Hans Grötöjohanes

**Hans Erik Grötöjohanes** (born 23 April 1963) is a Lashardian politician, lawyer, and the President of Lashardia from 25 September 2004 to 14 September 2008.

Grötöjohanes began his political career in 1991 after working as a lawyer since 1988. Aged 31, Grötöjohanes was elected into parliament in 1994, and remained a MP until 2004, when he began preparing his presidential bid. He was declared the Social Democratic nominee in the 2004 Lashardian presidential election in November 2003, and went on to win the election.

Following the completion of his term as president in 2008, Grötöjohanes began to work full-time for his nonprofit organization the Johanes Foundation.

## Life and career

### Early life

Grötöjohanes was born on 23 April 1963 in the Tenichi district of Ubenmoor. His father Gröt (1938–) owned an antiques shop, while his mother Melissandra (1940–) was a dressmaker. The family was middle class, and he had two younger sisters. Gröt and Melissandra were both staunch Social Democrats, and raised their children as such.

### Education

Grötöjohanes attended public primary school in Tenichi, where he excelled academically. He went on to graduate in 1978 as his class's valedictorian. Following his graduation from primary school, he attended a business and law high school in his hometown with a specialization in law, graduating in 1981 as the valedictorian again.

After graduating from high school, Grötöjohanes began attending Queen's University as a pre-law major. He graduated in 1985 summa cum laude, and went on to attend Queen's University College of Law, earning his J.D. in 1988.

### Parliament

After working as a lawyer specializing in business law for three years, Grötöjohanes entered politics in 1991 and began work with the Lashardian Social Democratic Party. He was later elected into parliament in the 1994 parliamentary election. He was reelected into parliament in 1998 and 2002. In 2004, he resigned from parliament to take up office as President of Lashardia

### Presidency

Grötöjohanes began preparing his presidential bid in autumn 2002. In November 2003, he was selected as the Social Democratic nominee for the 2004 presidential election. He went on to win the election, and was inaugurated on 25 September 2004.

While president, Grötöjohanes made many reforms in Lashardia, with many of them being social issues. Throughout his presidency, he legalized abortion on-request for women up to the second trimester of their pregnancy, decriminalized marijuana, and increased rights given to same-sex couples. He also stated that he would outwardly support same-sex marriage, although the parliament did not support a same-sex marriage bill.

### Post-presidency

After his term ran up in 2008, Grötöjohanes and his family returned to their home in Deidra. He subsequently began to work full-time for his nonprofit organization the Johanes Foundation.

## Personal life

Grötöjohanes was introduced to Anastasia Karlöpög by mutual friends in 1983 while the two were college students at Queen's University. While they went on one date, they later decided to remain friends, and did so for many years. They began seriously dating in 1987, and in 1989 Grötöjohanes proposed. They were married in autumn 1990, and later had their only child Palina Hansöjohanes in winter 1992.

In early 2009, it was revealed in the press that Karlöpög had filed for divorce from Grötöjohanes citing irreconcilable differences. The divorce was finalized the following year. Following the divorce, their child Hansöjohanes remained with her father.