UPM take their seats again

Those of us who were fast asleep at 2.30 on Monday morning would have been forgiven for thinking that the Monaco football team had just won a major victory. Suddenly, the streets were filled with cars beeping their horns, as the majority party of the past 5 years celebrated a second term in office. With 20 seats out of 24, the UPM party won the election for the National Council of Monaco, the remaining 4 seats being taken by Rassemblement et Enjeux (REM). Just under 77% of the electorate turned out, 1504 of whom voted for the complete list of UPM's 24 candidates, against 1248 for REM. A number of reasons for the failure of REM have been offered, from the alliance's late entry into the contest, to the insistence of retaining two leaders rather than a single figurehead. With another 5 years before the next election, there's plenty of time for reflection.