Kou Voravong
The political crisis caused by his assassination, barely two months after the Geneva Agreements which prepared to restore peace in Indochina, contributed to bring down the current neutralist government (pro-French) which was replaced by a progressive one (pro-American) in extremely tense atmosphere of the Cold War between Russia and the United States. From 1955 indeed, the political history of this small landlocked country fell trapped inexorably in the ideological confrontation between the capitalist United States and the communist Soviet Union, annihilating any hope of national unification.
Democratic Party (Laos)
The party was established in 1948 by Kou Voragong, and was controlled by the Voravong family, who also paid for the party's newspaper "Sieng Lao" ("Voice of Laos") to be published. It won four of the 39 seats in the 1951 elections. Following Kou Voravong's assassination in 1954, it was reduced to three seats in the 1955 elections. However, the cabinet was constitutionally required to obtain the support of two-thirds of MPs, and therefore the party held a significant amount of power over the National Progressive Party, which had won 22 seats. It failed to win a seat in the 1958 supplementary elections.