Russel Vaughan

Russel Vaughan (born 5th of August 1967) is the current President of Antanos and a former businessman. Vaughan is the founder of the Vaughan Corporation which was founded in 1990. Vaughan was a businessman mostly in the 90s and up until the mid 2010s until selling a large share of his company and contesting the 2015 and 2024 presidential elections until winning the 2024 Presidential Election.
Vaughan was born on the 5th of August 1967 to immigrants from the United States. He was born in an upper-middle class suburban neighbourhood outside the capital city for most of his youth until his family moved to a small town called Wallacehill when Vaughan was 15. Vaughan started his first business in 1989 called the Vaughan Electric Company, leading to attention from another larger businessman called Martin Browse who decided to work with Vaughan and create the Vaughan & Browse Oil Company or simply just Vaughan & Browse. Vaughan became one of the youngest millionaires in the country during the early 90s, bringing his business to new heights when more oil deposits were found in 1993 offshore of the island. Vaughan and Browse had a feud during 1995 - 1996 that led to the company splitting in two companies into the Vaughan Oil Company and the Browse Oil Company. Vaughan decided to go public in 1998, creating the Vaughan Oil Corporation whereas Browse decided against that. Browse's company ended up filling for bankruptcy in 2004, however. Vaughan decided to branch out of just oil to all natural resources in 2007, creating the Vaughan Corporation and many other companies under that name.
Vaughan slowly started selling of large shares of his business in the 2010s until selling a massive share in 2014 as he wanted to contest the 2015 Antanos Presidential Election, ending his career in business. Vaughan joined the United Front Party and was successfully picked as candidate for the 2015 election but failed to win against Matthew Lurast. Vaughan attempted to contest again in 2018 but failed to be picked as the presidential candidate in 2018. Vaughan was picked as the United Front candidate for president in 2023 by a massive landslide win from the popular vote. He then went on to successfully win the 2024 Presidential Election and is expected to enter office on the second Monday of April which will be the 8th of April.
== Early Life: 1967 - 1989 ==
Russel Vaughan was born to Daniel Vaughan and Michelle Vaughan on the 5th of August 1967 in the outskirts of New Kemross. Vaughan was raised in an upper-middle class home outside New Kemross, which was known for being one of the safest places to live in the city. Vaughan attended a private school called St. George's Primary School between 1972 and 1979. He then attended St. George's Secondary School between 1979 and 1985 and left at the age of 18, deciding to joining Naethus-Orvan University to study Business. He spent four years at university until leaving in summer of 1989.
== Business Career: 1989 - 2014 ==
=== First Company & Creation of Vaughan & Browse: 1989 - 1990 ===
Vaughan entered into the career of business when he created his first company called the Vaughan Electric Company in Autumn of 1989 with money loaned from the bank as well as some money from his parents who agreed to give it to Vaughan. Vaughan's business specialized in utilities and was a broadly local company but it quickly gained popularity for its clever marketing and customer care, leading to it becoming one of the most popular utilities companies by Spring 1990.
Vaughan was approached by the country 3rd richest person at the time, Martin Browse. Browse was astonished by Vaughan's financial success and wanted to replicate that. Browse offered to create a company with Vaughan with a 50/50 split that would be centred around oil. Vaughan agreed to create this company in Summer of 1990, calling it the Vaughan & Browse Oil Company. The agreement headlined many newspapers in Antanos due to the fact that a wealthy businessman like Browse creating a company with a small businessmen like Vaughan was unheard of in the country. It was majorly unexpected but the media traction around the issue led to the company's investments increase.
=== 1990s ===
Vaughan was an incredibly successful businessman in the 90s, making a fortune of money and becoming one of the wealthiest people at the time and at one point becoming the 10th most wealthy person in Antanos. Vaughan & Browse became a staple name in the oil industry as well as the wider industries in general, leading to the company becoming a dominance throughout Antanos and possibly being responsible for taking down smaller oil companies in the process.
In 1993, new oil deposits offshore of Antanos were discovered, leading to the largest oil companies attempting to make a claim on these deposits. A legal battle in late 1993 and early 1994 determined that Vaughan & Browse would be responsible for around 40% of the oil deposits, leading to an outcry among environmentalists due to the fact that Vaughan & Browse were known for severe fracking. Another legal battle happened in mid 1994 that saw the introduction of the Oil Extraction Act 1994 being signed into law by President, Lily Sanders. The act introduced major restrictions on the way oil is extracted and handled. This led to a continuation of legal battles throughout 1995 that saw Vaughan & Browse fail to win their points. Inevitably, in November 1995, Vaughan & Browse lost privileges over most of the oil deposits that they hadn't even extracted yet. Vaughan and Browse began having problems working together and blamed each other for leading to this situation and in May 1996, the two companies split in two, both taking 50% of assets each.
Vaughan created the Vaughan Oil Company after the split and intended to reclaim the oil deposits that had been lost in the mid-90s legal battles. Vaughan fought for the rights for the oil deposits between Summer 1996 to Spring 1997 and eventually, to many people's surprise, managed to seize around 25% of the found oil deposits compared to Browse's 10%. This only fuelled the fire for the Vaughan-Browse feud in 90s. 
Vaughan decided to make his company go public in 1998 after a lot of consideration over trying to keep his company afloat. He rebranded his company as the Vaughan Oil Corporation, inviting many public and private investors into his corporation. This led to Vaughan selling quite a decent chunk of his shares to give him a boost in money.
=== 2000s & 2010s ===
Vaughan experienced financial problems throughout the 2000s that caused his business to suffer from that. Vaughan managed to recover from his financial difficulties but his rival's company, the Browse Oil Company, had filed for bankruptcy in 2004. Vaughan expressed his sadness over his former friend and business partner's company's demise and hoped that Browse would find his feet again. The mid 2000s generally marked the end of the Vaughan-Browse Feud. Vaughan decided to create a head branch corporation called the Vaughan Corporation that would specialize in natural resources. He would go on to create the Vaughan Forestry Company, Vaughan Iron & Steel Company, and the Vaughan Energy Company. He would also change the Vaughan Oil Corporation back into a company.
Vaughan slowly phased out of business after the 2008 economic crisis and began selling off large shares of his companies in the 2010s. Vaughan eventually decided to sell of a majority of his shares in his companies and gave his branch corporation to his son, Joseph Vaughan.
== Attempts of Presidency: 2014 - 2024 ==
=== Attempts to Become President: 2014 - 2024 ===
==== 2015 Presidential Election ====
Main Article: 2015 Antanos Presidential Election
Vaughan's decision to exit the business side of his career was influenced by his obsession of politics and wanting to become President of Antanos. Vaughan made his political debut when he announced, via Twitter, that he had entered himself into the National Electoral Registry as a candidate for President, initially intending to run as an independent. Vaughan was, however, approached by a Senator from the United Front Party who urged Vaughan to run for president-elect for United Front, believing that Vaughan would only majorly split the vote and cause a left-wing victory. Vaughan agreed with the UF Senator and joined the United Front Party in March 2014.
Vaughan campaigned heavily throughout Spring 2014 to become the presidential candidate for United Front. Vaughan was the most impressionable member of the party on the ballot but many older members of the party were upset that he had just randomly jumped into politics and caused a stir in the party. Vaughan won the Whuchigan ballot on the 8th of June 2014, winning 58.6% of votes against the other three candidates in the election, legitimizing Vaughan's candidacy in the election. Vaughan went on to win the Andaras and Worcullis ballots on the 15th of June 2014, winning 54.9% and 62.3% respectively. Vaughan finally won the New Vedenner ballot on the 22nd of June 2014, winning 55.6% of votes. The primaries concluded with a victory for Vaughan, one of which that wasn't expected to be so successful for Vaughan.
Vaughan's presidential campaign in 2015 was fuelled by the current economic trouble in the country, high unemployment, anti-immigration, nationalistic policy, and toughening up on crime. His campaign was relatively popular in the beginning but his candidacy for president was inevitably troubled due to the fact that the party had been in power for 12 years in the legislature at that point and most people faulted the United Front government for damaging the economy. Vaughan was up against a very popular comedian and humanitarian, Matthew Lurast, who had gained immense fame in the mid to late 2000s, quickly becoming one of the most recognizable faces in the country at the time and was actually president before the 2015 election between 2009 and 2012. He was also very charismatic and was said to have a "powerful energy wherever he went" according to The Wednesday. Lurast was considered a better contrast to Vaughan's ultra seriousness and professionalism, making Lurast a more calm, collected person, and competent choice for voters. Vaughan failed to amass a big enough popularity in the election and failed to top any polls during the last few weeks of the election. Lurast ended up winning 53 delegates out of 84 (63%) whereas Vaughan won a measly 31 delegates out of 84 (37%). Lurast's victory was unprecedented and Vaughan was the first presidential candidate to fail to attend the official election results read-out. Lurast apologized to voters who voted for him but assured that his loss was one that could be repaired in the future. Vaughan would briefly step down from politics in 2016 after the results of the election.
==== 2018 Presidential Election ====
Main Article: 2018 Antanos Presidential Election
Vaughan announced his intention to run for president again for United Front in January 2017, officially applying in March 2017. President, Matthew Lurast, mocked Vaughan's decision claiming that he couldn't win the election and that he wouldn't even make it passed the primaries. Vaughan fired back at Lurast's comment by claiming that Lurast's "cockiness" would lose him the election.
Vaughan's 2018 candidacy marked a further shift to the right in his politics, opposing Lurast's decision to legalize same-sex marriage in 2016 and his progressive social policy. Vaughan promised to put an end to large waves of immigration into the country, bring back a ban on same-sex marriages, grow the economy, and majorly cut back on income tax and corporation tax. Vaughan's campaign was considered "too right-wing" by Representative and fellow candidate, Kyle Mogues, and many other UF politicians. This hindered Vaughan's already unsuccessful campaign, leading to Vaughan debating whether he should step down from the race. Vaughan decided to not step down from the race and continued on with campaigning up until the primaries. Vaughan received 26.2% in the Whuchigan ballot, leading to him immediately stepping down after the results of the Whuchigan ballot and telling his supporters that he would be taking a hiatus from politics for the time being.
==== 2024 Presidential Election ====
Main Article: 2024 Antanos Presidential Election
Vaughan came back from his hiatus from politics in 2023, expressing his intentions to run a third time for president. Vaughan had mostly rebranded his image as a powerful, stern, and determined politician, making him appear charismatic under a certain light. This was in contrast to many people's opinion that he was boring, uninteresting, vague, and uncharismatic during the 2015 and 2018 presidential elections. His image made him appear as a powerful candidate who would be able to make powerful political decisions and stand up to injustice in the country. His campaign was also made better because of the lack of organisation in the United Front Party due to the fact that the party was split between more center-right members in the party and more right-wing members in the party. Vaughan officially put himself forward as a presidential candidate for United Front in February 2023.
Vaughan attempted to consolidate a political position that was in between center-right and right in the election so that his party would respect him and follow behind his attempt for presidency. Vaughan dropped his position on banning same-sex marriages but wanted to remove some rights of LGBTQ+ people in order to "establish equality in the country." Vaughan wanted to grow the economy, cut the unemployment rate by half by the end of the first term, limit the amount of immigration in the country, formally support Ukraine in the Russian Invasion of Ukraine (something President, Tugryanyu failed to do), lower the income tax, toughening up on crime, and end college and university tuition fees for low-income families or individuals. Vaughan's candidacy for president among his party was majorly supported and his opponents were either considered not popular enough or had week campaigns. Vaughan won the Whuchigan ballot with 48.9% of votes in the election. Vaughan was generally unhappy that he failed to win a majority in the election but was still happy with a victory nevertheless. Vaughan would win the Andaras and Worcullis ballots win 56.7% and 60.4% of the vote respectively. Finally, Vaughan would win the New Vedenner ballot with 64.7% of votes, cementing Vaughan's victory with the final election.
Campaigning would begin for the presidential election in late 2023 compared to early 2024 as the election had been rescheduled from an August election to a February election by President, Tugryanyu's orders. Vaughan criticized this decision by Tugryanyu and accused him of attempting to swindle the election. A presidential election not happening in August was something that hadn't happened since the 1991 Presidential Election due to the fear that President, Vonder, would lose the election if he waited too long. Vaughan promised to remove the president's power to call an early election if he entered office alongside promising to strengthen Antanos' democracy. Tugryanyu was an unpopular president even at the time of his victory in the 2021 Presidential Election. Lurast was unable to run as president again because he had served his maximum term length of three terms (9 years) and thus supported his Vice-President, Chris Tugryanyu's, attempt to become president in 2020/2021. Tugryanyu ended up winning the 2021 Presidential Election by only 2 delegates, winning 43 delegates out of 84 (51%). Tugryanyu quickly became unpopular and was accused of democratic backsliding with many of his executive orders and bills in the National Assembly that attempted to consolidate the power of the President. The campaigning for presidency in 2023 and 2024 was very heated and a failed assassination attempt on the life of Vaughan made the presidential campaigning turn sour. The results of the election was released between the 8th and 10th of February 2024 and saw Vaughan win 45 out of the 84 delegates (54%) compared to Tugryanyu's 39 delegates (46%), meaning that Vaughan won with a pretty good margin. Former president, Matthew Lurast, said that he was "deeply upset" by the result of the election and that he wished he could run for President again if he could. Lurast would end up congratulating Vaughan anyways and has expressed his intent to respect Vaughan's victory and attend his inauguration.
== Presidency: 2024 - Present ==
Main Article: Presidency of Russel Vaughan
Vaughan was inaugurated as President of Antanos on the 8th of April 2024, with many members of his family, Senators, ex-politicians, and ex-presidents coming to his inauguration. Vaughan celebrated his victory in the 2024 Presidential Election during the Presidential Inauguration Speech, where he congratulated his team and his family for his election, thanked those who voted for him, and briefly outlined his plans for his presidency. 
After Vaughan's inauguration, he appointed his cabinet which included some ex-politicians and a lot of newer, younger politicians into his cabinet. He controversially appointed ex-president, Wallace Trudan, as Vice President, which stirred a large debate over his choice of vice president as Trudan's second term was relatively unpopular and it was odd for an ex-president to later become vice president as well. Vaughan reaffirmed his choice by pointing to Trudan's experience in politics.
=== Domestic Policy ===
One of Vaughan's first policies to be pushed through the National Assembly was the Agriculture & Trade Act 2024. The act was designed to make local agricultural produce more prominent in local consumption than ever before, making local agricultural products more prioritized than export products. Vaughan's act prioritized lots of meat exports that would be cancelled in favour of local production. The act would also include import export tariffs in the country to continue prioritizing local consumption. The act was praised by farmers alike who praised the act for supporting their efforts but some non-farmers worried that local produce wasn't as up to standard as most of their exports are.
The Illegal Drugs Act 2024 is a bill that was proposed in mid May 2024 that intends to increase imprisonment time for the possession, manufacturing, and distribution of drugs. The bill was passed through three stages until given presidential approval in mid July 2024.
Vaughan put forth a billed proposal called the Election Terms Bill 2024 that, if passed, would enable Vaughan to change the constitution to eliminate term limits if a majority of states approve the amendment. The bill caused controversy when it was announced in late June 2024 and caused many to believe that it showed democratic backsliding. Matthew Lurast spoke out against the bill, saying that although he wanted to serve multiple more terms as president he considered to be "undemocratic," calling for states to oppose the constitutional amendment.
=== Foreign Policy ===