Marianne Thieme

**Marianne Thieme** (March 6, 1982 - January 17, 2037) was a Morranian politician and trade unionist who served as the 3rd Speaker of the National Assembly of Morra from November 19, 2036 until her assassination on January 17, 2037. From January 20, 2030 until her death, Thieme was a member of the National Assembly, and served as leader of the Party of the Labourers from April 17, 2029 until her death. Thieme was the first non-VVD politician to serve in any of the three senior offices of state in the Republic of Morra.

Born in 1982, Marianne Thieme attended Berlin University between 2000 and 2004, and graduate with a degree in the history of labour relations. In 2005, Thieme became a spokesperson for the *Verdi* trade union, and rose through the ranks to become director of the organisation by 2013. During the presidency of Emanuel Macron, Thieme led a series of wage negotiation talks between *Verdi* and the government as key workers began to strike in 2018. In 2022, the Rebel Alliance movement in the Dunsteenian region of Morra was able to to seize control over the province, creating a new *de-facto* state. Consequently, the *Verdi* trade union splintered into two, with a Morranian regional group emerging following the expulsion of all members based in the new state; in October 2022, Thieme was expelled from the trade union and stripped of her role as the organisation's director. Having been expelled from *Verdi*, and forced to relocate to the new Transitional State of Dunsteen, Thieme formed a new trade union within the state known as the Voice of the Labourers, receiving the backing of the National Alliance party in the process.

During the 2023 presidential election, Marianne Thieme endorsed the candidacy of Jean Luc Melenchon for president, and became a key financial backer of the National Alliance campaign; during Melenchon's presidency, Thieme served as Minister of the Interior and began to implement labour friendly policies to encourage negotiations between unions and employers. In April 2024, Minister Thieme gave a major address on live television alleging that the armed forces were engaged in a plot to overthrow the elected government of Melenchon; ultimately these allegations proved to be correct, and in August 2024 the Dunsteenian Transitional Junta was formed following the overthrow of President Melenchon. Under the junta regime, the National Alliance was disbanded, as was the Voice of the Labourers trade union, whilst Thieme herself was forced from office during the coup in August 2024 and served a four year prison sentence under the new Corporate Republic of Dunsteen.

Following the formation of the Republic of Morra in February 2029 and the transition to a quasi-democratic political system, all political prisoners held by the government were released and granted full pardons for all non criminal charges. In April 2029, Marianne Thieme became the founding leader of the Party of the Labourers (PvdA), a social democratic labour party formed from the left-wing remnants of the former National Alliance. Thieme led the party into the January 2030 presidential and National Assembly elections, with the PvdA becoming the largest opposition party within the republic; within the National Assembly, the PvdA held 63 seats, whilst Thieme personally came second during the presidential election. During the 2030-35 parliamentary session, Thieme remained as leader of the PvdA and led opposition campaigns against the passing of the Healthcare Regulations Act of 2031, as well as the government's flagship political reforms and the increasing consolidation of power around the office of speaker of the National Assembly. In 2035 Thieme once again stood for president, as the joint candidate of the "United Opposition" campaign alliance, whilst in the concurrent legislative elections, the PvdA increased its share of votes and seats in the chamber. In the aftermath of the resignation of Speaker Peter Illich in September 2036, Marianne Thieme led the opposition parties in placing significant political pressure against newly-appointed Speaker Frank Wassenberg to hold snap elections, with Wassenberg ultimately acquiescing to the demands and dissolving the National Assembly in October 2036. During the subsequent election campaign, Thieme acted as the head of the "United Opposition" and negotiated an agreement between all opposition parties to stand on the same manifesto pledges in order to best oppose the Wassenberg administration.

In the aftermath of the election, the "United Opposition" bloc became the largest grouping within the National Assembly of Morra, and Marianne Thieme was appointed as speaker on November 19, 2036, becoming the first woman and first politician outside of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) to hold the office. Just 42 days into the Thieme administration, half of the government and several independent congresspeople unexpectedly withdrew from the government in the evening of December 31, 2036, leaving only the PvdA and the Progressive party as members of the government in a minority status with no coalition in place to replace them. On January 14, 2037, Speaker Thieme released a televised statement in which she exposed the role that the VVD-led administration of Peter Illich had played in the release and spread of the Derigo disease outbreak in Morra; the following day, President Bakshi formally dissolved the National Assembly of Morra and called for fresh elections. During the election campaign, Speaker Thieme was assassinated by unknown assailants, who were later discovered to be acting on the orders of President Bakshi. With the death of it's de-facto leader, the "United Opposition" grouping effectively dissolved in the last weeks of the campaign, allowing the VVD-led alliance to return to government once more with the re-election of Frank Wassenberg on February 20, 2037.