Emília Medeiros

Emília Medeiros
Emília Medeiros in 2021
21st President of Quetana
Incumbent
Assumed office 6 November 2021
Preceded by	António Brafeo
Member of the National Assembly
In office 14 January 2011 – 5 December 2021
Personal details
Born	(1976-02-01) 1 February 1976 Ledua, Quetana
Political party	Socialist Party
Spouse	Gunnar Medeiros
Children	3
Alma mater	University of Vongane

Emília Medeiros (born 1 February 1976) is a Quetanan politician who is currently the President of Quetana since November 11th, 2021, having been elected on 11 October 2021. She is a member of the Socialist Party of Quetana and led the movement to the biggest ever victory in the 2021 election which upended the António Brafeo administration. She is the second female head of state in Quetana after Jessica Castro (2001-06).

Before ascending to the presidency, she was a youth activist who led demonstrations for government action on climate change. First elected to political office at the age of 34 in 2011, she served as an MP in the National Assembly and quickly rose to prominence within the Socialist Party where she was notable for her demeanor and policies pursuing clean energy initiatives and anti-corruption legislation.

Education and non-political career

Emília was born in Ledua. She graduated from the University of Vongane in 2000 with a bachelor's degree with a major in Qoati and a minor in English. She received her M.A. in Quetanan literature from the same university in 2004 for a thesis on the work of popular Quetanan crime writer Jermone Assaici.

Political career

Medeiros was elected to Vongane's 5th seat in the National Assembly in 2011.

Presidential Campaign

A poster for Emília Medeiros and the Socialist Party

As the leader of the Socialist Party, Medeiros announced her candidacy for the 2021 general election. The election had been delayed due to an agreement made in 2018 at the height of the economic crisis to extend debt ceilings and investment limits. Brafeo has already exceeded the constitutional limit granted for a single term without reelection, which required a controversial amendment that while passed with clarity to keep a functioning government increased his unpopularity. The inauguration for President was subsequently pushed from 14 January 2021 to 6 November.

Medeiros ran on a popular platform endorsing a levity tax; lowering taxes for middle and lower classes while giving an increase to the richest earners and corporations. She also promised to eliminate corporate and political corruption, a clear point to President Brafeo's ongoing scandal involving possible laundering. Opponents, specifically Gouveia and the Vox party, called her policies communist, although they followed in line with many of Brafeo's own social programs with the exception of corporate taxes. Medeiros also held a distinction among more liberal politicians in that she pursued stricter sanctions against Yuan, which was a hot topic in the election cycle because of tensions over the status of Gangkou. She also sought to keep closer connections with WEDA and looked to get Quetana involved in TAFCA and other trade organizations internationally.

In the two Presidential debates, she faced off against incumbent President António Brafeo, Celio Furtado, Bonifacio Gouveia, Fátima Amaral, and Diogo Andrade. It became clear quickly that polls widely considered either her of Brafeo to be the frontrunner, which essentially eliminated the other six contenders.

As polls closed across the country on October 11th, 2021, it quickly became clear that Emília Medeiros and the Socialist Party had won a sweeping and decisive victory against the incumbent President Brafeo and the SDP caucus, throwing a stunning 252-88 victory in what was expected to be a much closer race. The Socialist Party retained their control in the National Assembly by a far wider margin, nearly completely eliminating smaller party ability to form a opposition coalition and seizing a major majority for years to come. Medeiros carried the largest youth vote in the history of Quetanan elections.

President (2021–present)

President Medeiros at the C21 Summit in Freiz, Besmenia on November 12th, 2021.

Ian Abril succeeded José dos Reis as Prime Minister on October 13th, 2021, insuring the continuation of the Socialist Party control over the National Assembly. Medeiros was sworn into office by Abril on November 6th, 2021. In her inaugural address, she said;

"I promise to be a President for all Quetanans, and we will commit ourselves to becoming a better nation. No longer will the sticks of corruption clog the machine of democracy. No longer will the lower and middle classes be left to scrounge while elites have their way with us. No longer will a single individual mandate our connection with other international governments. We will remove corruption - we'll dismantle the corrupt intentions of former governments and rescue the nation from the stricken recession stall of the past several years. We will increase our economy and the profit of all - corporations will no longer run away without taxation. We will work with the world, not as a drag-along but as a key leader. Our future is bright."

Emília Medeiros, Medeiros Inaugural Address, November 6th 2021

In her first act as President, Medeiros signed onto a proposal to bring Quetana into the Trans Adula Fair Commerce Accord. She also attended her first international conference in Charnesse, Kuresa, on November 7th as a pledge to combat climate change. Later that week on November 12th, she was present at the C21 in Freiz, Besmenia.