With a large batch of results coming in from southern Inquista, we now see the Kligenbergists in the lead with 32 dioceses, while the Pietists follow on their heels with 29. The Reformists have one - which was won by their leader, Bishop Secretary Emerett - while the Liberationists are yet to elect a bishop.

KV: Wow, so no good news for the Reformists or Liberationists yet. Pietists taking the north, while Kligenbergists taking the south.

RB: Seems to be so.

KV: I don't think we've talked about the Liberationists. They're not having a good night at all. Sure, they weren't expecting to ever do well in the north, but with these results from the south, this isn't looking good for them at all. They've captured just above 5% of the popular vote so far across all the reported dioceses, which includes, from what I can remember, at least one or two of their former dioceses.

RB: That's true. So far, it seems their support has collapsed. We haven't seen any double digits result from any of their bishops, and they've lost a seat. In 2020, at the end of the night, Reformist bishops received 39.5% of the total vote, while Liberationist bishops received 22.7%.

KV: Yikes, I wonder how this is translating in the Councillorship election.

RB: Right, remember that's also happening behind the scenes. Since the councillor election uses a transferable vote system, we'll only be seeing those reported at the end of the night, once all the dioceses have reported their results.

KV: Although, while the Liberationists aren't doing great, neither are the Reformists, so who knows how the councillor election might shake out.

RB: Let's take a look at one of the results that have come in from the north. We have another familiar face.

RB: Trinity-Hope Mission has given the thumbs up to Bishop Cunard, who will serve another term. Bishop Cunard is joining Bishop Secretary Emerett-

KV: I don't think she's going to be a Bishop Secretary after tonight.

RB: - as another leader elected to office.

KV: A pretty good result for the Kligenbergists here, with close to 40% of the result. Obviously not good enough, with Bishop Cunard edging close to 50%. Interesting to see the Liberationist eke out over the Reformist candidate here, but they're basically going after scraps.

RB: Congratulations to Bishop Cunard on his re-election. I'm sure he's feeling good about this and some other results coming in.

KV: So true bestie, so true.

RB: Please stay with us as we now report on the latest news from around Europe. We will be back with our election coverage in just a moment.

[Inquista]

RB: Welcome back to the live coverage of the elections in Inquista. Let’s now take you to result from Grand Canal-Pavillion.

RB: A decisive victory for Commissioner Reynels, who won over 60% of the vote. The Commissioner won a by-election to serve this diocese back in October 2021 when the previous bishop resigned for health reasons. This marks the Commissioner's first full term victory.

KV: How is he still a bishop and bishop secretary? Isn't it illegal under the European Constitution for a Commissioner to represent a member state's government?

RB: Why are you asking me, do I look like a member of the European Court of Justice?

KV: Well, no, because seem to be alive and well, which is much more than what we can say about our justices. I'm just pretty sure this isn't allowed.

RB: What is interesting to note about this particular race is that Commissioner Reynels received the endorsement and support of the Reformists as well, but he decided to pledge his support to Archbishop Kligenberg and her team, and so we only see two opponents running against him - from the Pietists and Liberationists.

KV: This was a small crowd with not much opposition against "your boy Antoni."

RB: Another solid result for the Kligenbergists, who have certainly been having a very strong night. Let's take a look at some good news for the Liberationists, who haven't been having a good night. We shall now go to the Diocese of Sundance.

RB: Sundance has returned Bishop Lallana to the College of Bishops. She is the third leader to win their way back into the College tonight.

KV: Finally a win for the Liberationists tonight! Not too bad of a result either, right?

RB: Bishop Lallana won an increased share of 0.6% of the vote since the last election, so that's something to celebrate.

KV: Interesting to see the opposition coalesce around the Klingenbergists, with both the Reformist and Pietist candidates gaining less than 10% of the vote each. If the Reformist voters here backed Ms. Sterling, we could have seen Bishop Lallana get the boot.

RB: Bishop Lallana is definitely going to be lonely in the College. Let's take a look at the full results as they stand right now.

RB: Kligenbergists are leading with 55 dioceses right now as the Pietists follow with 37. Reformists now have 3 bishops, while the Liberationists standing with one, which is Bishop Lallana.

KV: The Kligenbergists are picking up a lot of seats in the City Gates area, the central area along the shoreline, which used to be home to quite a lot of Reformists. Seeing 3 wins for the Reformists isn't encouraging, although their share of the popular vote did climb up.

RB: Liberationists way up in the popular vote, since they have strong showings in the City Gates area as well, but no good news besides Bishop Lallana's win.

KV: By strong showings we mean candidates that get like 15% of the vote, but yes, good for them.

RB: What's your general assessment at this point? We're 96 results in, with 144 still to go. We're over a third of the way through.

KV: The Kligenbergists are winning new seats everywhere in the south and centre. They've won 55 of the 96 dioceses so far, which is a majority, but there's still a way to go.

Results from the north are slowing down, but the Pietists are going steady. Winning 37 of the 96 reported dioceses is a strong showing. They've picked up one seat from the Reformists, and one new seat that's been redistricted into two. But they haven't flipped much to their side. Granted, they haven't lost a seat either. They're going steady, but I don't think we're seeing any amazing inroads. They could still certainly spoil a majority for the Kligenbergists, which still looks possible to me, but they're not going to win unless they pulled some victories in the south, which hasn't happened yet.

RB: On that note, let's take a look at the news from elsewhere around the globe. Please join us again after the latest headlines.

[Inquista]

RB: Welcome back and thank you for joining Inquista Decides as we untangle the 2023 election here in Inquista. Let's see the latest results.

RB: As it stands, with 128 dioceses reporting, the Kligenbergists are leading with 78 dioceses, while the Pietists have secured 43, the Reformists 4, and the Liberationists 1.

Results are now starting to pour in every second. We'll be seeing tons of results announced as we speak, so let's do a quick analysis before we inevitably see some breaking news. Kathy, take us away.

KV: Well, the Kligenbergists are increasing their majority every second now it seems. By winning 78 of the 126 seats that have reported, the Kligenbergists have a clear majority so far, and there's still favourable ground to go. The Pietists haven't won anything past the Twin and Grand Canals, so nothing groundbreaking with their performance. At the very least, they aren't losing anything. However, the Reformists and Liberationits are really underperforming, so the Kligenbergists are devouring them.

RB: Just a moment Kathy, we have a breaking result from City Quay. Let's see the result from there now!

RB: Bishop Secretary Silas Kligenberg has been re-elected to City Quay with 46.9% of the vote.

KV: Well, this is an expected result. The Bishop Secretary spent more money than any other bishopric candidate in his re-election bid and it seems to have paid off.

RB: Somewhat of a tragic race, though, with Ms. Delphi's daughter's eating disorder becoming a topic of debate. It was reported that Ms. Delphi had to resign from a previous political position to cope with her daughter's ailment, and somehow, this came to light among certain members of the media who reported on this story.

KV: Yeah, that was some nasty news coverage. I can't begin to think who leaked that story to the press. It's hard to imagine to think such a cruel person exists, but thopefully that chapter will now be behind the residents of City Quay as they move forward with Bishop Secretary Kligenberg.

RB: We have a lot of breaking results coming through, and here's one we need to see for sure: let's go to the Diocese of Eamony!

RB: Archbishop Kligenberg has been re-elected to the College of Bishops with a stunning result, nearly netting 84% of the vote from the people of Eamony.

KV: Wow, a great result for the Archbishop. She's immensely popular in her diocese, and it's the same diocese that her father held when he was Archbishop, so the Kligenberg family roots run deep there.

RB: The Archbishop won Eamony with 70.4% of the vote in 2020, so she has increased her margin by an impressive 13.4%, which is pretty astounding considering she was already receiving more than 70% of support to begin with.

KV: They bleed pink.

RB: Speaking of which, let's take a big picture look at all the result, since we've had so many come in these past few moments.

RB: With 170 dioceses reporting their final results, 106 have gone to the Kligenbergists, 55 to the Pietists, 6 to the Reformists and 3 to the Liberationists.

KV: Runaway victory for the Kligenbergists. The Reformists have picked up only a few re-elections now, and the Liberationists now up to 3, but they've both lost so much territory to the Kligenbergists. At this rate, I don't think the Reformists or Liberationists will be able to spoiler Kligenbergist momentum anywhere.

The Pietists have flipped a few, now edging to the centre, and they still stand to win most of the northern seats remaining, but I don't think they can numerically prevent the pink tide.

RB: Looking at the map, we still have at least 10 seats in former South and East Inquista to go, which is where the Conservative Orthodox have never won any seats in any modern election. We can quite reliably predict that they will be won by the Kligenbergists tonight. Those diocese alone already bring the Kligenbergist total to around 116, which is very close to that 121 number of having a majority within the College of Bishops.

KV: You're right, the map still looks very favourable for the Archbishop. I can't imagine the Kligenbergists getting less than at least 30 more seats, which would give them a majority well above 121.

RB: Hold on Kathy, we're being told by our election monitoring team that a projection is now being made. Let's take a look...

RB: Inquista Today is projecting that Archbishop Kligenberg will be re-elected as Archbishop of Inquista.

KV: Well, there we go. Although, simply winning a majority of pledged bishops doesn't automatically mean their Archbishopric candidate will become Archbishop, as bishops are free to vote for whoever they wish. As we know from 2020, there are a lot of deals to be made. Archbishop Kligenberg herself was intially elected as Archbishop as a compromise candidate supported by opposing bishops in an effort to block Chief Secretary Firoux from assuming power.

RB: Very true, although there is no dying Archbishop Kligenberg is at the very centre of the pink wave, which is moving like a pink hurricane with her own personality at the eye of the storm. I don't think it will take any whipping at all to have a straight forward vote, especially with the majority she is likely to have.

KV: Of course, I'm just trying to make build an air of excitement and mystery, Rosie. Damn. If it's going to be so predictable, then who's going to to tune into this dumb show?

RB: I know it's getting late in the night, Kathy.

KV: Are you saying I look tired?

RB: No, I never said that. Why? Are you tired?

KV: No, but it sounded like you were implying that.

RB: What? Why would I be implying that?

KV: Stop gaslighting me.

RB: I'm not gaslighting you, and that's not even what gaslighting means. People overuse that term. Moving on. With 60 diocese still yet to report their final results, Archbishop Kligenberg has been projected to win re-election as Archbishop of Inquista. Kligenbergists are leading with 106 dioceses, while the Pietists trail with 55, the Reformists with 6 and the Liberationists with 3.

Once all ecclesiastical results have been proclaimed, the first round of councillor election results will be announced all at once. We presume no councillor candidate will win a majority of the popular vote in the first round, so votes will be transferred according to preferences and those eliminated by thresholds.

KV: Those will be very interesting. Considering the results we've seen so far tonight, I have no idea how that will go. I'm scared for all the candidates.

RB: There's no predicting how that will turn out, that's for sure. Please stay with us as we now bring you another round of the latest news headlines.

[Inquista]

RB: Good morning! The sun rises as we bring you the latest results from the elections in Inquista. Let's take a look at where things stand.

RB: Well, it's official, the Kligenbergists have secured 138 seats, which is well beyond 121 needed for a majority. We will undoubtedly see Archbishop Kligenberg be re-elected as Archbishop of Inquista. The Pietists now have 65, while the Reformists have 9 and the Liberationists have 3.

KV: An outstanding victory for the Archbishop and her allies, who clearly ran really enthusiastic campaigns. The Pink Revolution really came to light.

RB: What does this result mean for Inquista?

KV: Well, obviously the Archbishop will go on for another term, but there's going to be a lot of change within the Inquistan Orthodox Church. The Archbishop is going to have a really big tent of supporters who are actually loyal to her interests, unlike the previous government, who owed much of their fealty to Chief Secretary Firoux.

The Church Secretariat is going to see some new faces. This election has seen the Firouxian camp swept out, and the Kligenbergists swept in. Who also gets the Chief Secretary position will be interesting to see. The doctrine of New Public Prosperity has been at the core of the Archbishop's campaign, so whoever is able to push that forward with the most vigour and fervor is likely to get the top job.

For better or for worse, we've seen the Reformists be moderating forces within the Archbishop's government, who have acted as her sober counsel and have limited her more eccentric inclinations. There's no predicting how things will move forward now with a majority at her fingertips as she pursues whatever New Public Prosperity means to her.

RB: And what does this mean for Europe?

KV: There's no denying that the Archbishop is one of the friendliest leaders on the European stage, and she's pursued a very warm and collaborative foreign policy that is very open and willing to cooperate with other European countries. The Archbishop's win signals a continuation of Inquista's open-armed approach to European affairs, and we will likely see Inquista build new relations abroad while strengthening existing ties.

The last three years have been been quite peaceful for Inquistans, which is actually saying something considering that country was at war with Icholasen only weeks before the Archbishop came to power. Since then, there was turmoil and violent uprising in Copala City, divisions and cessations within Icholasen, a genocide and foreign intervention in Eastern Haane, crises with the Spanish straits, "diplomatic bombings", an occupation of Istkalen, civil war in Sertia, foreign intervention into Svarna Surya, just to name a few conflicts, and no Inquistan forces were ever mobilized during any of it.

The Archbishop has steered clear from all conflict-related affairs, though she did come in strong to condemn the violence in Copala City, where she called for peace and a return of Inquistan Orthodox people to the city. The Archbishop also granted genuine independence to the Sahrawi Union, which marked a peaceful end to that chapter. Czech Slavia, which has become a key Inquistan ally, also announced the nationalization of foreign assets, and the Archbishop has so far responded in a very measured and optimistic way.

The Archbishop appears to seek out win-win and peace-driven solutions whenever she gets involved, but I think the biggest criticism laid against her is that she doesn't get involved enough, and that she overlooks confrontational foreign policy actions taken by her allies. In general, the Archbishop has played a very passive role within the Telum Treaty, which isn't appreciated by countries that have an axe to grind with Spain. Certain countries seem to have developed completely one-sided animosity towards the Archbishop largely because they see her as being accepting of the Spanish's President's more hawkish maneuvers.

Similarly, I think a lot of people don't appreciate her coziness with the Czech President for Life, who some see as authoritarian, or her closeness with Emperor Artabanos of Inimicus, who could probably announce a full-on annexation of North Diessen tomorrow that Archbishop would readily accept. Since the Archbishop has shaped Inquista to be quite loyal in our diplomatic ties, I think countries which we have a close bonds with have much to celebrate tonight.

Countries which don't have close ties to Inquista also have much to appreciate about the Archbishop's re-election. The Reformists and Pietists have historically been quite uncompromising in their dedication to their strong principles and values - as we saw in the Craticist years and the Reformists' more radical stances on Icholasen - while the Archbishop's more mutable foreign policy worldview is much more accommodating of foreign idiosyncrasies.

RB: Wow, thanks for that Ted Talk, Kathy. I'm hearing all the results are officially in, so let's take a look.

RB: And there we have it, everyone. All votes have been counted and all dioceses have acclaimed their new bishops. The Kligenbergists have come out on top with 150 dioceses. They shall have a very comfortable majority within the College of Bishops, and Archbishop Kligenberg will see herself re-elected without much resistance.

The Pietists have gained 5 seats altogether, bringing their total to 76 dioceses. The Reformists have fallen significantly, losing 86 seats and only winning in 11 dioceses. The Liberationists have collapsed tonight, only winning in 3 dioceses.

Any last big-picture takeaways, Kathy?

KV: We saw the Kligenbergists win over most of the supporters the Reformists have historically relied upon. I think the Reformists themselves were very significantly weakened by the retirement of Chief Secretary Firoux. Archbishop Kligenberg is evidently seen as the successor of the post-Craticist and post-Firouxian political space in Inquista.

The Kligenbergists also seem to have attracted most of the supporters the Liberationists used to enjoy. The Archbishop's 'pink populist' appeal definitely bled their votes. Strange to see a wealthy celebrity from a famously affluent family attract their support, but they clearly like whatever policies or messaging she's been selling.

With the Kligenbergists on top, and the Pietists as the only real opposition, I can confidently say this election is a win for populist politics. It's a win for the Archbishop's celebrity-driven populism, and a win for the ultraorthodox populism that has always driven Inquista's right flank. Everyone else lost.

RB: That's a lot to think about. Thanks Kathy. Okay, don't go anywhere as will soon have the results of Inquista's councillor election. Please join us again after the latest news headlines.

[Inquista]

Inquistan Councillor Results

Inquistans elect their European Councillor using an AV voting system. The lowest placing candidate will be eliminated each round, and all candidates which fail to meet the 15% threshold will be eliminated on the first round. Voting rounds will continue until a candidate has secured more than 50% of the vote.

Round I

Round II

Round III - Final Round