President of Vyvland

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President of Vyvland
Dalia Grybauskaitė 2012-06-13 (2).jpg
Incumbent
Pamela Oegelkeper
since 18 June 2014
StyleThe Righteous
ResidenceBrynel Palace, Lorence
Term lengthUp to four years
Formation24 June 1986
First holderEnrig Dalder

The President (Vyvlander: Presideer) is the head of state of Vyvland. The position is the second-most powerful political office in the country, below that of the Prime Minister. The office of President has been occupied by seven individuals since the inaugural presidential election in 1986, with the longest-serving and inagural holder being Enrig Dalder. The current President is Pamela Oegelkeper, an independent politician, who has held the offfice since the 2014 presidential election.

The President can not be a sitting member of the Parliament of Vyvland, and must be over 21. They are elected every four years by all adults over 16, or sooner if they choose to resign. The President is responsible for the many ceremonial and official diplomatic and international roles, in contrast to the Prime Minister, who deals more with day-to-day government. The President is the usual representative of Vyvland in diplomacy and international affairs, and also holds a ceremonial position on the National Commission, Vyvland's cabinet.

History

The position of President was created in 1986 by the government of Abram Zymeker, after coalition negotiations aiming for a more representative democracy, and a replacement for the monarchy, which had been ousted upon Vyvlander reunification in 1983. The first presidential election coincided with the general election that year, and ex-Finance Minister Enrig Dalder was elected to the office. After having served for ten years, Dalder resigned in 1996, giving way to his deputy, Erik Menjreng. Dalder's strong popularity meant that his endorsement for Menjreng was crucial in Menjreng's success in the 1996 election.

However, Menjreng was far less successful in government due to long-running disputes between himself, a member of the centre-right Christian Democratic and Conservative Party, and Mafjas Skenterby's centre-left Socialist-Liberal-Green coalition; his term included a period of four months in which no bills were passed by Parliament. The power wielded by Menjreng against the wishes of Parliament was highly criticised at the time and forced his resignation in 1998. Conservative Prime Ministerial and Presidential candidates Rikard Fegaad and Lurs Anterbiden pledged to reform the office should they take power, which happened in the 1998 elections.

The reforms were eventually passed, which meant that the Presidency was transformed from a position with real political power to one of mostly ceremonial duties - the 1999 Presidential Reform Act also contained a clause officially stipulating that the President was subordinate in power to the Prime Minister. Thus, the five following Presidents have taken increasingly ceremonial and apolitical roles.

List of Presidents

Political Party

  Liberal   Socialist   Conservative   Independent

Portrait Name Term of Office Political Party Election
Start End Duration
  File:Enrig Dalder.jpg Enrig Dalder 24 June 1986 June 1990 10 years, 23 days Liberal Party 1986
June 1990 June 1994 1990
June 1994 17 July 1996 1994
  Jean-Luc Dehaene (speech).jpg Erik Menjreng 17 July 1996 30 April 1998 1 year, 287 days Christian Democratic
and Conservative Party
1996
  W Schuessel7.jpg Lurs Anterbiden 30 April 1998 3 June 2002 4 years, 64 days Christian Democratic
and Conservative Party
1998
  Belgian prime minister Guy Verhofstadt.jpg Bernurd Venes 3 June 2002 5 June 2006 4 years, 2 days Independent 2002
  Helen Clark 2.jpg Sofia Beket 5 June 2006 7 June 2010 4 years, 2 days Socialist Party 2006
  File:Robert Ujson.jpg Robert Ujson 7 June 2010 18 June 2014 3 years, 346 days Liberal Party 2010
  Dalia Grybauskaitė 2012-06-13 (2).jpg Pamela Oegelkeper 18 June 2014 incumbent 9 years, 285 days Independent 2014

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