Elias Blanco

Elias Blanco
Elias Blanco's official Presidential portrait, 1926
23rd President of Zamastan
In office September 22, 1924 – September 22, 1936
Preceded by	Hawk Gardner
Succeeded by	Tyler Kordia
Personal details
Born	February 18th, 1859 Duncan, Redeemer’s Land, Zamastan
Died	November 4, 1947 (Age: 88) Horseshoe Bay, Zian, Zamastan
Nationality	Zamastanian
Political party	Blue Conservative Party (Zamastan)
Height	5 ft 7 in (170 cm)
Spouse	Harrieta Croix Blanco
Children	Lillian, Willy, Nora

Elias Blanco was the 23rd President of Zamastan, serving 6 terms from 1924 to 1936. He is most known for his Blanco Initiative, which brought thousands of jobs to Zamastan after the economic downturn caused by the reconstruction from the Parabocan War. The initiative also served as a welfare program, which brought a more standardized model of living to Zamastanian families. However, the effects of the 1934-41 Economic Crisis on Zamastan brought about a change in view towards the leader, and he lost his 1936 re-election campaign to Tyler Kordia. Blanco is widely considered to be one of the most consequential presidents in Zamastan history.

Early Life and Career

Childhood and Early Adult Years

Elias Blanco Jr. was born on February 18th, 1859 in Duncan, Redeemer’s Land, Zamastan, the elder of the two children of Elias Blanco Sr. (1835–1926) and Victoria Foor (1836–1885). Blanco Senior engaged in many occupations and developed a statewide reputation as a prosperous farmer, storekeeper, and public servant. He held various local offices, including justice of the peace and tax collector and served in the Redeemer's Land Territory House of Representatives as well as the Territorial Senate. Blanco's mother was the daughter of a Lilian Notch farmer. She was chronically ill and died, perhaps from tuberculosis, when Blanco was 26 years old. His younger sister, Abigail Grace (1865–1880), died at the age of 15, probably of appendicitis, when Blanco was 21. Blanco's father married a Lilian schoolteacher in 1891, and lived to the age of 80.

Blanco's family had deep roots in the Redeemer's Land Territory.

Education

Blanco attended Black River Academy before enrolling at Amherst College, where he distinguished himself in the debating class. As a senior, he joined the fraternity Phi Gamma Delta and graduated cum laude. While at Amherst, Coolidge was profoundly influenced by philosophy professor Charles Edward Garman, a Congregational mystic, with a neo-Hegelian philosophy.

Marriage and Family

In 1889, Blanco met Harrieta Croix Goodhue, a University of Duncan graduate and teacher at Billian's Clarke School for the Deaf. They married in a small ceremony which took place in the parlor of Harrieta's family's house, having overcome his future mother-in-law's objections to the marriage. The newlyweds went on a honeymoon trip to Tofino, originally planned for two weeks but cut short by a week at Blanco's request. After 25 years he wrote of Harrieta, "for almost a quarter of a century she has borne with my infirmities and I have rejoiced in her graces".

The Blancos had three children; Lillian, Willy, and Nora.

Post-Presidency and Death

After his presidency, Blanco retired to a modest rented house on residential Massasoit Street in Horseshoe Bay, Zian, before moving to a more spacious home known as "The Beeches". He kept a Hacker runabout boat on the Horseshoe River and was often observed on the water by local boating enthusiasts. During this period, he also served as chairman of the Non-Partisan Railroad Commission, an entity created by several banks and corporations to survey the country's long-term transportation needs and make recommendations for improvements. He was an honorary president of the Zamastanian Foundation for the Blind, a director of Zian Life Insurance Company, president of the Zamastanian Antiquarian Society, and a trustee of Amherst College.

Blanco published his autobiography in 1939 and wrote a syndicated newspaper column, "Elias Blanco Says," from 1939 to 1941.

Blanco died suddenly from coronary thrombosis at "The Beeches," at 12:45 p.m., November 4, 1947. Shortly before his death, Blanco confided to an old friend: "I feel I no longer fit in with these times." Blanco is buried in Viran Notch Cemetery, Viran Notch, Redeemer's Land. The nearby family home is maintained as one of the original buildings on the Elias Blanco Homestead District site. The District of Redeemer's Land dedicated a new visitors' center nearby to mark Blanco's 100th birthday on February 18th, 1959.