Selkie Politics

The Khilaia is not a simple country with a simple political system. It is somewhere between a republic and a confederation, where custom and decentralization trump cohesion or coherency.
To explain selkie politics, I will begin with the basics of the system. Then, I will get into the functioning of the actual political mechanisms of the Khlaia. Then, I will get into the great clans that dominate politics. And lastly, I will briefly explain recent history.

System Basics

'Khilaia' means 'community' or 'assembly' in the old language of Motosui. It is the community that all Selkies are (theoretically) born into, the great family that unites every selkie fleet and community on the planet. The Khilaia decides who gets to undergo the Test of the Depths - the ritual that grants every selkie their sacred pelt and marks a selkie. One's pelt defines a selkie, marking them as a competent adult. As the Test can only be undertaken on the holy islands, the Khilaia has an absolute monopoly on who is a selkie and who is not. Those communities that violate the laws and treaties of the Khilaia are denied access to the sacred isles, and to the mutual aid networks of the Khilaian supply ports. This is a very persuasive threat, but not one that can be used lightly.
The Khilaia is a loose and vague government, with limited control over selkie ships in distant seas. There is a structure of ship communities that allows for the projection of Khilaian laws and power, but even this can fail to monitor or change ship behavior outside of specific ports or fleet zones. Many in the Khilaia have leaned into this and have focused on only having a handful of laws - mostly seeking to use a series of treaties to mediate the way that selkie ships interact with foreign governments.
So, who makes the laws? Who judges whether they were enforced? 
Most laws and treaties are created and judged by the Motosui Assembly, the great representative assembly of the fleets. The Motosui Assembly is a legislative body of over 370 members, each elected from a Pod of 100 - 200 selkie crews, or from a major selkie port region. The Assembly drafts and votes on treaties with foreign powers, negotiating trade barriers and freedom of movement for selkie vessels. It also votes on punishments for selkies that break those treaties, and on revisions for prior treaties as regimes rise and fall across the world. The Assembly also votes on things like who gets the most favorable negotiated shipping deals, which are given to major merchant houses and then distributed among the local crews. Disagreements over deal divisions and licensing can also escalate into court cases heard by the Assembly. The Assembly may vote to impose taxes, particularly on those thta receive boons from the Khilaia. Lastly, laws and guidelines for all selkies can be issued here - though actual laws are extremely rarely passed. A small group of 25 representatives known as the Watakilai manages the decision making and has special powers in leading the assembly.
Important judicial intepretations and emergency executive decisions are made by the Selkie Circle of Elders, a small oligarchy of ten old elite politicians led by the Revered Speaker.
The actual functioning of the day to day tasks and bureaucratic elements of the Khilaia on the main islands is handled by the Hanahai.

Fleet Structures

Seabound selkie crews are organized into structures of mutual aid and resource pooling, which they use to gather investment for businesses, cooperate for bulk shipping deals, repair ships, and swap crew members. Crews gather in Flotillas of 2-20 crews, which tend to be the base units of ship organizing for business or repairs. Flotillas gather into Fleets of 20 to 100 crews, which are large shipping groups, which tend to be the unit for holding court or meeting on important issues. Fleets gather into Pods of 100 to 200 crews, which are the basic unit for military and political organizing - Pods elect representatives to the Khilaia and handle regional threats most are based in selkie Admiralties in foreign lands. Pods tend to have designated selkie Admiralties (or port districts in foreign lands) that they coordinate through. Multiple Pods form Navies, which are the great units of power, and the only unit really policed and subsidized by the big institutions.
There are twenty navies, as shown below:

all of which are controlled by powerful clans.
Clans are the other big organizing element - family kin networks that extend beyond crews and serve as connective tissue between distant ships. Most clans are relatively minor, but there are five Great clans currently ascendant in politics and fifteen other clans that control Navies that constantly jockey for their own piece of the pie.

Motosui Assembly

So, the Motosui Assembly is a legislative body that represents the pods, coastal march kingdom ports, and Admiralties; over 370 representatives in total sit on the legislature. It is split between two houses: the Nasui, or main assembly, and the Inner Council of the 25 Watakilai of the great clans. That is, to be frank, a lot of people representing a very diverse group of interests. So, how do they get anything done?
Well, this is partially a matter of the Inner Council - the 25 Watakilai of the Great Clans - that sets the rules and agendas for the assembly. It is also a matter of committees: the Assembly often elects groups of senior representatives to manage committees handling specific cases. These committees typically bring their results to the Assembly for approval, but some may be empowered to bring matters to the Watakilai for approval instead, circumventing the large and rowdy main assembly hall entirely.
The most powerful committees, with the most robust staff, make up Treaty Court, which handles the judicial matters surrounding treaties with foreign bodies and agreements between Navies. Judges for Treaty Court are chosen by the Council of Elders (and are technically members of the Threadbearers, a kind of Hanahai), but the Assembly often oversees these proceedings and votes on whether to confirm them.
How a treaty typically goes from concept to pact is:

• A Captain negotiates with a foreign sovereign or another Captain; they draft an initial version
• A diplomatic representative of the local Pod is sent to replace the Captain or assist them, typically revising the draft
• The Pod sends a copy of the final draft and an emissary to the Khilaia
• The final draft is brought before a Treaty Judge and a treaty committee; the judge can make final revisions, and empower their own emissary to continue negotiations
• If the Nasui feels the treaty is of particular importance, they may escalate the issue to a full floor vote; this is very rare
• When the draft reaches its final stage, the Judge stamps it with the Elders' seal, and the committee confirms that the Assembly
• Copies of the treaty are made and stored in the great Archive. Additional copies are produced to be sent out to the major clans of the relevant Pods

So, basically, minor actors can initiate big treaties, but every big shareholder gets their turn to try and add their conditions. Non-aggression treaties, anti-raiding treaties, contraband-definition treaties, neutrality treaties, and free trade agreements are the most common treaties signed, and are not often controversial. There is even a default template for a State Trade Pact or STP, which states that selkies will not raid state shipping or engage in any military action against a state if it 1) does not levy tariffs, 2) does not restrict maritime movement outside of quarantines, and 3) provides a physical outpost for selkies to dock safely and live. State Trade Pacts tend to push the selkies to favor large, non-militaristic states that are stable and long-lasting - states that can be relied as safe trade partners for long periods.
Major treaty violations are also handled in Treaty Court, though minor violations can usually be safely handled by the local Pods.
Generally speaking, the Motosui assembly is divided into five ideological alliances led by the five great clans, who have formed three great coalitions - the Political Parties:

• The Judicialists, who want a strong treaty-based center of power that isn't a full government and continued focus on trade and neutrality. Led by Clan Woshalui and Clan Mikiraka
• The Federalists, who want a robust central government and a strong military. Led by Clan Naimaka and Clan Danohel
• The Libertaines, who want an even less unified Khilaia with fewer rules and freer trade. Led by Clan Manuhel.

And who votes with what faction is a matter of both patronage and ideology, not to mention commercial interest.
Why send one of your own to go be an Assembly representative? Well, both to give your crew an outsized voice in politics and to best expose them to valuable business dealings in the Sacred Isles.

The Circle of Elders

The Circle of Elders is a group of ten elders, typically over the age of 50 or 60, each of whom is considered to have accomplished deeds and careers of note. Most of these elders come from powerful political dynasties, but not all of them do - glory and reputation matter much more than birth here. The Circle of Elders curate a list of possible successors, called the Esteemed Roll, which is quite the accomplishment to get on - the Roll is public and serves as a kind of award in itself. Whenever a member of the Circle dies, the Revered Elder, the first among equals, proposes a replacement from the list and the council votes on it. 
The Circle of Elders' main job is the run the Hanahai, or sacred bureaucracy of the islands. They can also initiate internal changes within the selkie bureaucracy - notably, they can initiate the removal of a selkie clan from a major Naval title, though this often requires the support of the other Naval clans in practice. The Elders also manage emergency defense and executive decision making. The Elders have their own treasury, on top of the smaller treasuries of the Hanahai, from tarriffs and taxes paid at the sacred isles to mandatory "gifts" provided by elite station-holders to a portion of magic item license money. This slush fund is partially used to host the Assembly, but is mostly for executive decisions like putting bounties on pirates or treaty-breakers or mobilizing ship levies against community-wide threats. 

The Circle of Elders rule from the small island of Okailu, where the Test of the Depths is conducted, and control the island with absolute authority. 

The Five Great Clans

There are five great clans who control much of selkie politics, as well as fifteen powerful Navy Clans that serve as their most valuable allies and dangerous internal enemies. The five great clans each have a major asset belonging to them that they use to attract commercial followers - but they also have ideological stances, which they use to attract idealists to their banners. They also have lines of patronage, wealth re-distribution to allies and business partners used to establish political hierarchies that are then mobilized in the Assembly chamber.
These clans are important enough to list, as their differences define the internal schisms within the major political parties. Clan allegiance, more than party, determines voting for most representatives.

• Clan Mikiraka, clan of the Eastern winds, are the rulers of the Asalay contract and the Eastern Magic Item Licensing arrangements. They are the Admirals of the Izekra fleet, with long business tendrils into Ekraht, Desmia, and Eastern Samvara. Clan Mikiraka is at their peak right now, ascended from petty clan in distant waters to Khilaian superpower. Ideologically, they have a reputation as hyper-neutral technocratic diplomats, always eager to import new technologies. They believe that the selkies should actively carve a space for themselves as neutral diplomats and intermediaries, and that the Khilaia represents a kind of global sacred middle ground and market. To this end, the Mikirakas support strict treaty enforcement as well as more paperwork generally. They are Judicialists.
• Clan Woshalui, clan of a Thousand Blossoms, are the rulers of the March Kingdom of Arashoka and the Navy of Western Samvara. They control shipping around North Samvara and into the Khilaian isles themselves, making them a vital asset and ascendant clan. Another recent risen power, Clan Woshalui is actively rising to challenge Mikiraka, their frenemies, at the top. Ideologically, they support the interests of all sedentary selkies in foreign lands, though in practice they mostly listen to sedentary Samvarans. The Woshalui champion religious plurality, Samvaran investment, and constitutional reform to create more clearly defined lines between March Kingdoms, armadas, and sedentary groups while still granting them all seats at the table. They also support limited military interventions protecting selkie interests in Samvara - but only existing ones. They are more or less pro-neutrality like Mikiraka, but they are a big more central-government oriented. They are Judicialists.
• Clan Naimaka, Clan of the Guiding Star, are the ancient conquerors of Larazel and still hold onto the Southern Straights Navy - the vital magic item tradeway to Garadel. They control navies around Larazel and Garadel, and have significant lands in the March Kingdom of Kakoru. They now also control the newly opened pathway to Nafena, using the supply post of the island of Loanua. Naimaka is the other big ascendant clan. The Naimaka champion Garadek and Larazek investment, as well as close partnerships with Samvaran institutions such as Rueka , Pratasam , and the Healing Church. The Naimaka also support Pratasa religious groups in Samvaran territory that dislike Woshalui's secularism. They are unapologetically for having a Samvaran state religion. Sees the Khilaia as an alliance of kingdoms. They are Federalists.
• Clan Danohel, Clan of Ancient Glory, are the most militarized clan - they hold the lucrative but dangerous honor of being the naval coordinators of the Lunar God's joint wars against the Empire of Runeva. Clan Danohel are imperialists and pirate hunters who control the fleets on both sides of Sonev. The Danohel see the Khilaia as an Empire that just doesn't enforce its claims on the seas. Indeed, the Danohel look very fondly on the ancient selkie empires and openly associate themselves with Milen the Conqueror. Thanks to their rigorous work and martial glory, they have managed to get disproportionate Circle of Elders representation, and the current Revered Elder is a Danohel. They are Federalists.
• Clan Manuhel, Clan of Furthest Dawn, are the charismatic masters of the periphery. They have invested heavily in a number of far-flung estates around the world, and are an incredibly spread out family that has sought to explore and lead trade on the furthest frontiers. In Stildane, in Suneka, in Ukaram, in Inahng, and in Maradia, the Manuhel have boldly, even stupidly, thrown their young adventurous heirs and money to lead the selkies in first contacts and negotiations. They have, thusly, been written into some amazing but risky long-distance trade contracts. The Manuhel are deeply into old religion and fresh markets and subsidize explorers, cartographers, and translators. The Manuhel also support crew autonomy; they often support crews over treaties, and envision the Khilaia as more of a consensual meeting space than a government. They are the only one of the five great clans to be Libertaines. 

The fifteen lesser families will not be described here. 

Recent History

The current iteration of the Khilaia is roughly 400 years old, having been founded in the 1600s after a failed coup destroyed the old government in 1580. The first century, the 1600s, was one of neutrality and low-level control, mostly focused on forming voluntary bonds with powerful selkie sea-clans. After the March Kingdom of Arashoka stabilized in 1730, the Khilaia itself also became more stable and capable - but a period of intense corruption ensued. In 1850, the near-collapse of the nearby march kingdom again spurred local action, and five clans stepped forward: Manuhel, Danohel, Naimaka, Maolui, and Kelahel. These five clans established the Five Clan system that currently dominates politics, and moved to unite the legislature behind massive top-down executive action to prevent further instability.
While some clans, like Danohel, were thrilled at the centralized action, others, like Manuhel, were terrified at what they'd done. Clan Manuhel in particular began investing in the Reform Movement, to get corruption out of politics (and, to the clan, get politics out of sea nomad life). This has, ironically, re-energized politics as more slots for smaller actors have been opened up. Notably, it has brought ideology more overtly into the mix: since 1900, there have been political parties, slogans, and ideological debates like basically never before. A perfect mix of risen literacy, selkie prosperity, and open politics has created an air of democracy (even where it doesn't really exist by our standards). The two new houses, Mikiraka and Woshalui, forming an alliance in the overtly ideological Judicialist Party in 1970, has seriously changed the game: they are even making flags for these factions now. Ideological factionalism has gone from crass and anti-communal to being an expression of selkie identity.