Lawrencia Prefecture

Lawrencia Prefecture (/lɔːˈrɛnsiə/, /-ʃə/, abbreviated as LR) is a prefecture in southern Enderron. It is bordered by New Surrey Prefecture to the north, Plymouth Prefecture to the east, and Westhaven Prefecture to the south and west. Its capital and largest city is Wollstonecraft, which sits at the confluence of the Hacking and Muelenbelt Rivers, giving the prefecture its nickname of The Land Where Rivers Meet. Lawrencia is named after its first colonial governor Sir Stuart Lawrence, having previously been a part of the neighbouring New Surrey colony.

Lawrencia is a sparsely populated prefecture, having far fewer residents than its neighbours, which historically was a result of being near-landlocked. Its industry is dominated by agriculture, transportation and finance. The prefecture has suffered from a sluggish economy and poor development for most of Enderron's post-independence history, which has exacerbated brain drain and internal emigration to other prefectures. For many years Lawrencia was the only prefecture in Enderron with negative population growth.

Today, Lawrencia is known for its walking trails, preserved colonial-era architecture, wineries, and a unique cultural identity shaped by English and Celtic settlers; the prefecture has significant Irish (7.1%), Scottish (3.6%) and Welsh (2.3%) populations.

The Sika deer is the official animal of Lawrencia, and is featured on the prefecture's flag.

History
TBA

Government
Lawrencia has a semi-presidential political system, with the Governor of Lawrencia Prefecture (currently Daniel Spradlin of the Liberal Party of Enderron) as the head of state, and the Premier of Lawrencia Prefecture (currently Tom Broeckel of the Liberal Party of Enderron) as the head of government. Its unicameral parliament consists of the 33-member Lawrencia Prefectural Assembly, with elections held every four years, using full preferential voting.

Federal representation
Lawrencia elects 5 Members of Parliament to the Enderronian Parliament.

Political culture
As the most socially conservative prefecture in southern Enderron, Lawrencia is known as a traditional stronghold of the Liberal Party and its predecessors. The prefecture has a far less dense population compared to its neighbours of New Surrey and Plymouth, and its economy is much less centralised in Wollstonecraft. Lawrencian politics has a reputation for populism and regionalism.

At the federal level, Lawrencia tilts heavily towards the conservative side of politics. The Liberals and their predecessors have won a majority of Lawrencia's seats in the federal parliament at every election since independence except for 1958, 1994 and 2018. At the prefectural level, the conservative United Party formed the government for all but eight years between 1946 and 1982. Since then, prefectural elections have been more competitive. The Social Democrats have also remained competitive at gubernatorial elections.

The Liberal Party is strongest in Lawrencia's rural interior and the regional city of Hunter Bay, while the Social Democrats are strongest in the inner-city parts of Wollstonecraft. The suburbs of Wollstonecraft and the eastern coastline are traditionally marginal areas.

Demographics
Lawrencia's population as of October 2018 is 648,597, making it the fourteenth-most populous prefecture in Enderron.