Federal Council of Frankenland

**Salary** | $450,000 (per anum)

The **Federal Council of Frankenland** (Lungarian: *Pfleschesrecker der Fränkenland*; Maldonian: *Counseil fédèrale de la Frèche*; Regian: *Cunsiglio federalo della Frezzia*) is the seven-member executive council that constitutes the federal government of Frankenland and serves as its collective head of state and of government.

While the entire council is responsible for leading the federal administration of Frankenland, each councillor heads one of the seven federal executive departments. The position of President of Frankenland rotates among the seven councillors on a yearly basis, with one year's Vice President becoming the next year's President.

## Members

*Main article: List of Federal Councillors of Frankenland*.

Members of the Federal Council for the year of 2020, listed in order of presidential succession.

## Composition

The current composition of the Federal Council is as follows: two Social Democrats, two National Democrats, two Liberal Democrats, and one Christian Democrat.

The composition of the council directly correlates with the composition of the National Council of Frankenland. Prior to each Federal Council election, there is an informal vote in the National Council to decide which party will receive the vacated seat. Almost always the seat is retained by the party vacating it and this vote is merely a formality, but in cases where a party has lost a number of seats in parliament since receiving the seat in the Federal Council, or a party has gained a number of seats, these votes can become competitive, with parties negotiating and forming coalitions with other parties in order to receive support for the seat.

The current composition has not been altered since 2001, when the Christian Democrats received a seat from the Frankish Conservative Alliance after their failure in the 1998 election.

## Operation

### Presidency

Each year, one of the seven councillors is elected President of Frankenland, and one is elected Vice President. This process is noncontroversial, simply going down the line of succession each year. The Vice President will become the President the year after, while the President will go to the end of the line of succession after serving. With this process, each councillor becomes Vice President and then President every seven years. Although not explicitly enforced, it is *de facto* expected that councillors retire after their second term as President; this results in a retirement and new councillor being elected every other year.

While the President is *de jure* the highest ranking official in Frankenland, they do not hold many powers not given to the other councillors as well. The President presides over council meetings and serves as the official spokesperson of the council, often being the most visible member of the council in the media during their tenure, but their voting power is unchanged. The President does host foreign dignitaries to Frankenland, but does not take foreign state-sponsored trips, as this responsibility is given to the director of the Department of Foreign Affairs. In situations deemed of the utmost importance, the President is authorized to make decisions on behalf of the council, although situations like these very rarely arise, and this power largely goes unused.

### Meetings

The council operates through daily meetings. Apart from the seven councillors, the meetings are also attended by the Federal Chancellor, a high-ranking government official who acts as an unofficial eighth non-voting member of the council. The Federal Chancellor is appointed by the council for a one-year term that must be renewed each year; typically, Federal Chancellors serve for five years until retiring, and their terms are always renewed unless the council believes they are especially unfit for the position.

After each meeting, the council takes lunch together, often visiting public restaurants in Gortzman due to the "everyman" image that politicians in Frankenland have traditionally portrayed themselves as for generations. Councillors also regularly meet each other in small unofficial meetings to discuss specific issues related to their departments. Each year, the council embarks on a "field trip" together to the home state of the President, typically in either July or August. The trip lasts about a week and a half, and is typically highly featured in Frankish news. The councillors often take part in activities the state is known for, and meet ordinary citizens.

### Responsibilities

Each councillor heads one of the federal departments of Frankenland, functioning similarly to ministers of the government in other nations. Upon their first election, each councillor is assigned a department, typically the only one that is vacant. The most senior councillors can request to switch their departments, often grabbing first dibs on a retiring councillor's highly respected department; this results in newer councillors often heading departments with less desirable responsibilities until gaining seniority. The departments deemed the most prestigious are often the departments of Foreign Affairs, Finance, and Justice, typically only given to senior councillors, most of which have already served a term as President.

Decisions taken up by the council always originate from the councillor whose department oversees the issue. For example, a proposal to increase the wages of government employees will always originate from the councillor who heads the Department of Finance. Due to the various parties represented in the council, each administration will often see their political ideologies differ by department, depending on which party runs each department. For example, an administration where the Social Democrats control the Department of Foreign Affairs but the National Democrats control the Department of Finance will often see left-wing foreign policy but right-wing fiscal policy. However, in order for any proposal to pass, four of the seven councillors must vote in favor of it, which results in compromise being a necessity for proactive government.

To prepare for important decisions, councillors often bring in experts on the topic to speak to the council, while interest groups may also occasionally be invited as well. Due to Frankenland being a semi-direct democracy, the council's decisions can always be overridden if public opinion does not agree with them.

## Election

### Procedure

Elections to the Federal Council are typically held every other year in autumn. While it is often easy to predict when a councillor will retire due to the *de facto* 14-year tenure each councillor follows, councillors typically announce their retirement the summer of their planned last year in office. This announcement will trigger an election.

After the announcement goes public, an informal vote is held in the National Council to determine which party will fill the vacated seat. This vote is often merely a formality and the seat will almost always be filled by the party vacating it, with most legislators even voting against their own party. However, in times where the party vacating the seat has lost a number of seats in the National Council since first receiving that seat in the Federal Council, these votes may become competitive with other parties hoping to fill it instead. After it is determined which party will fill the seat, any member of the National Council or State Council can announce their campaigns for the seat. Campaigns are largely self-run, with party officials remaining neutral and refusing interference in these elections. If more than two individuals announce candidacies, then a final two will be whittled down through a series of votes within the National Council. Because of this, it is imperative that candidates receive endorsements from other legislators if they wish to advance to the general election. Largely only members of the party selected to fill the council seat take part in early rounds of voting. As the rounds increase, some members of other parties begin participating, although typically they vote on an ethnic or state basis (supporting a candidate from their ethnic group or state), rather than by the candidate most similar to their politics. By the final round, nearly all members of the National Council vote regardless of their party, often again voting based on ethnic or state biases rather than political ideology.

After a final two candidates are decided by the National Council, these two advance to a vote of the general voting-age public. Voters are not required to belong to the party filling the seat, and voters registered with other parties are also eligible to vote in the election. The candidate with the greater amount of votes will be elected to the council, and take their seat on 1 January of the next year.

### Resignation

Once elected to the council, councillors cannot be voted out in a vote of no confidence nor impeached by parliament. There are *de jure* no term limits for councillors, although it is tradition for councillors to serve for 14 years until retirement. If a councillor is deemed unfit for service, the other councillors may pass a motion for removal from the council. This motion would have to be agreed upon unanimously, with the councillor in question being unable to vote. This has never happened in Frankish history.

If a councillor is planning their resignation, they will typically announce it in the summer of their last year of office, triggering an election. In the case of a councillor's death in office or the need for an immediate resignation, their seat will remain vacant until an election can select a permanent replacement. Acting or interim councillors are not permitted.

## Status

### Lives

It is within Frankish culture and tradition for its politicians to behave as "everymen" with ordinary lives, much like other citizens of the country. Because of this, there is no official residence for the council like there are for heads of state or government in other nations. Each councillor must find their own residences in Gortzman, or any outside city in which they are able to commute from daily. Most councillors own a main residence in their home city and a supplementary residence in Gortzman that they use when the council is in session.

Councillors receive no official bodyguard or security detail during their private lives. During official events and while at work, there are on-duty security guards to protect the councillors, but any protection outside of their official duties must be paid for by each councillor. However, most choose to not pay for their own security, as there have never been security incidents involving councillors in the history of Frankenland, and they often prefer to live as private citizens.

Unlike in other nations, the spouses of councillors play no official or unofficial role in the business of government, and there exists no title of First Lady or First Gentleman, neither officially nor unofficially. Spouses live their own private lives and often have their own careers, only ever accompanying their spouses to some formal official events.

### Salaries

Councillors receive a yearly salary of $450,000, which they must pay taxes on. They are the highest-paid individuals in the Frankish government. Some of this salary is meant to cover expenses on a residence in Gortzman, as they are not provided one by the state.

After councillors serve four years on the council, they become entitled to a pension equivalent to half of their salary as a councillor (currently equivalent to $225,000). Councillors who leave for health-related reasons may receive their pensions even if they served for less than four years, and if a councillor dies in office their pension is given to their spouse. Councillors who resign before four years for non-health-related reasons may receive a smaller, undisclosed pension. After resigning from the council, councillors are entitled to seek other career interests. Their new salaries combined with their pensions may not exceed their salary as a councillor, and if it does their pension will be reduced accordingly; thus, if a councillor earns more than $450,000 in their post-retirement work they will lose their pension until they receive a decrease in salary.

Each councillor is given free telephone contracts, a chauffeur-driven car for official usage, and a personal car for private-usage, in addition to free travel on government-owned airplanes, helicopters, trains, and buses for official travel.