Politics of Nasphilitae (Pacifica)
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The Grand Duchy of Nasphilitae is a Regional Democratic Electoral Monarchy with Parliamentary and Republican elements, inn which the Grand Duke is the Head of State and the Speaker is the Head of Government. Executive power is exercised by the Government of Nasphilitae, through the Head of State appointed HM Cabinets and Head of Government appointed Executive Officers, shared in part by the legislative Head Committees appointed by the Head of HMs Shadow Cabinet, all which report to The Plenary Committee and The Judiciary. The legislature is vested in the Parliament. The Nasphiliti Parliament is bicameral: the upper house of the Parliament is the Upper House of Localities, and the lower house is the Lower House of the Country Collective. The Upper House of Localities consists of 631 delegate-members who are elected in each Locality for seven years. The Lower House of Country Collective consists of 225 members who are elected for five years. The judiciary system is topped by the trio of the Supreme Court, Royal Court and High Court of Justice.
The highest legal document is the (pending) Codified Constitution of Nasphilitae, complemented by inherited Constitutional laws, inherited Court precedence, and decisions of the Sovereign Judicial System.
Nasphilitae has a multi-party system. Between 1962 and 2024, the three largest political parties were the technocratic P3 Coalition, the accelerationist Reform Party, and the industrialist Innsbolt Palmer List. This changed in early 2024, with the rise of four new major political parties: The Center, Opportunity Party, Sustainable Reform Party (SRP), and (de facto) Nasphilitae National Party (NNP). Additional major political parties include: Unionist Mass Line (UML) and the ADLA. Lesser parties include The Social Vanguardist Democratic Party (SVDP) and the Common Grounds Coalition (CGC).
Nasphilitae is a transitionary democracy, emphasising liberal principles and democratic procedures, with Republican (The Public-Collective Country context) ideals. It practices Fusion of Powers in the Executive and Legislative, while Lawfulness is guaranteed by the Sovereign Judicial System. Short-references are either A democracy from polyarchy or A democracy from pluralism.
Executive public offices
The Grand Duke is the head of state, and the Speaker of the Lower House is the head of government. The majority of executive power is given to the HM Cabinets and Executive offices (respectively), which consists of the Speaker, Executive Officers and Heads of HM Cabinets (usually holding a specific title).
| Office | Name | Party | Since |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Duke and Head of State of Nasphilitae | Dawson Ernst | Independent | January 2, 2024 |
| Speaker and Head of Government of Nasphilitae | Syd G Patton | Center Party | February 9, 2024 |
Grand Duke and Head of State
The Grand Duke of Nasphilitae is elected by 75 Earls nominating three candidates among members of the Peerage, which are then subject to Possible multiple round voting on direct, national elections until a single candidate receives absolute majority (only in this context, 50%+1) of the vote. nominated among members of the Peerage by 75 Earls. The Grand Duke serves for life. The Grand Duke is a formal head of state with the following executive powers:
- Appointing Heads of the HM Cabinet sectors (International Relations, Armed Forces and Intelligence Agency).
- Veto through requirement of Royal assent for legislation from Executive Offices or Head Committees (Importantly, not The Plenary Committees) to be signed into force.
- Supreme Command over the Royal Armed Forces.
- Chief of command over the Royal Airforce of Nasphilitae.
- Accountability for Ambassadorial Missions (not Consulate missions)
- Formally representing the Grand Duchy of Nasphilitae before other nations.
- Royal prerogative exercised in the form of enacting Ordinance legislation.
- Appointing temporary replacement for Executive office holders if the Speaker, Head of HMs Shadow Cabinet and Lead Representative of The Plenary Committee are unavailable.
- De Jure Supreme Sovereign within Nasphilitae
- Appointing the Head Ambassadors of Nasphilitae to (multilateral) International Organisations.
The Grand Duke also ratifies all domestic laws and (bilateral) international agreements.
HM Cabinets
The HM Cabinets of Nasphilitae is one body with supreme exercise of executive power in The Grand Duchy of Nasphilitae. Each Head of an HM Cabinet is held individually accountable. It is held responsible by the Grand Duke, The National Parliament, in particular The Plenary Committee, The Peerage and the Earls, and The Judiciary branch. The Grand Duke appoints all Heads of HM Cabinets, who are authorised to appoint and organise their Cabinets sub-units. These include:
- The Head of HM Cabinet for External Affairs - Earl Quinlann Emmerson
- The Grand General of the Royal Armed Forces of Nasphilitae and Chief of Command of the Royal Naval and Maritime Forces - General-Peer David Atkinsons
- The Lead Director of the Agency for Documentation and Identification - Peeress Madison Edwards
Speaker and Head of Government
The Speaker is the head of government. The Speaker appoints Heads of Executive Officers and organises their coordinated work by presiding over meetings (twice a week) and speaks in their collective name. The Speaker sets the agenda for each Executive Office, though the respective public officer has autonomy to fulfill it in whichever manner they choose to. The Speaker is always the leader of the political party with the most seats in The Lower House of the Country Collective, meaning the leader of the political party which won the second round of national direct elections.
Executive Offices
Executive Offices are the second body with supreme exercise in executive power in The Grand Duchy of Nasphilitae. The number of Executive Offices is limited to ten. Each Executive Officer is held collectively accountable. It is held responsible by The Speaker, their political party leader (if different from the Speakers' political party), the Head of HMs Shadow Cabinet (head of Parliamentary opposition), The Plenary Committee, and the Judiciary branch. An Executive Office is a government organisation that manages a specific sector of public administration, as such it is a public office.
Legislative public offices
The National Parliament is the body vested with supreme legislative authority in The Grand Duchy of Nasphilitae. It is bicameral, comprised of The Upper House of Localities with 631 members and The Lower House of the Country Collective with 225 members. Upper House MPs are delegate-members which serve for a term of 7 years, sent by the winning ballot of their Locality, whose interest they represent. Lower House MPs are members which serve for a term of 5 years, elected using direct, national, two-round voting system, representing the interests of the Collective interest of Nasphilitae. The Speaker and Head of Government and The Head of HMs Shadow Cabinet must be Leaders of political parties which have won the most votes in the first round of elections for the Lower House. The Lead Representative of The Plenary Committee is elected among MPs of the Upper House which are left without membership in any legislative body. For context, the legislature of Nasphilitae is committee-oriented.
| Office | Name | Party | Since |
|---|---|---|---|
| Head of HMs Shadow Cabinet | Nowell Riley Trenton | Opportunity Party | February 12, 2024 |
| Lead Representative of The Plenary Committee | Claire Renske | Nasphilitae National Party | February 16, 2024 |
Head of HM Shadow Cabinet and Head Committees
The Head of HMs Shadow Cabinet is the head of legislative opposition. They appoint Head Committees and their leaders, organises their coordinated work by negotiating weekly Agendas and presenting counter-proposals to those of the Executive Offices. Each Head Committee is held individually responsible. The Speaker of the Upper House of Localities (which is also the Lead Representative of The Plenary Committee) sets the Agenda for Opposition MPs in both Houses by requiring both Head Committees and Executive Officers to inform them of planned proposals ahead of time. The Shadow Cabinets Head Committees meet at least once collectively bi-weekly, presided by the Head of HMs Shadow Cabinet. Head Committees must inform the Head of HMs Shadow Cabinet of their intended actions and proposals ahead of time. Although without much formal authority, the Head of HMs Shadow Cabinets power lies in the number of seats their political party holds in both Houses, which (due to electoral law) necessitate negotiation from the Head of Government due to veto power held by the Opposition.
Head Committees are legislative and limited in exercising their authority in executive power of The Grand Duchy of Nasphilitae. The number of (leaders of) Head Committees is limited to ten and the sectors they're held responsible for mirrors those of the Executive Offices. Unlike Executive Offices, Head Committees are individually accountable.They are by the Head of HMs Shadow Cabinet, their political party leader (if different from the Head of HMs Shadow Cabinets' political party), The Plenary Committee, and the Judiciary branch. A Head Committee is a government organisation envisioned to criticise and provide alternative management to a specific sector of public administration, as such it is also a public office.
The Plenary Committee
The Plenary Committee is a legislative - investigative body within the National Parliament of Nasphilitae. It is comprised of MPs from the Upper House which are left without membership in a legislative or executive Public Office or equivalent of. The Lead Representative of The Plenary Committee is chosen by MPs of the Upper House among MPs of the Lower House, The Lead Representative must be Leader of a political party which is in opposition. The Lead Representative is also the Speaker of the Upper House and prepares the Agenda for both the Executive Offices and the Head Committees. All members of The Plenary Committee act in the interest of the public of Nasphilitae and its' citizens. Furthermore, it is the only Public Office with power vested in it to inquire, investigate and prosecute any Public Official or Public Office in Nasphilitae which is suspected (by criteria of probable cause) of endangering the interest of the public, violating Conflict of Interest or other civil and administrative law, engaging in corruption, organised financial crime or embezzlement and violating the privacy of citizens. The Plenary Committee is also tasked with drafting a compromising solution to a legislation which was set on the Agenda but has failed to pass twice due to filibustering or deadlock by either the ruling government or the opposition party members.