The race is on. Where most considered the race for President had begun early with the March announcement by senator Euan Gunn, no one saw this one coming.
Former Speaker of the Chamber, billionaire, Leader of the Green Liberal Party, and energy tycoon (CEO of Blackwater Energy Industries) Cain Blackwater has announced his candidacy at a special rally in his home town of Tofino, striking a symbolic tone by holding the rally in Gaviria Park, right in front of Congressional Hall where he once held prominent political power and where the Conservatives currently reign supreme.
Blackwater is one of the most liked politicians in Zamastan. He was the Speaker of the Chamber from 1988 to 1994 and is known for his bilateral approach to politics. He famously denounced the invasion of Vulkaria in 1999, which resulted in one of the deadliest wars of the 21st century. He is a hard-liner when it comes to energy initiatives – his company “Blackwater Energy Industries” is a key leader in green energy, constructing wind farms and solar plants across not only Zamastan but the world. He is also for the reconstruction of nuclear power plants and the slow decrease off of coal powered sources. He is currently the head of the Green Liberal Party, coordinates candidates for the party during election cycles and delivers the main spoken points during debate season, but this announcement has thrust him further into the limelight.
Whether for good or for bad, he has run for President before. He ran in 1992, 1998, and 2014 against Cassious Castovia, 2018 against Zacharias Castovia, and in the emergency election of 2019 against incumbent president Anya Bishop. His losses may hurt his reputation in the long run, as this is his sixth presidential run. However, it could be his redeeming moment. President Bishop is facing the lowest ratings of any modern President of Zamastan since Quinn Werner, and the conservatives elected in 2018 have also started to drift away from her administration.
The current speaker, Foley Sakzi, has split issues from the President numerous times in the three months that she has been in office, effectively creating a breach in trust between the executive and legislative branches of government and forming a rift in the Conservative party.
The question in the coming months will be this: will other high profile or up-and-coming liberals aim to overtake Blackwater’s candidacy and create an even larger pool (which currently only consists of Sen. Gunn and himself), or will they step aside and let the current two prolific liberal candidates hammer it out until only the victor is left to face Bishop. In an office that has been held by liberals since 1982, the Presidency finally seems open for grabs by a liberal-affiliated candidate.
Another question arises in the midst of Blackwater’s announcement too, however. Is Zamastan ready for a drastic shift in liberal policy? Though labeled as the “conservative” party, the BCP is overwhelmingly moderate, with well over two-thirds of the current politicians in office falling near, directly on, or in some cases left of the political ideology spectrum. Most policies enacted into law are co-sponsored by BCP members and GLP members, and include a healthy mix of social and economic reform. If there’s one thing Bishop is well liked for, it is her left-leaning policy which in some cases has helped the BCP rally around her. Having a “conservative” party president who can appeal to co-lateral sponsorship in the Congressional Hall is something that is well received by the public.
However, Bishop’s economic policy (deemed to be her most liberal attribute) has harmed the economy and spurred riots against her in Tofino and other major metropolitan areas. These events have shown not only the country, but the world, how the consequences of sloppily executed liberal economic policies have affected the President’s administration and reign. Whether it is time for a more solidified liberal President is up for debate, and Blackwater and Gunn have plenty of time to prove themselves. Or, is Zamastan needing to go back to a more solidified conservative leader? The election is not for another 516 days, and Bishop is still early in her inaugural term. There’s always room for things to turn around and for minds to change.
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