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1967 Urcean political crisis: Difference between revisions
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With the government descending into disorder and rapidly losing support among his own party, Donnula announced to the party on the morning of 9 February that he would agree to not stand as Chancellor, saying that he would back his floor leader, Cassio Loughlin, for the role, while he would remain on as Procurator. Loughlin was personally unpopular in the party even before the will controversy began and was viewed largely as a puppet of Donnula. Thorpe Aedansson, a moderate party member, announced he would challenge Loughlin, and the party could not reach a 250-member consensus. In his authority as Procurator, Donnula canceled that day's session and put the rest of the legislative calendar on hold pending the call of the chair. | With the government descending into disorder and rapidly losing support among his own party, Donnula announced to the party on the morning of 9 February that he would agree to not stand as Chancellor, saying that he would back his floor leader, Cassio Loughlin, for the role, while he would remain on as Procurator. Loughlin was personally unpopular in the party even before the will controversy began and was viewed largely as a puppet of Donnula. Thorpe Aedansson, a moderate party member, announced he would challenge Loughlin, and the party could not reach a 250-member consensus. In his authority as Procurator, Donnula canceled that day's session and put the rest of the legislative calendar on hold pending the call of the chair. | ||
By 10 February, public opinion had dramatically turned against Donnula. A poll conducted from 8-10 February indicated a majority of the public thought Donnula should resign, and this was before news about his coverup misconduct became widespread. At the | By 10 February, public opinion had dramatically turned against Donnula. A poll conducted from 8-10 February indicated a majority of the public thought Donnula should resign, and this was before news about his coverup misconduct became widespread. At the insistence of the Censors, the [[Ministry of Justice (Urcea)|Ministry of Justice]] informed Donnula on the morning of 10 February that a special counsel had been appointed to investigate his actions, both in the preceding weeks as well as in [[1956]]. The [[Ministry for the Church in Urcea|Minister for the Church]] resigned on the same day, stating that his Ministry's mission and purpose could not be served by the present government. At a closed door party conference that day, Donnula announced his intention to resign as soon as a new Chancellor could be chosen, after which time Donnula would ask the King to appoint that man as Procurator. The party took eight secret ballots and could not arrive on a consensus candidate. As the closed door debates intensified, eighty members of the party signed a document saying they would not support any current government ministers, anyone who had been a government minister in 1956, and no man chosen or endorsed by Donnula to serve as Chancellor. Without a man in place, Donnula nonetheless announced his intention to resign as [[Procurator]] to the media once a new party leader was chosen. | ||
After the weekend of 11-13 February, Donnula brought the party back together on 14 February, but it was once again unable to choose a new leader. Donnula spent the remainder of the day attempting to convince National Pact leader Felix Finnean to support a Loughlin-led national unity government, potentially with Donnula remaining on as caretaker Procurator or appointing a non-partisan person. Finnean refused on the basis that he did not trust Donnula to step aside, and thought that backing Loughlin would make the National Pact look complicit. With no other options, Donnula asked King Caelian on the 14th to call for new elections. The King refused on the basis that membership in the Daoni was based on a fixed term, and that the King had no ability to prorogue the term of an elected official. Regardless, Donnula announced his intention to ask the King for new elections in a press conference in order to gather public support. Instead, the palace immediately disclosed the earlier conversation. The next morning, Donnula asked the leaders of each party if the 500 members of the Daoni would all resign at once, triggering a 500-seat special election. Over half of the Union opposed doing so. | |||
==Government collapses and Daoni shutters== | ==Government collapses and Daoni shutters== | ||