Pol Skumokor II

**Pol Skumokor II** is a former Kroftish politician and general who served as the 8th minister president of Kroftland from 429-439. He also served as a member of the Imperial Diet, was appointed as the Kroftish Minister of War, and the chairman of the Imperial Nationalist Party. From 393 until 425 he served in the Imperial Army, earning the rank of Major General. Skumokor is known for being the head of state of Kroftland during the Pan-Almorian War, and served a key role in the dissolution of the Zirist Federation. He is widely regarded in Kroftland as one of the greatest minister presidents of all time.

## Early life

Skumokor was born in 371 in the city of Wortdruf. His father was Pol Skumokor I, who would later become the 5th minister president, and his mother was Gruga Bekor Skumokor, a housewife. He grew up in a wealthy Wortdruf neighborhood, with his father being mayor at the time, and attended the Wortdruf Private School with his sister, Nora.

Upon graduating primary school, Skumokor attended the Kralfald Provincial Boy's Military School, where he graduated with high marks. He was later accepted into the prestigious Imperial Military Academy in Kralstod. While at the academy, Skumokor excelled above his peers as a cadet, graduating first in his class, and commissioning as a First Lieutenant.

## Military career

As a young lieutenant, he commanded an infantry platoon as part of the 16th Infantry Division. Upon achieving the rank of Captain, he commanded his company, and by the year 400, he commanded an entire battalion. In the year 402, he earned the rank of Brigadier General, and commanded the 3rd Brigade / 16th Infantry during exercises along the Palmoran border. He took a temporary leave of absense in 409 following his father's assassination, and in 418 he was transferred to the 2nd Infantry Division, which he commanded until his retirement in 425.

## Political career

Seeking to follow in his father's footsteps, Skumokor joined the Imperial Nationalist Party directly after retirement, seeking to pursue a position in the Imperial Diet. With his deep-rooted connections to the party's inner circle due to his father, Skumokor was granted a spot on the RLP's list for the Imperial Diet by then-party leader Roebor kol Dorhut. He was elected as a member in 425, and appointed as the Minister of War by minister president Onders Vronz, due to his military experience. It was the first time in which an opposition politician was granted a cabinet seat.

Towards the end of his first term in the Imperial Diet, Skumokor was elected by the RLP party council to replace Roebor kol Dorhut as party chairman in 428. As such, he was the candidate for the RLP in the 429 Kroftish general election.

## Presidency

Having won a narrow victory in the elections, Skumokor was elected as the minister president with 31% of the national party list vote. With a large opposition threat from the Reformist Party and Kroftland Zirist Party, he formed a narrow coalition with the Center, and the Farmer's Party. He campaigned on a platform of eliminating the Zirist threat within Kroftland, and re-establishing trust in the monarchy. He was sworn in on January 2, 429.

### First Term

#### Palmoran and Esernian crises

In 433, the Palmoran monarchy was overthrown in a Zirist-backed coup d'état in which nearly three thousand Palmorans lost their lives. Skumokor saw how quickly the nation crumbled to the coup, and feared that the same could happen in Kroftland, with the Zirist party holding 26 seats in government. Skumokor held a conference with the leaders of Esernia, Veintland, and Rindland regarding security in the area in an attempt to prevent further encroachment from the Zirists, and proposed to expand the Northern Alliance to include Esernia, which was rejected by the Imperial Diet.

Just 6 months later, another coup broke out in Esernia, with the Esernian monarchy falling just as quickly as the Palmorans did previously. Skumokor took immediate action, formally banning the Kroftland Zirist Party, positioning large numbers of Kroftish soldiers on the borders of Palmora and Esernia, and ordering the Diplomatic Corps to seek out and suppress any potential internal threats from Zirists or Zirist sympathizers. Additionally, he ordered the increase of military equipment production and conscription of nearly 200,000 more service members into the Kroftish military, with approval from the Imperial Diet.

### Second Term / Pan-Almorian War

Immediately following his reelection in 434, Skumokor met with emperor Karel III the Kroftish high command to draw up plans for the invasions of Palmora and Esernia, seeing them as critical threats to Kroftish sovereignty. Troop buildups and standoffs had occurred between the Imperial Army and newly stationed Zirist Federation forces since the collapse of the Palmoran and Esernian monarchies. It was decided that a false-flag operation and subsequent full-scale invasion was necessary for Kroftish national security, and on December 20, 435, Skumokor and the Imperial Diet granted full support to emperor Karel's orders for war, which has been planned for at least several weeks at that point.

Immediately following the approval for war support, Kroftish land, sea, and air forces began an invasion to the south, with Skumokor officially declaring war the following day. Skumokor was pleasantly surprised at the effectiveness of the Kroftish forces in advancing against the Zirists, and was known to have visited the frontlines several times during the initial push. Following complete Kroftish occupation of Donsland, he proclaimed the province to be sovereign Kroftish soil, and made it part of the end goal to formally annex the territory.

His efforts to defend his allies' interests in northwestern Zira were vigorous, approving the mass transportation of supplies, food, and equipment to Brevland and Asatia, and the deployment of Kroftish forces to the fronts there. Additionally, he invited leaders of the Desert State to Kralstod in an effort to increase cooperation with other allies in the war.

Towards the final days of his presidency, Kroftland and her allies had neared complete victory over the Zirist Sphere, with Kroftland occupying the entirety of Sabna. Although his term as minister president expired in January, he was still granted a seat as part of the Kroftish delegation to the Kaimaching Conference, alongside his successor Davs Artor Helzor and emperor Karel III. At the conference, Skumokor demanded Kroftish annexation of Donsland and northern Palmora, only being granted the former.

#### Assassination attempt

In 438, while taking a walk outside the capitol building in Kralstod, Skumokor and his security detail were approached by five "Vedenic looking men", when one of them pulled out an improvised firearm and fired a round, narrowly missing Skumokor's skull. His bodyguards immediately returned fire on all five of the assailants, neutralizing them within seconds. It was later discovered that these men were part of the Zirist Administrative Operations Unit, with connections to the Kroftland Zirist Party.

#### Alleged persecution of the Akudi people

Skumokor pruported to the Diplomatic Corps that the internal Zirist threat was composed of "Reformist sympathisers, Akudi backroom operatives, and full-blown Zirists". As a result, Skumokor signed a law which evicted thousands of Akudi people, the largest religious minority, from their homes in Kroftland, deporting them to Palmora and Esernia. These actions drew heavy criticism from the political opposition.

## Post-presidency

Following his appearance at the Kaimaching Conference, Skumokor returned to his hometown of Wortdruf, where he was hailed as a national hero. As a retiree, he has continued to voice his support for the Imperial Nationalist Party, and has campaigned the party council to elect his son, Pol Skumokor III, to be the next party chairman.

## Personal life

Skumokor is married to Liza Reidz Skumokor, with whom he has a son, Pol Skumokor III. The couple is retired in Wortdruf, and also owns a small farming estate in southern Nierokland.