Lord John Gordon, Viscount of Thetford, has been elected the seventh Prime Minister of the Empire of Austenasia, with 60.6% of the vote.
His rival candidate, Lord Andrew Musgrave, received 36.1% of the vote, whereas an option to Abstain – which, if it gained a majority, would have forced fresh elections – received 3.3% of the vote.
This translates to thirty seven and twenty two votes respectively from the sixty one Austenasian subjects who voted yesterday. With one hundred and eight of Austenasia’s population eligible to vote, this was a 56.5% turnout.
Lord Andrew Musgrave has been appointed Deputy Prime Minister by Lord Gordon.
Both Lord Gordon and Lord Musgrave have a long history in Austenasia. Lord Gordon is the longest continually serving Representative, having represented Palasia in Parliament since July 2013, whereas Lord Musgrave is the longest serving Governor, having administered Corinium Terentium since December 2013.
Lord John Gordon is the first former Prime Minister to resume the office, having also served from June 2020 to September 2021. This was a term feted for its political and cultural prosperity, the memory of which no doubt helped in his election.
Lord Gordon – who held office as Speaker during the previous government – is also known for his sense of humour, leading the effort to have baked beans declared Austenasia’s national dish in reference to an in-joke on the national Discord server, and adopting as his campaign portrait a photo with a highly edited hairstyle.
Lord Gordon’s campaign promised organising projects for Austenasians to work on to promote engagement with national life, an active approach to foreign affairs, promotion of Austenasia’s Roman heritage, and exploring initiatives to involve Austenasia with UN-related international bodies as some other small nations have done.
