Sanctus – Outgoing Chancellor Bethany Greer’s Democratic Left Party has secured an outright majority in the House of Deputies following Saturday’s general election, winning 245 of the chamber’s 460 seats and strengthening its position in government less than eight months after Greer assumed office. This marks the first time in Sanctarian history than an outgoing Chancellor has secured re-election.
The DLP increased its House representation by 27 seats compared with the December 2022 election, giving the party a majority of 30 over all other parties; it was the only party to increase its parliamentary representation, with all four opposition parties losing ground. The Green Party in particular, the DLP’s outgoing coalition partner, suffered heavy losses, falling from 32 seats to 21, likely stemming from its own supporters being frustrated with the party and its leadership over propping up the DLP in the last administration – Green leader Josephine Chari-Jones was a victim of this, and lost her own bid for re-election to the House.
On the other side of the House, the Sanctarian Conservative Party will remain the largest opposition party with 170 deputies, down eight from the previous House’s dissolution (down ten from last election), but showing significant growth in the eastern states at the expense of the New Sanctaria Party. The SCP maintains their position as the largest party, at a federal level at least, in Novum Aeternum, Novum Limium, and Terra Monticularum, where they won 35 of the 68 seats on offer .
The New Sanctaria Party and the Christian Union Party both saw a loss of four seats. For the CUP, this is significantly damaging, reducing their overall House representation from 8 to 4. Questions will intensify for the party as to whether or not they should abandon their federal designs altogether and focus on being a solely Terra Monticolarum party, where representation at state level is much healthier. As for the NSP, the losses will sting, but tempered by the fact they were loses in cantons that were a toss-up between them and the SCP, and they ran very close races; they won in 2022, SCP won in 2025, and it seems the horsetrading of these four cantons in particular may continue for some elections to come.
When it comes to what happens next, for Dr. Greer, the result marks a significant change in her political position. Having succeeded Ethan Ringrose as Chancellor on 10 June 2024 in not-so-favourable circumstances, she has until now governed within the confines of a DLP-Green coalition. Saturday’s vote gives her a majority secured under her own leadership, and considerably greater freedom in pursuing the government’s legislative agenda. A 30 seat majority will certainly help drive through manifesto legislation, but sources within the DLP had hoped for a little wider buffer, 40-55 seats, in order to still comfortably carry votes where internal divisions could rear their heads, such as national security legislation.
Without the need for coalition talks, it is expected that the new government will be able to be formed quite quickly. A spokesperson for Dr. Greer said this morning they were aiming for the Government to be in-office and working by the end of the first week of March. As part of this, Greer will face decisions over the composition of her cabinet, with the party no longer needing to give cabinet positions to a minority partner. What big names will see a return to cabinet, and who will be kicked out, will be one to watch.
JOEY SESSIONS, Political Editor
