President of West Miersa

President of West Miersa
Emblem
Incumbent Stanisław Kantorowicz since 7 April 2008
Term length	Five years
Constituting instrument	Constitution of West Miersa
Inaugural holder	Świętosław Wojdyla
Formation	26 October, 1936
Deputy	Premier of West Miersa (1936-1943; 1983-)

The President of the Miersan Republic (Miersan: Prezydent Republika Mierska), commonly known as the President of West Miersa (Prezydent Mierski Zachodniej) is the head of state of the Miersan Republic. Created in 1936 with the establishment of West Miersa, it was constitutionally defined as being the head of state, but over the decades has also become the de-facto head of government.

The president is elected every five years alongside the National Assembly (Sejm) via first-past-the-post. Over the decades the position has been commonly considered to be that of an autocrat, being a military dictator from the 1940s to the 1980s to a civilian dictator since. The current president Stanisław Kantorowicz has served in the role since 2008 being re-elected thrice.

History

With the independence of West Miersa from Soravia following the implementation of the Godfredson Plan in 1936, the drafters of the West Miersan constitution sought to create a head of state modelled on the Soravian Presidency, elected every five years by the people of the Miersan Republic. However, unlike Soravia, the framers decided to institute term limits, with each President only being re-elected once.

Although the Presidency was not intended to be as centralised as the Soravian Presidency, with powers being distributed to the legislature and the voivodeships, following the 1943 military coup the presidency became a dictator with elections abolished in favour of a military-appointed electoral college choosing the president. Following the Miersan War the 1936 constitution was brought back with the president being envisioned to take a figurehead role. The new president, Tomisław Sobolewski, abused the constitution by declaring a state of emergency following the Lemovican War and ruling as a dictator. Sobolewski's quarter-century long rule saw the presidency transformed as term limits were abolished in 1990. Sobolewski was elected six times - in 1981, 1986, 1991, 1996, 2001 and 2006. Only in 1981 was the election considered to be competitive.

Sobolewski died in 2008 and was succeeded by the premier Stanisław Kantorowicz who pledged to serve for only two terms. Under Kantorowicz some presidential powers were returned to the Sejm in 2014. In 2018 Kantorowicz ran for and won a third term.

Role

Under the West Miersan constitution, the President functions as the head of state of the Miersan Republic, with the power to sign legislation into law, to appoint and dismiss the Premier of the Miersan Republic from among the National Assembly, and to appoint legislators to represent what the West Miersan government considers to be "voivodeships under Kirenian occupation."

In addition, the President of the Miersan Republic has an obligation to represent all Miersans, both within the Miersan Republic, but also on the international stage.

List of Presidents

No.	Portrait	Name	Took office	Left office	Days	Political Party
1		Świętosław Wojdyla (1870-1949)	26th October 1936	4th June 1943	6 years, 7 months and 9 days	Nonpartisan
			The first president of West Miersa Wojdyla focused on post-war reconstruction and the creation of a functioning state. His term was marked by economic anarchy, political instability and widespread corruption. After facing several revolts and failing to contain a socialist insurgency Wojdyla was ousted in 1943 by a Soravian backed coup.
2		Marshal Sylwester Krasowsky (1899-1961)	4th June 1943	15th December 1961	18 years, 4 months and 11 days	Military
			Coming to power with the support of Soravia, Krasowsky created a military dictatorship. Reducing hyperinflation and eliminating the socialist rebellion Krasowsky made the country into a puppet of Soravia. His government was marked by stability but failed to generate economic development and remained very repressive being one of the poorest countries in Euclea. In 1961 he died in office, the first head of state to do so.
3		Marshal Maurycy Jackowiak (1905-1997)	15th December 1961	3rd June 1981	19 years, 7 months and 19 days	Military
			Succeeding Krasowsky Jackowiak led a programme of economic reform after the stagnation of the 1950s. Under Jackowiak economic development would lead to a gradual increase in the standard of living although corruption and stagnation continued to be pervasive in the national economy. In 1969 there was widespread student protests in the country that were brutally repressed leading to repression to tighten by the regime. Under his rule the country would be invaded by the east in the Miersan War. Although preventing the country from being overrun the collapse of much of the army led to support for his government to evaporate and he resigned in June 1981.
-		General Witold Klimowicz (1910-1984)	3rd June 1981	24th October 1981	4 months and 4 days	Military
			Coming to power following the conclusion of the Miersan war Klimowicz organised elections. He allegedly rigged the elections to ensure anti-socialist candidate Tomisław Sobolewski won.
		Tomisław Sobolewski (1930-2008)	24th October 1981	7th April 2008	26 years, 5 months and 14 days	Nonpartisan ↓ ZLN
4
			The first civilian president since 1943 Sobolewski sought to rebuild West Miersa after the civil war. His government nationalised Soravian firms and led the sanajca policy that aimed to ethnically cleanse the country of minority groups targeting Soravians and Lemovicans in particular. These policies particularly towards Lemovicans led to Champania to invade the country and annex the Lemovica region isolating the country. During the latter half of the 1980s and early half of the 1990s west Miersa became marked by corruption, organised crime and ethnic violence leading to very high emigration. Political isolation ended in 199X when West Miersa joined Samorspi. Economic liberalisation helped lead to the western economy to recover although corruption remained rampant as did political repression. In 2008 Sobolewski died in office.
8		Stanisław Kantorowicz (1956-)	7th April 2008	Present	16 years, 7 months and 18 days	ZLN
			Purging internal opponents Kantorowicz's presidency saw a gradual shift away from the policies of his predecessor opening up West Miersa to foreign investors, privatising state-owned enterprises, scaling back the programme of Miersiation and pursuing a foreign policy of "reconciliation and trust building" with West Miersa's neighbours. Kantorowicz has notably put relations with Soravia at the forefront of his presidency and under his rule west Miersa is noted to have undergone "Soraviasation".