79th Shingōan National Election

The **79th Shingōan National Election** was held on 12 January 396 to determine the composition of the Parliament of the Imperial Republic of Shingō. Voters elected 50 members to the national legislature, 25 from single-member electorates and 25 from closed party lists. It was the first election to occur after the ratification of the Outer Territorial Representation Amendment, which provided each of Shingō's non-prefectural territories with one representative in Parliament respectively. Across the home prefectures, all male citizens above the age of 20 were able to participate, whereas those across the outer territories faced additional and varying requirements such as land-ownership, permission from the local government, or proof of tax payment.

The election occurred less than two years after the previous national election, which itself had been held early due to the resignation of multiple members of Parliament. This time, the decision to dissolve Parliament and hold another election was motivated primarily by the ratification of the Outer Territorial Representation Amendment, which, for the first time, required that non-prefectural territories of Shingō be given representation in the national Parliament.

The amendment was lobbied for heavily by residents of the recently incorporated territories of Shingōan Munao and Shingōan Yaqor, with some settlers even threatening to disrupt industries and shipments if they were not provided representation. Parliament officially voted to dissolve itself on December 29th, the same day as it ratified the amendment, and an election was promptly scheduled to occur 14 days later.

The governing Reform Party, led by incumbent Prime Minister Shōgo Kobayashi, saw no changes to its seat count despite winning a larger number of the nation's general electorates. The Center Party, the junior partner in the Reform-led ruling coalition, lost 1 seat.

The Liberty Party, the official opposition, picked up 2 seats, yet, the result was still characterized by several high-ranking figures in the party as a disappointing outcome. The Revolutionary Front lost 2 seats, with many of its supporters switching their votes in favor of the Reform Party, which had recently passed significant regulations on large businesses and industrial conglomerates as part of its "Populist Initiative."

The election additionally saw the emergence of two new parties onto the national scene: the Sabunese National Congress (SNC) and the Weian Laborers Association (WLA). The SNC is a political party existing exclusively in the Sabunese Protectorate that promotes a platform of "education, modernization, and civilization" across Sabun. The party is explicitly in favor of Shingō's role as a colonial administrator over Sabun and it specifically advocates for the replacement of what it has deemed as ineffective Sabunese cultural norms with enlightened Shingōan principles. The WLA initially existed as a distinct faction of the Weian Interest Party, however, due to disagreements over policy goals and party management, its members formed their own party and successfully unseated the incumbent Weian Interest Party representative.

After the election, Shōgo Kobayashi was re-elected once again as prime minister by the 79th Parliament. The Reform Party remained in a governing coalition with the Center Party, and the incumbent Cabinet saw no changes to its composition.