The Duchy of Santa Delphina

Santa Delphina is a Duchy within the Federal Empire of Escea. Santa Delphina is centrally located in the Federal Empire, and is bordered by the Imperial Crown to the North, Lazarus and the Republic of Eustania to the east, Astarza to the west, and Serapin and Cervia to the south. A hub of finance and culture, Santa Delphina is the most populous and important province of the Federal Empire, and is home to some of the most famous and successful media corporations in the galaxy.

History
Santa Delphina was initially colonized by Terran Warp-scouts in the late 2450's, around a decade after the initial settlement of the systems which would come to form the Escean Imperial Crown. Santa Delphina was deemed a region of interest early on primarily thanks to the already habitable worlds of Mercedes, and Montella which were quickly settled and developed into major economic centers in the region. Though its systems were all initially independent of one another their governments quickly entered into a mutual-alliance known as the Delphi pact, along with their neighbors in the Imperial Crown. The Delphi pact quickly expanded to include other near by systems in the Lazarus Republic, as well as several smaller systems in what would eventually come to be Astarza, Serapin, and Cervia.

By the late 2600's the Delphi Pact had increasingly centralized to such a point that a public referendum for unification was held amongst the populations of all member states. The referendum passed narrowly by a 52-48 margin, leading to the establishment of the Escean Empire on January 1st, 2699 or 637/277. Under the new Escean Empire Santa Delphina was organized as a Duchy, but with one unique difference from any other Duchy. Rather than being a hereditary position, the populace of the Duchy request the position of their leader be an elected one, with the Duke serving a life term.

Santa Delphina was on the front lines of the Escean civil-war, and along with Lazarus suffered greatly from the conflict. Extensive damage was done to the worlds of Mercedes Del Valle and Montella, which took nearly a century to recover from. Following the war however, Santa Delphina experienced a renaissance as its extensive reconstruction efforts (bolstered by Imperial incentives and subsidies) led to the massive expansion of its local industry. An already favorable business climate, large and educated populace, and extensive natural scenery led to Santa Delphina becoming both a thriving tourist hub, as well as a new economic center for popular media, especially film and music. Today Santa Delphina is the richest and most populous duchy in the Empire, and is perhaps the most famous tourist region in the galaxy, with a substantial plurality of the galaxy's leading television, film, and music coming from the Duchy.

Government
Unlike the rest of the Empire, Santa Delphina is led by an Electoral Duke, currently Ana Tavera, who serves for a life-long term after a special election. The Duke of Santa Delphina acts as the head of state for the Duchy, both leading the Cabinet, commanding the Ducal Houseguard, and representing the Duchy in the larger body politic of the Escean Empire. Beyond the title of Duke there are 7 elected titles which make up the cabinet of Santa Delphina. The Director of the Chamber of the Treasury is responsible for most taxation, and maintaining the Ducal Budget. The Prefect of the Houseguard is responsible for the operations of the Ducal Houseguard, and protection to the Duke. The Justice of the Cabinet oversees the Duchy's legal endeavors and appoints judges to lower courts. The Director of the Chamber of Education & Science is responsible for setting education and science budgets, as well as managing research subsidies across the duchy. The Director of the Chamber of Trade sets business taxes, tariffs, and is responsible for the licensing of businesses in the duchy. The Director of the Chamber of Urban Design & Development is responsible for the construction and expansion of urban areas across the Duchy, in addition to many welfare programs such as public housing and transit. Lastly, the Director of the Chamber of Agriculture is responsible for all agricultural subsidies, the maintenance of the food supply (including securing imports), as well as food welfare programs. Each cabinet seat serves a 5-year term.

Economy
Santa Delphina has a diverse economy with many industries spread across its systems, however its two largest are by far the technology sector (With the Delphina system in particular being one of the largest technology hubs outside the Terran Federation), and the media sector primarily based out of Mercedes Del Valle. Low taxes and a large and highly educated populace have helped Santa Delphina's economy blossom into the largest in the Empire, and the duchy is one of the few in the Empire to currently enjoy a healthy budget surplus. There is little in the way of industry in Santa Delphina, and the duchy imports most of its consumer and industrial goods from foreign sources, primarily the Terran Federation, and Orran League.

Santa Delphina is also home to many large education institutions as well, including the Escean Academy of Arts and Sciences on Mercedes, and the Escean Imperial Collegeof Sciences at Montella.

Society
Santa Delphina is famously one of the most liberal duchies in an already exceeding liberal Empire. With both lax taxation, decriminalization of most drugs, a fully elected government, and free and open media and journalism laws, Santa Delphina is considered one of the most free societies outside the shroud. Santa Delphina is a multi-cultural society, and recognizes dozens of official languages, though English, Chinese, and especially Spanish tend to be the most common spoken. Generally most people's attitudes in Santa Delphina tend to be relaxed and casual, the average worker in Santa Delphina works only 1,200 hours a year, primarily thanks to the Average Santa Delphene enjoying more than 200 days off each year.