The Twenty-Fifth HoS List Challenge

[Walpurgisnacht]

something something shortest month but not shortest lists something something

The rules are simple; I give a prompt, and you have until 4:00pm on the 27th (or whenever I remember to post the announcement on that day) to post a list related to the prompt. As for what constitutes a list? If you'd personally post it in Lists of Heads of Government and Heads of State rather than another thread, I think that's a good enough criterion. Writeups are preferred, please don't post a blank list, and I'd also appreciate it if you titled your list for polling purposes. Once the deadline hits, we will open up a multiple choice poll, and whoever receives the most votes after a week gets the entirely immaterial prize.

As noted in my vague ramblings above, February is a very special month for many reasons. Among other things, it is also the second month of the year--a month that's also the shortest and most neglected. As such, the theme of this month's challenge is Second Place. The winner might be the one who takes the crown, but we can always tell a good story about the runners-up, and sometimes they can even win later--it just takes 16 years to count the votes.

Good luck!

 

[Warthog]

sometimes they can even win later--it just takes 16 years to count the votes

This attack on the 2008 Zimbabwean general election is very

 

[Walpurgisnacht]

This attack on the 2008 Zimbabwean general election is very

Was meant to be a reference to Barry Goldwater, but I'm glad you found it applicable.

 

[Excelsior]

I assume this contest will be won by whoever receives the second most votes?

 

[Warthog]

I understand we post it in Lists thread, but what is a title, different froma thread mark?

 

[Walpurgisnacht]

I understand we post it in Lists thread, but what is a title, different froma thread mark?

Just put a title on it, as in, an overall name for the list at the top of the list.

For example here is a list with a title:

"I'm Afraid I Have No Politics..."
Alec Douglas-Home (Conservative majority) 1963-1969
1964 [maj.]: def. Harold Wilson (Labour), Jo Grimond (Liberal)
Harold Wilson (Labour majority, then minority) 1969-1974
1969 [maj.]: def. Alec Douglas-Home (Conservative), Jeremy Thorpe (Liberal), William Wolfe (SNP)
Edward du Cann (Conservative and Patriotic Labour 'compact') 1974-1975
1974 [min., with Douglas Jay (Patriotic Labour)]: def. Harold Wilson (Labour), Jeremy Thorpe and The Duke of Devonshire (Liberal and Pro-EEC Conservative), William Wolfe (SNP)
Harold Wilson (Labour minority with support from Liberals, Pro-EEC Conservatives, SNP and Plaid Cymru) 1975
1975 [min.]: def. Edward du Cann and Douglas Jay (Conservative and Patriotic Labour), Jeremy Thorpe and The Duke of Devonshire (Liberal and Pro-EEC Conservative), William Wolfe (SNP)
Edward du Cann (Conservative and Patriotic Labour 'compact') 1975-1981
1975 [min., with Douglas Jay (Patriotic Labour)]
1976 [maj. with Douglas Jay (Patriotic Labour)]: def. Harold Wilson (Labour), Jeremy Thorpe and The Duke of Devonshire (Liberal and Pro-EEC Conservative)
Harold Wilson (Labour minority with support from Liberals and Alliance) 1981-1983
1981 [min.]: def. Edward du Cann and Douglas Jay (Conservative and Patriotic Labour), Jo Grimond (Liberal), Christopher Brocklebank-Fowler (Alliance)
David Owen (Labour minority with support from Liberals and Alliance) 1983-1986
Edward du Cann (Conservative and Patriotic Labour 'compact') 1986-1991
1986 [maj. with Douglas Jay (Patriotic Labour)]: def. David Owen (Labour), Jo Grimond (Liberal), Christopher Brocklebank-Fowler (Alliance)
1990 [maj. with Douglas Jay (Patriotic Labour)]: def. John Smith (Labour), Ken Clarke (EPP), Peter Tatchell (Ecology)
Francis Pym (Conservative and Patriotic Labour 'compact') 1991-1995
John Smith (Labour majority) 1995-????
1995 [maj.]: def. Francis Pym and Peter Shore (Conservative and Patriotic Labour), Ken Clarke (EPP), Peter Tatchell (Ecology)

Angie Bracks: "Hold on a minute, girl. Do you vote? We here in this house take our politics seriously."
Jackie Worthing: "Well, I'm afraid I don't really vote, for I vote for the Patriotic Labour Party."
Angie Bracks: "Oh. They count as Tories. Or at least they sit with us at any rate."

And here is one without one:

1990-1997: John Major (Conservative)
1992: (Majority) defeated: Neil Kinnock (Labour), Paddy Ashdown (Liberal Democrat)

1997-2015: Tony Blair (Labour)
1997: (Majority) defeated: John Major (Conservative), Paddy Ashdown (Liberal Democrat)
2001: (Majority) defeated: William Hague (Conservative), Charles Kennedy (Liberal Democrat)
2005: (Majority) defeated: Michael Howard (Conservative), Charles Kennedy (Liberal Democrat)
2010: (Coalition) defeated: David Cameron (Conservative), Nick Clegg (Liberal Democrat)

2015-2022: Nicholas Soames (Conservative)
2015: (Majority) defeated: Tony Blair (Labour), Natalie Bennett (Green Party of England and Wales), Nick Clegg (Liberal Democrat)
2020: (Majority) defeated: Natalie Bennett (Green Party of England and Wales), Chuka Umunna (Labour), Tom Brake (Liberal Democrat)

2022-Present: David Cameron (Conservative)
2023: (Majority) defeated: Tamsin Omond (Ecology), Jamie Stone (A New Dawn), Gordon Brown (Scottish Labour)

 

[CountZingo]

The Definition of Insanity​

March 4, 1825 - March 4, 1833 | John Q. Adams (Federal Republican | Massachussetts) {6}
1824 | con. between Andrew Jackson (Populist Republican), John Q. Adams (Federal Republican), William Crawford (Old Republican), Henry Clay (National Republican) [1]
1828 | con. between Andrew Jackson (Populist Republican), John Q. Adams (Federal Republican), Henry Clay (National Republican), James Barbour (Old Republican) [2]
March 4, 1833 - March 4, 1841 | Andrew Jackson (Populist Republican | Tennessee) {7}
1832 | con. between Richard Rush (Federal Republican), Andrew Jackson (Populist Republican), Henry Clay (National Republican), John Floyd (Old Republican) [3]
1836 | con. between William Henry Harrison (National Republican), Andrew Jackson (Populist Republican), Daniel Webster (Federal Republican), John Calhoun (Old Republican) [4]
March 4, 1841 - March 4, 1845 | William Rives (Old Republican | Virginia) {8}
1840 | con. between John Davis (Federal Republican), William Rives (Old Republican), Henry Clay (National Republican), Richard Johnson (Populist Republican) [5]
March 4, 1845 - March 4, 1849 | Lewis Cass (Populist Republican | Michigan) {9}
1844 | con. between John Clayton (Federal Republican), Lewis Cass (Popular Republican), Henry Clay (National Republican), William Rives (Old Republican) [6]
March 4, 1849 - present | Winfield Scott (National Republican | New York) {10}
1848 | Winfield Scott (National Republican) defeated Abbot Lawrence (Federal Republican), John Mason (Old Republican), Lewis Cass (Populist Republican | Michigan) [7]

[1] - The election of 1824 itself is as OTL, but the POD comes during the contingent election, where the Corrupt Bargain as it's known in OTL is never made - Henry Clay effectively allows Congressmen to "vote their conscience", which still gets Adams in the office but doesn't allow for the Adams-Clay coalition to immediately form. The (Democratic-)Republican Party morphs into some vague middle ground between rampant factionalism and being different parties under the same name, but the increased amount of parliamentary politics allows Adams to get some of his more ambitious infrastructure programs passed.

[2] - With Clay and Barbour both acting as prominent vote-splitters, the 1828 election again deadlocks, and to the great displeasure of Andrew Jackson history repeats itself, with many Congressmen still hesitant to let such a clear demagogue into office, especially as some rogue Jackson supporters stir up some trouble directly after the election. For a few weeks, things are tense, but eventually Jackson and his Populists acquiesce, determining to focus on House elections in 1830...

[3] - By 1832, John Quincy Adams' infrastructure reforms have really taken hold, and the United States is doing quite well - between this and Jackson's insistence to relitigate 1824 and 1828, Richard Rush does shockingly well, getting within a few measly electoral votes of victory. And yet, the House of Representatives decides its third contingent election in a row, and with the Populists' 1830 strategy having worked, Jackson, despite coming in a firm second, finally gets his victory.

[4] - Jackson's tenure goes a lot more poorly than IOTL, with the headstrong general bashing his head on the brick wall that is the more parliamentary nature of Congressional politics. Like Rush, Harrison almost clinches the election, and it seems like he'll actually get into office. In fact, Harrison is so confident that he moves into Washington... only to die after drinking the city's water. Amongst the confusion over who to vote for, Jackson is able to clinch a second term.

[5] - With Rumpsey Dumpsey generally humiliating himself on the campaign trail, Massachussetts governor Davis' firmly free-soil policies, and Henry Clay being... well, Henry Clay, William Rives manages to sweep the coastal South, his comfortable second place allowing him to be the easy "compromise choice", especially as a bit of precedent sets in.

[6] - Rives has the dubious honor of presiding over the worst economic crisis the United States has had (so far), and generally flounders in it, with discontent allowing the Populist Republican candidates to sweep the House in 1842 - when the contingent election comes and goes, it's no surprise who's managed to win it.

[7] - Cass' main legacy is implementing popular sovereignty, which goes about as well as expected (the accompanying bloodshed doesn't really help the economy, either), thus bringing sectional tensions to the forefront as the "Republican" party system in Congress begins to increasingly fray. It's under this backdrop that an old military general manages to rally the nation behind him - the first electoral college victory in decades is a veritable landslide, with Scott winning a comfortable majority in the popular vote and more than three quarters of the Electoral College. Now, all he has to do is bring that kind of unity to the rest of the country...


Populist Republican | #6CBB3C
Federal Republican | #9ACD32
National Republican | #57E964
Old Republican | #4E9258

 

[Warthog]

Here it is, just a bit of fun, more second chances than second places...

Governors-Protector of Antarctica

 

[Lilitou]

Thomas Jefferson's Second Place Victory​

Presidents and Vice Presidents of the First Constitutional Period

1789-1797: George Washington (Independent)
1789 (with John Adams) def: John Adams (Federalist), John Jay (Federalist), John Hancock (Federalist), George Clinton (Anti-Federalist)
1792 (with John Adams) def: John Adams (Federalist), George Clinton (Republican), Thomas Jefferson (Republican)
1797-1801: John Adams (Federalist)
1796 (with Thomas Jefferson) def: Thomas Jefferson (Republican), Thomas Pinckney (Federalist), Aaron Burr (Republican)
1801-1809: Aaron Burr (Republican)
1800 (with Thomas Jefferson) def: Thomas Jefferson (Republican), John Adams (Federalist), Charles Pinckney (Federalist), John Jay (Federalist)
1804 (with Thomas Jefferson) def: Thomas Jefferson (Republican), Charles Pinckney (Federalist)
1809-1813: Alexander Hamilton (Federalist)
1808 (with Thomas Jefferson) def: Thomas Jefferson (Republican), Michael Leib (Republican), Charles Pickney (Federalist)
1813-1821: James Madison (Republican)
1812 (with Thomas Jefferson) def: Thomas Jefferson (Republican), Alexander Hamilton (Federalist)
1816 (with Alexander Hamilton) def: Alexander Hamilton (Federalist), Thomas Jefferson (Republican), Theodosia Burr Alston (Republican)
1821-1822: Alexander Hamilton (Federalist)
1820 (with John Quincy Adams) def: John Quincy Adams (Federalist), Thomas Jefferson (Republican), Theodosia Burr Alston (Republican)
1822-1825: John Quincy Adams (Union Ticket - Federalist)
1822 (with Thomas Jefferson)
1824 (with Thomas Jefferson) def: Thomas Jefferson (Union Ticket - Republican), Jesse Thomas (Anti-War Republican)

The 1800 election: Thomas Jefferson's Second Place Victory
by April Shepherd, posted on the Barbarossa Press Blog

"What if Thomas Jefferson had won the election of 1800?" is a commonly-posed question in uchronian fiction, particularly on uchronian fan forums. The reason for the question's enduring popularity is obvious; outside of perhaps Theodosia Burr, Jefferson is the most prominent figure from the First Constitutional Period to not have ascended to the presidency (which in that time was far more powerful a position than its modern day counterpart), and his 1800 loss to Burr was probably one of the most paradoxically successful defeats in political history.

Despite this, as a MOD (moment of difference), it is perhaps harder to manipulate than a prospective uchronian fiction author might first imagine. On the surface, simply having the elector who neglected to vote for Jefferson do his job properly would make sense; but it is important to remember that this would have simply led to Burr and Jefferson having the same number of votes, and a contingent election being fought in Congress. While we know that Jefferson did have significant allies in Congress following Burr's ascension, it is nevertheless difficult to find a situation where a significant enough number of Federalists would break ranks and vote for the arch-Republican Jefferson over the more moderate Burr, who by this time was not seen as the constitutional threat that Jefferson successfully painted him as after his election.

Nevertheless, if one were to orchestrate such a manipulation, the effects would have been wide-reaching. It is now second nature for us to imagine that America could have only developed along parliamentarian lines due to what many percieve as inherent flaws of presidentialism and one man rule, but to the people of 1800 the first Constitution was not viewed under such a jaded lens. At that time, the President was still seen as the primary figure in the administration, with the Vice President as a secondary figure. It was only because of the "untrustworthy" Burr's control over the White House that Jefferson persuaded enough of Congress - through his position as president of the Senate - to pass the twelfth ammendment to the first Constitution, which greatly reduced the powers of the presidency and empowered Congress to act on it's behalf; at the same time empowering Jefferson as the de facto head of Congress. It has been noted by historians that the ammendment was only ratified due to it's support among the Southern states, which is a great irony given its impact on the abolitionist movement.

Indeed, without Burr's two terms and the growing concentration of power in Congress and the vice presidency, some historians have argued that early America could have experienced a very different period. It is relatively well-known that the presidency was strong enough during Alexander Hamilton's first tenure that he was able to avert a very likely war with Britain over the press-ganging scandal. This could have strangled America in it's cradle; as surely war with the British Empire at that time - isolated from French allies - would have resulted in a reversal of the War of Independence.

Perhaps the more interesting grain of sand effect that could have occured had Jefferson won in 1800 were the events of the far more notable Hamilton preisdency. It is now commonly-held in academic circles that the early United States was headed for some form of civil war over the issue of slavery, and that any attempt to halt such a war would have merely delayed it (there remains some dispute over how long such a conflict could have been delayed). Regardless, had Jefferson not centralised power in the vice presidency, Hamilton's assassination in 1822 after the Defiance of Missouri triggered the Civil War could have been much more crippling to the United States administration. Due to Jefferson's reforms, however, it did not have the intended effects, and instead merely pushed Jefferson's faction of Republicans to reconcile with the Federalists and enter the Union Ticket for the final presidential election held under the first Constitution in 1824.

After the Civil War, however, the grains of sand get too scattered to predict too much. Presumably, some things in American history are set in stone to one degree or another. The post-Civil War era would likely still see a shift in political party loyalties; the collapse of the Unionist super-majority is assured, and it's likely that the rise of organised labour movements means that the Labor Party eventually comes to dominate the centre-left of the political spectrum, but whether the Unionists would persist or be supplanted by another party is anyone's guess. All in all, the ratification of the second Constitution in 1825 throws a lot of spanners in a lot of works for uchronian historians.

A number of uchronian historians have pondered whether the first Constitution could have persisted for longer than it did, had Jefferson not lost to Burr and was able to consolidate power in the White House instead, but I personally find this to be unlikely. The first Constitution was so riddled with flaws, inconsistencies and contradictions that it was headed for some sort of crisis at some point. Trying to conjure up a scenario where the first Constitution is never scrapped is like trying to conjure one where Britain never codifies it's own constitution; it's possible, yes, but in my honest opinion beyond the realms of plausibility, only achievable through the use of Extraterrestrial Cosmic Wombats.

 

[Walpurgisnacht]

The Alternative To Voting
​

2010-2015: David Cameron (Conservative)
2011 AV Referendum: 56% YES, 44% NO
def 2015: (Coalition with Liberal Democrats) Ed Milliband (Labour), Nicola Sturgeon (SNP), Nick Clegg (Liberal Democrats)
2015-2020: Andrew Boff (Conservative)
2017: Single Transferrable Vote Act passes the House of Lords
def 2018: (Coalition with Liberal Democrats, de facto DUP support) Tristian Hunt (Labour), Nicola Sturgeon (SNP), Nigel Farage (UKIP), Nick Clegg (Liberal Democrats), Sian Berry (Green)
2020-2022: Stephen Twigg (Labour)
def 2020: (Coalition with SNP) Andrew Boff (Conservative), Nicola Sturgeon (SNP), Nigel Farage (UKIP), Nick Clegg (Liberal Democrats), Sian Berry (Green)
2020: Single Transferrable Vote Act repealed, replaced by Proportional Representation Act
2021 Scottish Independence Referendum: 52% YES, 48% NO
2022-2024: Douglas Carswell (Conservative)
def 2022: (Coalition with UKIP) Stephen Twigg (Labour), Nigel Farage (UKIP), Cleo Lake (Green), Nick Clegg (Liberal Democrats), Adam Price (Plaid Cymru)
2022: List threshold for proportional representation lowered to 5%
2024 European Union Referendum: 53% REMAIN, 47% LEAVE
2024-2025: Penny Mourdant (Conservative)
2025-0000: Cat Smith (Labour)
def 2025: (Coalition with Liberal Democrats, Greens, and Plaid Cymru) Penny Mourdant (Conservative), Danny Alexander (Liberal Democrats), David Kurten (UKIP), Magid Magid (Green), Elin Jones (Plaid Cymru), Paul J. Watson (TrueKIP), Ben Habib (Referendum)

[SCENE: A blank void, with a podium in the middle. Suddenly, the puppet of the TORTOISE flops over the central podium, a gold medal around his neck.]

TORTOISE: Finally! All my hard work has paid off. I'm the winner, because I came first!

[The camera pans over to the third place podium. The puppet HARE is standing there, looking cross]

HARE: Hey! Just because you came first doesn't mean you should get to be the winner! Lots of people liked me as well!

TORTOISE: Well, not enough of them did, then.

HARE: Nearly everyone thought I was the second-best. That should count for something. I demand you count the second-place votes!

[Black-and-white placard with "Some Time Later" on it goes up on screen. Maybe we could do one of those SpongeBob ones that are memes--can we do that without getting sued? Get legal to check]

TORTOISE: I've counted the second places. You've still lost.

HARE: Well, you should let more than one person be a winner, then!

TORTOISE: ...what?

HARE: You heard me! And since you were such a big meanie about my new system, I say you don't get to be one of the winners! I'm inviting all my friends to the top of the podium!

[Some Time Later placard goes here again, unless we don't want to emphasise how long vote counts take now as much]

[The SHEEP, UNICORN, and (WHATEVER WE DECIDED FOR THE GREENS--A FLOWER?) help lift the HARE on top of the podium]

UNICORN: Since I helped you guys get on top of the podium, it's only fair that I get to leave now with the ribbon.

FLOWER(?): I don't think it's fair that there's only one medal--I say we divide bits of it up between us!

SHEEP: Why don't we have more races? Lots and lots and lots, all the time!

DARREN (V/O): Do you think this is fair?

[DARREN walks on screen as the background fades out. I'm sure there's a way to do this so it looks nice--the effect guy keeps saying he can't do it, but I figure he's just workshy.]

DARREN: We've spent 15 years in a country run like this. Government agendas have been hijacked, again and again, by tiny minorities with radical beliefs, who can easily pass the buck when they fail. Democracy should mean "power to the people", but these days it seems like it means "power to the fruitcakes". Each set of shaky governments pays off their supporters with a new, even more ridiculous, voting system, making the next government even shakier and even more reliant on minnows. We can break this cycle of chaos. But it starts with you.

[Fade out on Darren--put up a bunch of panning shots and videos of activists etc.]

DARREN (V/O): My name is Darren Grimes, and I represent an organisation working to bring back the stability of first-past-the-post--one that needs your help. We're not just another political party. We're non-partisan and above tribalism [throw in Kwarteng speaking and Flint speaking here], we've got supporters all around the UK [remember that big speech Lee Canning did? Yeah, throw it in], and we're built on the backs of people like you. People who are fed up with Westminster's nonsense systems, where they hand the other politicians power just for showing up, and throw unncessary levels of government in just to create more gravy trains.

[Cut back to Darren, looking imposing on top of something--pref. with a flag behind him.]

DARREN: This May, we're going to strike the first blow against this crazy system. When you get your ballot papers for your "devolved parliament" elections, with their sprawl of boxes and elaborate numbering schemes, just...rip them up. Deface them. Refuse to fill them in. Every ballot spoilt in this way is a message to Westminster that we're not going to put up with their nonsense any more. That we don't want to be governed by people who can only get silver medals, and can't win fairly.

[Fade out a bit more here, and get the logo on screen, with phone number/website/ItMe handle or whatever.]

DARREN (V/O): Reform UK. Because you're only a winner if you come first.

 

[Walpurgisnacht]

Eleven days left to get those entries in!

 

[Time Enough]

The Alternative To Voting

This is filth, absolutely pure filth.

Excellent stuff.

 

[Walpurgisnacht]

Just a week left to get your entries in!

 

[AH Layard]

The Goat out of the Wilderness

OTL Stanley Baldwin called a general election in 1923 shortly after becoming Prime Minister to secure a mandate for tariffs. This backfired and the Conservatives lost their majority. A notable development of the election was the apparent revival of the Liberal Party, now with Asquith and Lloyd George re-united, which secured a close third place finish with 158 seats to Labour's 191 and the Conservatives' 258. Supposing the Liberals did better, securing an additional 20 seats, they would finish in second place and Asquith would have first dibs on forming a government with Labour support.
(No butterflies were harmed in the making of this list. They are only sleeping).

List of Prime Ministers

1908 - 1916: H.H. Asquith (Liberal)
1918: Andrew Bonar Law (Coupon Conservative and Unionist), Eamon de Valera (Sinn Fein), William Adamson (Labour), H.H. Asquith (Independent Liberal), John Dillon (IPP).
1916 - 1922: David Lloyd George (National Government)
1918: Andrew Bonar Law (Coupon Conservative and Unionist), Eamon de Valera (Sinn Fein), William Adamson (Labour), H.H. Asquith (Independent Liberal), John Dillon (IPP).
1922 - 1923: Andrew Bonar Law (Conservative and Unionist)
1922: J.R. Clynes (Labour), H.H. Asquith (Independent Liberal), David Lloyd George (Coalition Liberal).
1923 - 1923: Stanley Baldwin (Conservative and Unionist)
1923 - 1926: H.H. Asquith (Liberal-Labour Coalition) [1]
1923: Stanley Baldwin (Conservative and Unionist), Ramsay MacDonald (Labour).
1926 - 1931: Stanley Baldwin (Conservative and Unionist) [2]
1926: H.H. Asquith (Liberal), Ramsay MacDonald (Labour).
1931 - 1939: David Lloyd George (Liberal-Labour Coalition) [3]
1931: Stanley Baldwin (Conservative and Unionist), Ramsay MacDonald (Labour).
1935: Sir Samuel Hoare (Conservative and Unionist), Arthur Greenwood (Labour).
1939 - 1945: Sir Archibald Sinclair (National Government)
1945 - 1950: Ernest Bevin (Labour-Liberal Coalition)
1945: Duff Cooper (Conservative and Unionist), Sir Archibald Sinclair (Liberal).

[1] Asquith assembles a diverse Cabinet, including Lloyd George as Chancellor, Ramsay MacDonald as Foreign Secretary, and Freddie Guest as Home Secretary. MacDonald settles reparations with Germany on more generous terms, opens relations with the Soviet Union, and vigorously supports the League of Nations. Lloyd George pioneers a modest jobs creations programme to reduce unemployment, and compromising with Labour on capital taxation, announces a reform of property taxation. The Government seeks to mediate between employers and employees and announces widescale reforms to the coal industry. The Insurance Acts are reformed and assistance improved. The Government falls in 1926 when the Labour Party becomes restless about the lack of progress on a capital levy and social reform. The Labour Party is badly damaged in the subsequent general election by the 'Zinoviev Letter', ostensibly written by a member of the Comintern to CPGB asking them to prepare for an imminent revolution.
[2] Baldwin comes to office promising 'peace and quiet' but receives a rude awakening from the global impact of the Wall Street Crash in 1929 which sends unemployment skyrocketing. The Conservatives' solution is to maintain fiscal discipline and to introduce imperial preference, but this only increases the cost of goods for squeezed consumers.
[3] Lloyd George returns to office on an ambitious Keynesian programme titled 'We Can Conquer Employment', advocating a massive public works and jobs creation programme and the suspension of the gold standard. Public spending is put to work in employing people to build and fix roads, and to modernise industry. Schemes to promote employee share ownership are introduced. Unemployment begins to fall by the mid-1930s, and Lloyd George receives another mandate in 1935. Now in his 70s, Lloyd George's views on foreign policy begin to worry the Liberal ranks, as he praises Hitler as the 'George Washington' of Germany and ignores the remilitarisation of the Rhineland. The Liberal and Labour parties soon split not along party lines, but along an appeasement/re-armanent axis. Hitler reneging on the Munich Agreement and invading Poland decisively undermines the Prime Minister's credibility, leading to a vote of no confidence and the appointment of anti-appeasement Liberal Sir Archibald Sinclair at the head of a National Government.

 

[Walpurgisnacht]

Three more days to go for entries!

 

[OHC]

The Devil in the Pyrenees

Presidents of France (Fifth Republic)
1959-1968: Charles de Gaulle (UNR, UDR)
May 1968: De Gaulle resigns by telegram after fleeing France at the height of the May Days.
1968: Gaston Monnerville (PR) (acting)
June 1968: Monnerville removed from office by the Central Occupation Committee after negotiations fall through. Proclamation of the French People’s Republic. Georges Pompidou appointed semi-constitutionally by an emergency, inquorate session of the National Assembly held outside the capital.
1968-1971: Georges Pompidou (CRR) †
1971-0000: Pierre Messmer (CRR)
1972 def. Léopold Héder (PSG), minor candidates. Election conducted only in territories under Fifth Republic control, principally French Guiana; while the count was not technically fraudulent, any significant opposition to the Republican Restoration Committee was disqualified.

Presidents of the Assembly (People’s Republic)
1968: Pierre Mendès France (PSU, then nonpartisan) (as Chairman of the Constituent Assembly)
1968-1970: François Mitterrand (CIR, “Party of Order”)
1970: Jacques Pâris de Bollardière (nonpartisan, autonomist bloc)
1970-1971: Jean-Pierre Chevènement (PSR, “Party of Order”)
1971-0000: Raymond Aubrac (nonpartisan, “Party of Order”)
1972 investiture (backed by PCF, UR, PSR, PR) def. Charles Piaget (PSU backed by PDO, ME, LC), minor ultraleftists, minor rightists

Chairmen of the Fatherland Liberation Rally
1970-1971: Jacques Massu (nonpartisan)
1971-0000: Jean-Marie Le Pen (FN)
1971 def. Pierre Plantard (FFF). Election held among the French exile community in Spain; generally considered fraudulent and lacking in significant opposition.

“Only one side wins in a revolution,” an anonymous member of the Gaullotropical exile regime told a reporter last week, “but M. Le Pen has somehow managed to come second.” It was a grim admission for the remnants of the Fifth Republic to make, but it carries a ring of truth. Whether the People’s Republic falls completely into the Soviet orbit or continues its current uncharted course, its greatest external enemy will not be the sweating functionaries in Cayenne but the nationalist orator sneering over the Pyrenees.

The Ralliement pour la libération de la patrie was formed in 1970 by members of the French officer corps who neither joined the revolution with their men nor wished to wait while Georges Pompidou poked the nascent People’s Republic with diplomatic and financial weapons. Abandoning their final colonial posts, they gathered in Spain under the direction of General Jacques Massu, famed for his military adventures on multiple continents, his torture of insurgent suspects in Algeria, and his role in bringing Charles de Gaulle to power in 1958. Shielded by the Spanish regime, Massu began a combined propaganda assault and terrorist campaign against the People’s Republic, gaining followers in rural areas and small towns across the south of France where the leftist government had struggled to exert power. While not strong enough to launch an invasion, the RLP has caused chaos and its actions have brought down at least one government in the rough-and-tumble People’s Assembly. Many of its partisans and leaders are veterans of the Organisation armée secrète, the terrorist group that opposed Algerian independence in the early 1960s.

Massu himself stepped down in 1971 for a related but separate crusade – advising Generalissimo Franco’s intervention in Portugal – and handed things over to civilian leadership. Le Pen, a veteran far-right political brawler whose speeches combine stirring odes to republican virtue with vicious anti-semitic conspiracy theories, was the obvious choice. He had made himself an anti-communist hero during the revolution by allegedly “fighting his way” through leftist lines to the safety of Spain. He was crowned over a paper opposition of monarchist eccentrics, and has since established authoritarian control – allegedly doing away with his enemies by sending them on suicide missions across the border.

Meanwhile, the churning revolutionary politics of the People’s Republic have slowed somewhat in recent years as the political scene settles into two camps. On one side, the Communist Party has teamed up with the remnants of the bourgeois parties, pursuing goals of economic stabilization, law and order, and the maintenance of strong relationships with the Soviet Union and international business. The PCF found itself dragged into the revolution in 1968 and has been playing catch-up since, but its close ties to Moscow and control of the CGT union federation have allowed it to amass greater and greater power, dismissing its allies if they drift too far from the party line; under the current ministry of philocommunist Resistance hero Raymond Aubrac, there have been fears that France is about to become a Soviet satellite. The “new Party of Order” is opposed by the heirs of the revolution: a motley collection of left-socialists, Christian corporatists, and young radicals, united mostly by their distrust of the PCF and their support of workers’ self-management. With the People’s Assembly largely out of their hands, this “autonomist bloc” has its base in the workers’ councils. Its partisans are hard at work converting businesses into cooperatives and engaging in jurisdictional disputes with the CGT in the newly nationalized industries. This is a fractious and occasionally violent political scene, but France is not yet a failed state. The accounts of the Revolution are not settled, but whatever the outcome, the clock is not likely to be wound back to before May 1968.

The United States and the rest of the Western bloc still recognize the Fifth Republic as the legitimate government of France. Both President Nixon and Senator McGovern, however, have expressed cautious desire for a rapprochement with the People’s Republic. Like the Soviets, the American government has an interest in a France run by the Party of Order, rather than an anarchist commune or a war zone in Western Europe. The Gaullists have few friends in Washington today.

Meanwhile, the RLP’s cause is being promoted by the usual suspects – Birchers, old China Lobbyists, and reactionary Catholics. Their most ardent spokesman is Governor George Romney’s young son Willard, who claims that the experience of being caught up in the May Revolution caused him to apostatize from both his family’s Mormon faith and moderate politics. Financed by the traditionalist Catholic magazine Triumph – an English-language front for the Franco regime – Romney is currently organizing a “National Day of Prayer for France.” His is a crank position on this side of the Atlantic, but with the resources of the Spanish state and international anti-communist groups behind them, the RLP is poised to become a major player if the Revolution breaks open again. It remains to be seen if, in the long run, Jean-Marie Le Pen can win from second place.

 

[OHC]

(pretty sure this is the first time I've done a real world List outside the US; my French is limited so my understanding of this period's a lot shallower than I'd like it to be)

 

[Mumby]

Winning The Popular Vote, Losing The Peace

1940-1949: Winston Churchill (Conservative)
1945 (National Government w. Liberal Nationals and Independents; minority w. Liberal c&s) def. Clement Attlee (Labour), Archibald Sinclair (Liberal), C.A. Smith (Common Wealth)
1947 (Coalition w. Liberals) def. Herbert Morrison (Labour), Archibald Sinclair (Liberal), Tom Wintringham (Common Wealth)
1949-1952: William Beveridge (Liberal leading National Government with Labour, Common Wealth and Anti-Imperialist Conservatives)
1952-1952: Ernest Bevin (Labour)
1952 (Coalition w. Liberals and NDP) def. Anthony Eden (Conservative), William Beveridge (Liberal), Bob Boothby (National Democratic), Phil Piratin (Common Wealth)
1952-1956: William Beveridge (Liberal)
1953 (Coalition w. NDP) def. Hugh Dalton (Labour), Bob Boothby (National Democratic), Max Aitken, 1st Baron Beaverbrook (Conservative), Phil Piratin (Common Wealth)
1956-1958: William Douglas Home (Liberal-National Democratic coalition)
1958-1960: Nye Bevan (Labour)
1958 (Coalition w. Common Wealth) def. William Douglas Home (Liberal), Phil Piratin (Common Wealth), David Robertson (National Democratic), A.K. Chesterton (Conservative)
1960-1968: Jim Callaghan (Labour)
1963 (Minority) def. Jeremy Thorpe (Liberal), Vera Brittain (Common Wealth), James Turner, 1st Baron Netherthorpe (National Democratic), A.K. Chesterton (Conservative)
1968-0000: Jeremy Thorpe (Liberal)
1968 (Coalition w. Country) def. Jim Callaghan (Labour), Henry Plumb (Country), Peter Griffiths (Conservative), Vera Brittain [collective] (Common Wealth [Committee Against Barbarity])

The Liberals rose from the grave thanks to many factors - from Churchill's narrow plurality requiring Liberal support in 1945 and the establishment of 'Urban Proportionality' - to the Second War of Indian Independence that ushered Beveridge into Downing Street - to the entryist takeover of the Tory Party by the far-right. Their stunning victory in 1953 didn't come out of nowhere but certainly nobody expected it.

Labour by contrast came within a cat's whisker of a majority in 1945 and has been denied it ever since - Urban Proportionality riddled their safest seats with blips of Liberal amber, and Bevin was never able to roll it back and indeed extended it the shires which only strengthened the Liberals' hand further. While the Liberals are a reasonably united party, Labour has always been torn between its left and its right, which collapsed their government after Bevin's death and allowed the Liberals to roar back into life. Callaghan managed to become the longest serving Labour Prime Minister by carefully balancing his Cabinet and forming case by case deals with different parties in Parliament - ironically easing the NDP's evolution into the Country Party.

The Empire died decades ago, despite Churchill's best efforts. The use of chemical and biological weapons to try and keep India under the boot forced President Dewey to threaten economic sanctions. And after the independence of the Indian Federation, the rest of the colonies followed suit - Beveridge and Bevin were forced to go cap in hand to the UN to see the African colonies put under UN trusteeship albeit continued British jurisdiction on a fast track toward independence. The Commonwealth is an irrelevance of the remaining White Dominions - of far more importance to Britain are the European Communities and the Atlantic Charter. Liberals, Labour and Country are all broadly in favour of the same foreign policy - whereas Common Wealth and Conservatives have their own ideas.

That kind of all-party accord - a so-called 'government of chums' - has seen discontent rise in recent years. The Conservatives, long languishing on the fringes of the psychotically ideological right, has a far more practical racist at its head now, with a record of implementing Real Racism At The Local Level in Smethwick. Common Wealth meanwhile has outgrown its heyday of parliamentary relevance under Piratin, as the student movement rises to meet the revolutionary call and the party's leadership is frozen around the ailing but venerated figure of Brittain.

Jeremy Thorpe now leads a de facto government of National Unity - Callaghan could not quite be brought on board too explicitly but between the rising far-right and the Committee Against Barbarity fighting the Tories thugs on the streets, Labour can be relied upon to support Thorpe's coalition.

 

[OHC]

The Devil in the Pyrenees

Side note here but I always find myself slipping into a bit of a character when I'm doing the writeups for these, is that the case for anyone else? Like, this one is probably written by a smug, vaguely left-wing commentator for an American magazine in 1972 - historically literate and sympathetic to the New Left as the fashionable new thing but also pretty detached from the trench warfare of politics.

 

[Lilitou]

Side note here but I always find myself slipping into a bit of a character when I'm doing the writeups for these, is that the case for anyone else? Like, this one is probably written by a smug, vaguely left-wing commentator for an American magazine in 1972 - historically literate and sympathetic to the New Left as the fashionable new thing but also pretty detached from the trench warfare of politics.

Same! Though in my case, for this write-up I did make the author canonically the alter-me from the alternate timeline