Chapter 1403: An Election Without Suspense
According to French election laws, any French citizen could run for the House of Representatives by submitting an application and securing the signatures of two thousand eligible voters.
As such, no formal political parties had yet emerged, only loose factional alliances.
This made the elections full of unpredictability.
In a building in the western suburbs of Paris, the candidate Buchard looked at the chubby man opposite him and said seriously, "Mr. Rochefort, you still need to add at least another 1,000 Francs to the campaign fund."
"You know, placing a one-hundred-word campaign advertisement in a corner of the Paris Business Journal now costs 300 Francs."
The lawyer named Rosh, standing nearby, immediately nodded. "Or I could withdraw from the election this term and leave the funds to Mr. Buchard. Otherwise, neither of us stands a chance."
Indeed, Rochefort was sponsoring two candidates at once, but he had only allocated two thousand Francs to each.
"These unscrupulous newspapers! At the start of the year, 300 Francs was enough to place an advertisement on the second page," Rochefort "protested" with an exaggerated expression, then smiled. "But trust me, the current funds will be enough. I mean, for two seats."
The two candidates exchanged helpless glances, deciding to temporarily set aside the funding issue. "Then let's discuss which faction to join."
The lawyer nodded. "I recommend the 'Liberals.' Their street speeches are very effective. Most importantly, speeches don't cost much."
"The 'Trade Faction' isn't bad either. Currently, they seem to have the most members."
Rochefort inquired about the existing election factions, then frowned. "With all due respect, given your and Mr. Rosh's current public recognition, you would likely be overshadowed by other candidates in any of these larger factions."
Buchard sighed. "Then the 'Radical Faction'? But they advocate occupying Vienna—that's just too insane..."
Rochefort considered for a moment. "Considering the platforms of the various factions you've just described, I don't believe any of them offer the best campaign strategy."
"What do you mean?"
A sly gleam flashed in the chubby man's eyes. "How about we form our own faction?"
Buchard said dispiritedly, "That... that would be incredibly difficult... it would require immense public appeal..."
Rochefort, however, seemed supremely confident. "What if we form the 'Crown Prince Faction'? Our core tenet would be singular: absolute loyalty to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, always following in His Highness's footsteps!"
The two candidates exchanged glances once more, then shook their heads vigorously. "But... but the very purpose of the House of Representatives is for citizens to oversee royal power. Wouldn't that mean..."
Rochefort looked them earnestly in the eyes. "What if the citizens' choice *is* the Crown Prince? We would simply be following the will of the people."
"But..."
"It's settled then. I will find a very well-known noblewoman to host a salon and invite many young candidates, and you will take the lead in organizing them!"
Seats in this House of Representatives election were allocated by province, and Paris alone accounted for 102 of the total 380 seats.
As long as the 'Crown Prince Faction' established influence in Paris, it could become a force to be reckoned with in the House of Representatives!
...
July 5, 1800.
The French House of Representatives election, which had captured the attention of all of Europe, officially commenced.
On the street beside a polling station in Paris's Louvre District, two candidates from the 'Crown Prince Faction' passionately declared in loud voices, "It is His Great Majesty the King and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince who have bestowed parliamentary rights upon us! What reason do we have not to follow them?"
"May God forever bless them!"
"Long live His Royal Highness the Crown Prince!"
Hundreds of people nearby immediately joined in the excited chorus: "Long live His Royal Highness the Crown Prince!"
A little further away, the 'Liberals,' the largest faction besides the Crown Prince Faction, had gathered fewer than a hundred people, their momentum completely overshadowed.
In front of the polling station, a group of veterans stood in neat lines, each handing their ballots to the vote counters in turn.
Within the French army, Honor Representatives taught soldiers to read, and some even instructed them in mathematics and geography. After retirement, soldiers could also enter regular schools for free with the support of the Ministry of Military Affairs, which resulted in nearly half of all veterans becoming eligible to vote.
Voters had registered months ago. The polling station administrator publicly announced each vote as it was cast: "Mr. Abel Chevalier voted for Mr. Henri Gaston Buchard."
Indeed, elections in this era were largely conducted via public ballots, primarily to prevent backroom dealings.
By five o'clock that afternoon, when the polling station ceased counting votes, Buchard had already secured over 600 ballots there.
It should be noted that this was merely the vote count from a single district in Paris. Proportionally speaking, his votes from today alone were nearly enough to secure a seat in the House of Representatives.
Voting in Paris would continue for ten days, and the entire House of Representatives election would conclude a month later.
...
July 27.
On the gravel path leading to the Petit Trianon, Louis XVI said to his son with a pained expression, "I truly have a brilliant idea that I urgently need to bring to life in the workshop. So, let's discuss it—how about we temporarily cancel this afternoon's exercise?"
Joseph, however, held his father's arm more firmly. "You see, over the past month and a half, your weight has decreased by a full 4 kilograms, which is a positive sign of improving health."
"And you must have noticed that you have more energy now than you did over a month ago."
Louis XVI nodded. "That's true. Even at eleven o'clock at night, I can still keep my mind clear."
"So exercise won't hinder your inventions; it will enhance them."
"And only if you persevere with your exercise can you encourage Mother to do the same. You know how important this is to her."
Only then did Louis XVI stop struggling, shifting instead to a currently popular topic. "By the way, I heard the House of Representatives election is almost over?"
Although the election wouldn't be completely over for another week, a total of 351 seats had already been decided, excluding remote areas like North Africa.
Joseph nodded. "Yes, they're already nominating speakers."
"Which faction will secure the speakership?"
"Uh..." Joseph said awkwardly, somewhat vaguely, "It will probably be 'my' faction."
"Your faction?" Louis XVI was somewhat surprised. "Did you plant people in the House of Representatives?"
"Father, I swear, this has absolutely nothing to do with me," Joseph said with a wry smile. "I don't know who came up with the 'Crown Prince Faction,' but they won 57 seats in Paris alone."
Louis XVI laughed. "That's very good. Sometimes I truly worry that some strange people would gain control of the House of Representatives."
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