Bretford Rintt
Bretford Liam Rintt | |
|---|---|
 Rintt at a Conference | |
| 37th Prime Minister of Pongi | |
| Assumed office April 1st, 2022 | |
| Preceded by | Danielle Nera |
| Member For Parliament, Congwarrang North | |
| Assumed office September 21st, 2019 | |
| Preceded by | Mancy Rwesharar |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 21 November 1994 Congwarrang Coast, Warrung, Pongi |
| Citizenship | Pongian |
| Nationality | Pongian |
| Political party | Rygerran Alternative |
| Residence(s) | The Lodge, Monsvallis |
| Education | Congwarrang University of Law and Politics |
| Occupation | Politician |
| Military service | |
| Branch/service | Pongian Air Force |
| Years of service | 2 |
Bretford Liam Rintt is a Pongian politician who is the 37th Prime Minister of Pongi. He assumed office after the 2022 elections, and prior to this he was a retired Air Force Pilot who also served as a member of the Warrung State Parliament. Rintt is a member of the Rygerran Alternative party and recently became party leader before the elections.
Early Life
Bretford Rintt was born on the 21st of November, 1994 at Coasts Public Hospital in Congwarrang. He grew up with a brother and sister in a low-income neighbourhood, and he wanted to become a pilot as a kid. He attended the Congwarrang Coasts Public School in Warrung, and was deeply interested in planes as a child. He frequently made trips to Warrung Coasts Airport with money he made from being a waiter. At age 17 he joined the Air Force for two years, serving as an esteemed pilot before retiring to enter politics. He followed politics throughout high school and wanted to become a politician after he finished serving as a pilot.
After retiring from the Air Force, he studied a bachelor's degree on global politics and was known for being a fiery debater. During his time at the Congwarrang University of Law and Politics, he was known for being loud and outspoken about his views, often challenging professors about the world views. He graduated with good scores throughout his years at school.
Political Career
In 2017, he ran for Warrung State Government, as an independent in the seat of Bay Coasts, having never held a political position before. He ran campaigning on key issues such as strengthening liberties and committing to key issues such as rebuilding the state economy and poured significant investment into clean energy. He represented the anti-establishment, in populist-like speeches and his strong usage of social media to connect with younger voters energised the base significantly.
For Rintt, the polls suggested a loss, however with significant campaigning and a large number of preference votes, he ended up winning the seat by just over six-hundred votes in a race that took a week to decide.
In his victory speech, Rintt stated, "It is my intention to represent you. You have elected me with a mandate and so we shall begin!"
The nation was floored by Rintt's shock win, with most media outlets stating that he would not get anything done within his two year term in office. However, he stood up for his constituents, proposing new green bills, the protection of liberty and getting things done. In his local area, development was heavily densified and became greener, whilst maintaining the traditional aspects of his village. Repaving roads and protecting national parks. All of his policies led to his nickname as the 'Freedom Warrior', and was one of the most popular state members in the state.
Rygerran Alternative and Member of Parliament
In 2019, Rintt joined the rebranded Rygerran Alternative party who represented the people. He ran for member of the assembly in his local area and won with a significant margin thanks to his popularity with rural, agricultural voters who felt they needed a member who represented them, not their party. As part of the crossbench, Rintt was often the frontbencher when it came to speeches for the party and proposed new bipartisan legislation that allowed for the redesign of the tax system, expanding gun ownership with licenses and gave states and councils more power over their jurisdictions.
Leader of Rygerran Alternative
In 2021, a major leadership spill occurred within his own party and the leader, Ryanni Qarraa was ousted in a spectacular vote. Due to the upcoming elections, the party worked in haste to appoint its new leader, who would eventually become Rintt. He kickstarted his quest to become prime-minister, starting on the 19th of January, 2022 boldly announcing Rygerran Alternatives plan in government and major overhauls to the political and local systems. From there he maintained a theme of popularism, to his often loyal voters around the nation. The party was polling around 6% of the vote, or around 22 seats around the middle of the campaign.
Fortunes turned for the party, as Rintt managed to gain traction in key battleground areas, such as Pranorte and the rural Paisaje. Resonating with rural voters with his city balanced views helped him gain popularity among the disillusioned. Rintt strategically placed himself as a candidate to represent the people as a welcoming change to the harsh establishment that ruled the country since its inception. As an outspoken supporter of inclusivity and acceptance, young voters again voted in large numbers for him, as they felt disconnected to the current government. Using the tactics he did in the local election, he managed to secure the party 60 seats and scored 25% of the popular vote, the largest amount of any party. However, Alternative did not run for as many seats in the large districts and subsequently received less seats than their projection.
As Rygerran Alternative held the balance of power in parliament, a coalition needed to be formed in order to start the parliamentary term. However, an unusual set of circumstances in which none of the major parties willing to negotiate left the government in disarray. As such, the Governor of the Unions, William Etwayip forced a vote among parliamentarians, except that they could only vote for cross bench parties to become the leader of the new government. This manoeuvre was never used prior and only was meant to be used during a month long deadlock. Therefore, Bretford Rintt was elected among parliamentarians as the 37th Prime Minister of Pongi in a shocking final tally.
After the election, Rintt picked Patriot Party leader Ranford Tweran as deputy prime minister and appointed many cabinet ministers from opposing parties, forming a grand coalition between the left and right wings. The Pongian public, first disapproving of Rintt, went on to solidify him as a top prime minister after bringing in new, anti-establishment policies into the country, which includes new freedoms for farmers, improved public transport, higher protection of heritage buildings, densification and loosened gun laws all contributed to his newfound popularity as Prime Minister.