===
1957 - General Election
===

In the end, Bevan's support amongst the Labour Party was too great for Gaitskell to overcome. It was decided before the vote even began. Attlee's decision to step down practically handed leadership to Bevan on a silver platter. He promised to continue the party's current path of transforming the Union through reform at the ballot box. There'd be no turning back the clock on Labour's achievements if Bevan had anything to say about. The domestic popularity of many of the policies was undeniable.

The loss was not received well by the party's right wing. The fears of splitting the party had indeed been correct. Gaitskell was about to spend the rest of his career as a backbencher. He rallied his supporters around himself and split the party, taking nearly a third of existing delegates with him. Publicly relations between the parties are cordial, but behind the scenes both parties were pulling out all the stops ahead of the election.

The Radicals split ways with Labour too. Pleven had grown concerned of Labour's continued leftward drift and feared that continued association would taint the Radicals or worse, inspire a new leftist party to emerge in France. Radicals, resembling more a connection of cadres than a true mass party, continued being the Union's left most French party. Its center-left position helped suck up air in the room and channel it towards the establishment.

The Tories saw a brief upsurge in support for Patrick Wall. In the initial leadership debates he'd seemingly dominated, hitting the establishment for its failures to maintain British traditions and ceding talking points to Labour. Numerous backbenchers that otherwise would have supported Macmillan's policies nonetheless found themselves as equally outraged as Wall. The center of the party would hold though, as Macmillan refused to budge and called up his supporters to maintain leadership over the party. Powell barely had any support.

===

A lot had changed for the Franco-British Union between 1952 to 1957. Labour had managed the seemingly impossible task of abolishing the House of Lords. The outdated system of first past the post was replaced with a more sensible proportional electoral system that'd give more power to third parties. The larger parties suddenly had competition in previously safe ridings and competitive seats became even more so.

The domestic situation wasn't looking bad for Labour. The flood of social and welfare reforms were positively received by those who benefited from it. The increased trade with Europe and the Commonwealth provided more buyers for British goods and kept the price of raw materials done. Increased extraction in the colonies had a similar effect. However, many felt that perhaps Labour had overstepped its boundaries. The culture war was not on Bevan's side.

Why were all private schools nationalized? Why can't the church run schools anymore? Did the House of Lords really need to be abolished? Couldn't it have remained as a symbolic body? Why can't teachers discipline students anymore? Did Labour need to go so far? These were questions poised by the middle class. Less concerned about colonial affairs, preserving British traditions was seen as more important. They loved the welfare and cheap livable council housing, but felt certain freedoms had perhaps been infringed upon.

The ongoing revolts in the colonies made the news, but the lower body count made it less eye catching to British voters. The Mau Mau and UPC had "started" it after all. They were the violent 'savages' brutalizing white settlers and other tribes. It was the FBU and CAN that kept the peace. No, it was the French voters who found themselves concerned by the uptick in colonial revolts. A degree of blame was placed on Italy for failing to pull its weight, but more on Labour for failing to decisively handle the revolts and prevent them in the first place.

Domestically the French meanwhile enjoyed their special status in the Union. The concessions, subsidies, and parallel national corporations and agencies were all well received. It did not buy loyalty to Labour however. Turing's case was celebrated as France holding its own in the Union. The lack of official bilingualism however was still seen as an annoyance, especially as many French officials were expected to speak English to accommodate their British counterparts, rather than the other way away. The ease of travel to Portugal, Spain, Italy, and Greece was enjoyed by many French tourists and businesses.

Internationally, there were few complaints from the majority of the populace. On the surface the Franco-British Union had never been closer with the Commonwealth. Its military alliance was proving itself, even if there were setbacks in Argentina. America received the majority of the criticism for that particular failure, but elements within French and British society, and even the military, began questioning the government's refusal to pursue military modernization and expansion.

The ever loaming debt was bemoaned by many, but it was taken as a fact of life by 1957. There's little discontent regarding deficit spending, save from budget hawks. They had little influence in the government or any major party. Price controls, foreign loans, and inflation had become a fact of life for the government.

===

Welcome to the 1957 General Election. It's key to deciding if Labour's Bevanite victories remain cemented as part of the postwar consensus or if they're watered down by other parties. It will be key for deciding the course of decolonization.

Voting will be adjusted to try to represent changes in electoral laws.

Players may vote for 3 parties, 1 British, 1 French, and 1 from either. You may use the third slot to vote for a party you have already voted for.

Parties may form a coalition with each other if the option is provided below their name. Players tick the box to merge them when voting for them. If players do not want to form a coalition then they do not need to include the option. If one party is in favour of a coalition with another party, but the other one isn't then this represents a confidence and supply agreement. You can vote for as many coalition partners as available.

We also see the first merged party. It counts as both a British and a French party. You can vote for it twice because it has candidates in both halves of the union. Please note in brackets if it's using the British or French voting slot to keep track of where their votes are coming from. That matters because of the unequal numbers of British vs French population.

All votes are weighted. 1 vote per party is equal to the number beside their name.


===

[ ] Labour (British), Aneurin Bevan, 1.2

Labour's "Revolution" will never end under Bevan. There'll be more investments into education and healthcare. He promises to bring "genuine socialism to the shores of Britain" by granting greater autonomy and worker control over nationalized industries to the unions. Housing will be a human right, as will higher education. The science and arts will flourish like never before. The colonies will be granted independence and a more critical eye will be taken to the Union's European allies. No longer will London overlook authoritarians and neo-fascists on its doorstep. Instead it'd pressure its European allies to democratize.

The splitting of the party risked losing previously safe seeks. The radical nature of the reforms threatened to turn off some voters as well. Despite those setbacks, inertia was seemingly on Bevan's side entering the election. There were whispers of dissent from the military, fearful that Bolshevism was about to arrive on Britain's shores. How much was scuttlebutt and how much was genuine remained to be seen.

[ ] Social Democratic Party (British), Hugh Gaitskell, 0.6
-[ ] Coalition: Radical Liberals

Deciding to try his hand at running his own party, Gaitskell seeks more moderate policies than Bevan's Labour. They hold very similar positions on a great many things, however they place greater emphasis on small businesses and craft unions in the hopes of eking out a loyal niche for themselves alongside stolen Labour voters. Gaitskell himself stands out for his outspoken support for culturally progressive policies and anti-racism. It plans on carrying on the torch set aflame by Attlee, claiming credit for the previous government's successes.

[ ] Radical Liberal Party (British or French), Jo Grimond/Reve Pleven, 1
-[ ] Coalition: Social Democrats
-[ ] Coalition: National Rally

The Radicals remain the only mainstream French party outside of the National Rally. They've shored up their support among voters by delivering on electoral promises. Internally it sidelined the more radical members of the party. Pleven himself is a supporter of Darlan's reorganized party, but decided not to join it when an opportunity presented itself. Liberal's leader Clement Davis had retired ahead of the election, hopeful that a younger leader would be able to steer the party in his place. In a much debated decision, a merger of parties was proposed to solidify a centrist social liberal bloc within the Union.

The joint party represents a new era in FBU politics where the two halves of the union are far less separate. The Rad Lib's aims were pursuing social welfare, mixed economic policies, progressive politics, and support for small businesses. The expected line up of policies one would expect from a broadly center-left coalition of liberals and social democrats.

[ ] Tory (British), Harold Macmillan, 1
-[ ] Coalition: National Rally

The Tories under Macmillan will maintain the postwar consensus while undermining what they find most egregious in the name of sensible spending. Kenysian economics is party orthodoxy, alongside corporatist handling of labour unions and state companies. The reactionary Monday Club remains a thorn in Macmillan's side, eager to reinstate British institutions and hold onto the empire at all costs. They are vocal, and they are eager to seize power of the party themselves. It perhaps speaks to Labour's victory that even their most outspoken opposition are still taking notes off them.

[ ] National Rally (French), Francois Darlan, 2
-[ ] Coalition: Tory
-[ ] Coalition: Radical Liberals

Darlan's ascent into power within Algeria was unstoppable, having reorganized the Conservative Bloc into the National Rally for Unity. A collection of centrists, moderates, conservatives, militarists, even a few syndicalists, and more, it was held together by Darlan's personal authority into a stable coalition. It was defined by dirigisme economics, populist conservatism, and limited colonial reform: broadly supporting the postwar consensus. Maintaining FBU hegemony was paramount in foreign affairs.

===

Please vote by plan. There is a moratorium.

===