Prime Minister of Eflad (Pacifica)

Prime Minister of the Republic of Eflad
Premierministerin der Republik Eflad
Standard of the Prime Minister
Incumbent Hanna Tirng since 22 April 2022 (2022-04-22)
Executive branch of the Government
Style	Mrs. Prime Minister (informal) Her Excellency (diplomatic)
Status	Head of government
Member of	Cabinet
Residence	Old House
Seat	Old House
Nominator	Sænat
Appointer	President of Eflad (Pacifica) upon election by the Sænat
Term length	4 years, renewable
Constituting instrument	Efladian Constitution
Formation	23 August 1840 (1840-08-23)
Deputy	Deputy Prime Minister of Eflad
Salary	220,757 EDG per year (as of 2020)
Website	premierminister.ed

The prime minister of Eflad, officially the Prime Minister of the Republic of Eflad, is the head of the federal government of Eflad and the commander in chief of the Efladian Armed Forces during wartime. The prime minister is the chief executive of the Cabinet and heads the executive branch. The prime minister is elected by the Sænat on the proposal of the president and without debate.

The current officeholder is Hanna Tirng of the RE!, who was elected in April 2022, succeeding Erwitto Fircenza. She was elected after the RE! entered into a coalition agreement with the Greens and the LfE.

History

Until the unification of the Kingdom of Eflad, there was no recorded position equivalent to that of a prime minister in the former kingdoms. The closest would be the archchancellor of the Church of Lordgad, and later the Church of Eflad. After the unification in 1165, the king ruled without supervision until Wellen II, who was crowned in 1365. Due to his illness after four years of his reign, the members of the Council of the Wise elected a chairman to take on the tasks of the king in his absence. The council also had the right to advise the king on political and economic matters. Under the rule of the Gianlucians, this position was abolished.

There was uncertainty after the Efladian Revolution about whether to preserve the monarchy or replace it with a democratic syste, because the revolution was initially only against the colonizers. After the decision to establish a Sænat, the decision was made to transfer to a completely democratic system. The provisional government was based on a council with a chairperson. Adopting this principle, the constitution describes the cabinet (Ministerrat) as the government and the prime minister (Premierminister) as its head.

Role and powers

The prime minister's authority emanates from the provisions of the constitution and in practice from their status as leader of the party (or coalition of parties) holding a majority of seats in the Sænat (federal parliament).

The first prime minister, Terek Mark Lawlwen, set many precedents that were later revised and initially established the office of the prime minister under the principle of a primus inter pares. This was partly due to the tensions in the ruling coalition. After the long-leash policy proved difficult to control a revision was made giving the prime minister far more powers that they formerly had. From then on, prime ministers often treated their ministers as mere extensions of their authority rather than colleagues. While recent prime minsters have tended to be less domineering, the prime minister has acquired enough ex officio authority (in addition to his/her constitutional powers) that Eflad is often described by constitutional law experts as an "executive democracy".

The prime minister determines the composition of the Ministerrat (cabinet). The president formally appoints and dismisses cabinet ministers, on the recommendation of the prime minister; no parliamentary approval is needed. According to the constitution, the prime minister may set the number of cabinet ministers and dictate their specific duties.

Election

The prime minister is elected by the Sænat and formally appointed by the president of Eflad. A prime minister's election is necessary whenever the office has fallen vacant. This is the case if a newly elected Sænat meets for the first time, or if the prime minister dies or resigns.

The prime minister's election (in the first two voting phases) is one of the few cases in which a vote in the Sænat requires a majority of all elected members, not just a majority of those assembled at the time ("full-majority"). The election is done using secret ballots. The process begins with the President of Eflad proposing a candidate to the Sænat (A formality, as they are usually a candidate on which majority parties have agreed to beforehand), who is then voted upon without debate ("1st voting phase"). If this nominee is not elected, the parliamentary groups in the Sænat may, during the following 14 days, propose their own nominees, who also have to be elected with the "full-majority" ("2nd voting phase"). If no candidate has been elected within this period, the Sænat will hold one last ballot on the 15th day after the first ballot, to which (like in the 2nd voting phase) the parliamentary groups may put forward candidates ("3rd voting phase"). A candidate reaching the "full majority" in any voting phase, must be appointed by the President of Eflad. However, if on the last ballot no candidate reaches this threshold, the president is free to either appoint as prime minister the candidate who received a plurality of votes here (de facto allowing formation of a minority government) or call new elections for the Sænat within 60 days.

Another possibility to vote a new prime minister into office is the constructive vote of no confidence, which allows the Bundestag to replace a sitting chancellor, if it elects a new chancellor with the "full-majority" (see below).

As of 2023, all chancellors of the republic have been (re-)elected on proposal of the President and on the first ballot.

Confidence

The Efladian constitution enables both he parliament and the prime minister to conduct a motion of no confidence. The removal of a prime minister is only possible if a majority of the Sænat members agree on a successor, who is then immediately sworn in as new prime minister. This procedure is called "constructive motion of no confidence" (konstruktives Misstrauensvotum) and was created to avoid the situation in which the country has no functioning government. In order to garner legislative support in the Sænat, the prime minister can also ask for a motion of confidence (Vertrauensfrage, literally "question of trust"), either combined with a legislative proposal or as a stand-alone vote. If such a vote fails, the prime minister may ask the president for the dissolution of the Sænat; he or she is however not bound to do so, and the president in turn is not bound to follow this request.

The latest and first successful usage of a motion of no confidence by the prime minister was on 15. March 2022, when then PM Dr. Erwitto Fircenza lost the vote after the socialist party left the coalition. It resulted in a dissolution of the Sænat and election of Hanna Tirng as new PM on the 22. April.

Deputy Prime Minister

The prime minister must appoint one of the cabinet ministers as deputy prime minister (Article XX of the Constitution). They may deputise for the prime minister, if they are absent; unable to perform their duties, or are instructed to do so. Although the prime minister is theoretically free to choose any cabinet minister, per tradition it is the foreign affairs minister. In coalition agreements, the second largest party usually provides the minister for foreign affairs. If the prime minister's term in office ends or if they resign, the Sænat has to elect a new one. The president of Eflad may ask the former prime minister to act as prime minister until a new office holder is elected, but if they are unwilling or unable to do so, the president may also appoint the deputy prime minister as acting prime minister. The current deputy prime minister of Eflad is Dr. Frank Tæren who also serves as Minister for Foreign Affairs in the Tirng cabinet.

Residence

Since 1840, the official seat of the prime minister is the Old House in Münnen (Alte Haus). The prime minister's country retreat is Gut Holtholler on the island of Ares. After election, the prime minister moves into the residence and uses it as a private residence. However, almost every prime minister has had a residence prior to the election which they keep as an unofficial, secondary residence.

Style of address

The official address of a prime minister only has the male form Premierminister in Efladian Alman. Female prime ministers, Tirng is the first one, are addressed as Frau Premierminister. This has caused some controversy in Eflad, with people demanding an additional female version for equality.

Salary

Holding the third-highest state office available within Eflad, the prime minister of Eflad receives €220,757 per annum.