JEDI HoloNet

Following the swearing in of dozens of new Senators on Coruscant, the fresh body of representatives set itself at the Galactic Senate Building in order to determine the next presiding Chief of State of the Galactic Alliance. With Senator Jemarc Litous of Commenor mounting a strong challenge to Chief Aquitenne, the chances of a change to the executive position seemed high, but in the end the distinguished Senator fell short of his many lofty projections.

Voting Results – Chief of State

Aquitenne – 51%
Litous – 46%
Ska – 3%

In a fortuitous display of unity, all presiding Senators of the Conservative party backed Chief Aquitenne in the important election. While a majority of Moderates and Liberals stood by Senator Litous, a significant dissenting minority of 10% proved enough to push Aquitenne to an undisputed claim of victory. Radical leftist Senator Loo Ska took home a humble support of 3% from like-minded colleagues.

While there was no ultimate changing of the guard for the position of Chief of State, the strong challenge made by Senator Litous speaks volumes about an apparent lack of confidence in the current Chief and his ability to lead, further polarizing the Senate. Nevertheless, the refreshed body of leaders saw significant change overall, and will most plausibly serve as a force to be reckoned with in determining federal policy.

280.07 – Odo Leepo // GHN

A spokesperson for the Galactic Alliance Border Guard has announced that a recent raid on a transport ship coming in from the Outer Rim has resulted in the detention of a Chiss male suspected of engaging in espionage for the Ascendancy.

The suspect, who has yet to be named, was found earlier this cycle travelling to Lok from Tatooine with only his transport ticket and no proof of GA citizenship, which has been deemed “suspicious activity” under new laws passed by the Senate. Officials have conformed that his final destination was to be Coruscant, ostensibly for a language conference, although this is being emphasised as nothing more than a cover story. The leader of the raid, Captain Valin Antilles, had this to say:

This has been a significant find for us. The Border Guard plays a vital but often overlooked role in protecting Alliance citizens, and while most of the time we catch illegal immigrants and drug runners, catching this spy proves that we do our jobs and we do them well. We’ll catch more of the bloodeye devils before they can do any damage, I assure you.

This arrest is one of several made in recent cycles with alleged ties to the Ascendancy.

Our security consultant, T’Cho Vrithel, has confirmed that the strengthened ties between the Alliance and the Ascendancy in previous years has meant the number of Chiss living in Alliance-controlled systems has risen, making the possibility of using Chiss nationals as spies a far more viable option. The strong Chiss population on Serenno caused the Commonwealth no shortage of trouble as the Ascendancy began their campaign across the Northern Terrirories, an incident Ms. Vrithel has used as an example of strong loyalties even among ex-patriots. “The threat of similar insurgencies,” she says, “is not as low as we would hope.”

As always, GHN will bring you any updates on this story as they happen.

280.06 – Elharr Bitim // GHN

After an arduous standard day of elections around the Galaxy, poll results have shown a significant change in the occupation of seats in the Galactic Senate. As expected, it has been a poor year for incumbents, as several members of Conservative, Moderate, and Liberal parties were subsequently voted out amidst strong voter perceptions of corruption.

However, it seems overall that Moderates have come out as winners of this year’s election. While Conservatives remain in the highest degree of control, a significant chunk of their seats were converted to the Moderate side, in addition taking over as the second most populous ideology, supplanting the Liberal side:

Last Election:                       This Election:

Conservative – 48%              Conservative – 41%
Moderate – 22%                    Moderate – 34%
Liberal – 30%                        Liberal – 25%

The clearest upset of the election has been unanimously accepted among political analysts in the form of Moderate candidate Donova Fabre defeating Conservative veteran and incumbent Senator Edic Vontrose of Alzoc III by two percentage points. Fabre, former Conservative party member and Legate under Senator Vontrose, was shown to be down by as much as six percentage points in the last cycle leading up to the election. Inexplicably coming from behind in dramatic fashion, Senator-elect Fabre adequately personifies the political shift seen throughout the Galaxy.

At the formal swearing in of the Galactic Senate to be held on .07, the chances of voting out Chief Aquitenne remain strong following this Moderate uprising.

Amidst the turmoil in the Outer Rim territories, citizens of the Galactic Alliance will be big players in deciding the future political handling of the war in the form of suffrage of the Galactic Senate that will occur on the not too distant date of .04. Indeed, the coming election could potentially mark a shift in a number of stances and procedures within legislative government, including but not limited to such important issues as defense spending, appropriation of resources, as well as the always controversial issue of potential expiation for the Jedi Order.

An interesting development has risen in conjunction with the coming election in the form of a potential new President of the Senate being chosen amongst a fresh body of representatives to replace the currently-presiding Chief of State Caden Aquitenne. The main challenger to Chief Aquitenne has emerged in the form of legislative veteran Senator Jemarc Litous of Commenor, a former Lieutenant Commander and military lawyer in the Alliance Navy. While like-minded in terms of base conservative ideology when compared to the current Chief, Senator Litous distances himself as a more moderate alternative in the form of his consistent support for the Jedi Order, being well-documented in his recorded votes for Jedi funding measures, in addition to his dissent in the controversial Senate measure J10960.

When confronted about the possibility of defeating and de-placing Chief of State Aquitenne on his way to a meeting in the Armed Services Committee, the distinguished Senator granted Galactic HoloNews brief insight to his own perceived chances of success:

I believe my colleagues will see that our current Chief and President may have been in over his head following the rise to his current position, and that his lack of experience was more of a liability than they may have thought. In the end, my veteran experience in legislation and military service are what set me apart from my good friend Mister Aquitenne, and I feel confident that the new influx of Senators will come to realize this in their way of choosing the alternative.

Needless to say, it appears that a war in some form will creep its way to the historic Senate Building in due time.

280.01 – Odo Leepo // GHN

In defiant fashion, Coalition forces have pushed the invading Chiss Ascendancy from the southern territories of the Commonwealth. This comes as a surprise to most military analysts, given the supposed might of the invasionary fleet, in addition to the relative indefensibility of the system. Though Coalition commanders would not comment directly about their means of success, hints were seemingly dropped that they had a tactical advantage in the form of “men on the inside”, possibly denoting the use of sabotage and/or espionage in the surprising victory.

Nevertheless, the gambit of invading the major territories of the Commonwealth speaks volumes about the perceived ambition of the Ascendancy. With Serenno crumbling in its own defenses, it seems that the Chiss have more than an ample supply of confidence in their ultimate ability to conquer the remaining systems of the North, given the fact that a second front would have possibly been opened if the tables were turned at Lvcam. Concurrently however, it seems Coalition forces have proven to have the means of standing up in the face of the enemy, even despite facing more defeats than victories at the present time.

Amidst lines of speculation and analysis, one point of discussion is consistently short for debate. There appears to be no end to this galactic conflict in the near future, and that we as citizens must prepare for the potentialities of great loss, in addition to hopeful success.

279.28 – Velia Sempata // GHN