United Democratic Party (Zophos)

The United Democratic Party of Zophos, or UDP, is one of the major political parties in Zophos. In the elections since independence in 2094, the party has usually placed second to the Social Progress Party. In the 2111 election, however, the UDP won a plurality of seats and formed the government. It has governed with the assistance of several minor centrist and right-wing parties, and on some pieces of legislation, the SPP.

While the UDP was hurt by a split in its ranks over the secession of Zophos from Lindossë in 2094, the fact that the federal UDP in Lindossë (unlike the federal SPP) supported secession helped restore its prestige in Zophos.

The UDP is a centrist party that supports a "middle way" between the socialism of the SPP and the free market policies of Lindossëan reformists, although it contains a wide range of political opinions within its ranks. To its opponents on the right, it is indistinguishable from the SPP in its cosy relationship with the major labour unions and its acceptance of the interventionist state. To its opponents on the left, the lukewarm policies of the UDP pose a major obstacle to true progress towards an egalitarian workers' state.