Mette Elvensar
Mette Elvensar | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Chancellor of Delkora | |
| In office 5 March 1959 – 5 March 1967 | |
| Monarch | Klara III |
| Preceded by | Thalbius Sörbengaard |
| Succeeded by | Gandymyr Feldengar |
| Leader of National Labor | |
| In office 12 March 1948 – 01 January 1967 | |
| Minister of Education and Culture | |
| In office 4 March 1936 – 6 March 1940 | |
| Minister of Agriculture | |
| In office 9 March 1932 – 4 March 1936 | |
| Member of the Federal Parliament | |
| In office 6 March 1928 – 5 March 1967 | |
| Constituency | Northern Cybria |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Margrethe Ellinor Elvensar 7 January 1901 Börnendren, Cybria, Kingdom of Delkora |
| Died | 2 May 1984 Tjærenbor, Cybria |
| Nationality | Delkoran |
| Political party | National Labor |
| Spouse(s) | Otto Elvensar (m. 1932) |
| Alma mater | Tordenhelm University (B.A., M.L.) |
| Occupation | Teacher Politician |
Mette Ellinor Elvensar (1901-1984) was a Delkoran stateswoman, teacher, and political reformist who served as chancellor of Delkora from 1959 to 1967. Entering office in the midst of a major economic depression, her government introduced the beginning phases of the New Kingdom economic reforms, an ambitious agenda that sought to begin transitioning the Delkoran economy toward socialization of the means of production and laid the foundation for the modern Delkoran welfare state. Although modern opinions of her tenure vary by political affiliation, Elvensar is almost universally recognized by historians as one of the most effective chancellors, consistently ranking in the top three of scholarly listings of the most influential Delkoran chancellors.
Early years
Elvensar was born on a varden commune in the municipality of Börnendren in northern Cybria in 1901. Her mother Agnes worked as a tailor in the commune, while her father was a carpenter. While attending secondary school, she was introduced to Marxist political philosophy by her mathematics teacher and began closely following local politics. She would later reflect that her experience growing up in the varden profoundly shaped her political outlook, remarking in her autobiography that, "Having seen how well society could function when operating on the principles of subsidiarity, solidarity, and equity as was the case in the varden, I knew upon becoming chancellor that it would be my goal to replicate this on a national scale."
Elvensar's first political experience came in 1914 when the municipal council of Börnendren voted to seize a major portion of her varden's farmland through eminent domain for the purpose of building a lead smelter. Against her parent's wishes, she joined a group of the commune's members in staging an act of civil disobedience, chaining themselves to the fence surrounding the property to prevent the construction crew from gaining entrance. When the state police were summoned, a large fight broke out that left dozens severely injured. Elvensar was arrested along with her co-conspirators, but was not charged due to being a minor. Although the commune's act of defiance attracted the attention of local newspapers and gained it sympathy throughout the state, construction of the lead smelter proceeded as planned.
University and early career
After obtaining a scholarship to attend Tordenhelm University, Elvensar began studying economics in 1918. While attending Tordenhelm, she became involved with the United Residents Guild, an anarchist group engaged in direct action in the city's working class neighborhoods. A self-described anarchist without adjectives at the time, Elvensar remarked in one interview that, "Up to that point in my life, I had only experienced government as a violent, oppressive force, and so I had no interest in working within the system or waiting on incremental change." After completing her economics degree, she enrolled in the school of law at Tordenhelm, graduating in 1925.
That year, she returned to Börnendren, where she took up a job as a history teacher at a local secondary school. There, she successfully led efforts at unionizing the school system, and subsequently began working with other organizers in the area to unionize other schools throughout the county. In 1926, teachers in Börnendren and seven other municipalities went on strike and, under Elvensar's leadership, successfully negotiated a major salary and pension increase. Elvensar's efforts during the strike gained her significant publicity in the region, and prompted the local National Labor party organization to approach her about running for office. Still an anarchist, Elvensar later reflected that at the time she believed National Labor to be a corrupt party that was "only marginally better" than the alternatives, but believed it might be possible to radicalize it from within. She subsequently ran for municipal council on the National Labor list in 1927, failing to be seated.
Nonetheless, she was placed on the ballot for the federal election the following year in her home constituency of Northern Cybria, and won a seat after after personally knocking on thousands of doors and making a concerted effort to speak to voters in every city and town in the district.