J. C. Tanner

Tanner in 2021

**Jason Carson Tanner** (previously **Jason Carson Markov**; born **Mari Harper**, 6 April 1964) is a MiriAn politician who is the 4th and current president of MiriAi. A member of the National Party, he previously served as the Secretary of Defense from 1986 to 1990 and as a MiriAn congressman representing the 22nd Partition from 1990 to 1998.

Tanner was born in Weilai, Ibarkla (now part of MiriAi), fleeing the First MiriAn Revolutionary War to Morigal, Ibarkla as an infant when he was adopted by Dimitri Markov. He enlisted in the MiriAn Army in 1983 and fought in the Second MiriAn Revolutionary War in the MiriAn National Liberation Army in the 51st Infantry Brigade, attaining the rank of major. By the end of the war, he was put in command of his unit and won a decisive victory at the Third Battle of the Capitol District; in recognition of his achievements, he was awarded the MiriAn Medal of Honor.

After the war, he was appointed to the position of Secretary of Defense by president Jose Auyong, overseeing the anti-monarchist reforms of the MiriAn Military. After Auyong's presidency, he ran for the MiriAn Congress in 1990 and was elected to represent the 22nd Partition. During his tenure as a congressman, he became the chair of the Congressional Internal Affairs Committee and led MiriAn government response to remaining pro-monarchist, irredentist, and pro-unification activity, led the effort to pass the MiriAn Security Act (1993), and was influential in shaping MiriAi's foreign policy as a close advisor to many presidents. He was re-elected to Congress in 1994.

Tanner first ran for president in 1998, defeating incumbent president Naomi Sato in the 1998 presidential election and becoming the world's first transgender head of state and head of government. Tanner signed many important laws during his first term, including the Jun-Chao Seditious Activities Act, the MiriAn Recovery and Tax Relief Act, the landmark MiriAn Healthcare Act, and signed a formal peace treaty ending the Second MiriAn Revolutionary War. He oversaw the transition of MiriAi from an industrializing nation to a developed one and championed meritocracy, multiculturalism and antiracism in the government and civil service. In foreign policy, Tanner ended the Weilai Bay Crisis and reestablished diplomatic relations with Ibarkla, normalized relations with the Republic of Axocha, and began the North Grarante Defense Alliance application process. Under his presidency, the Republic of MiriAi was recognized by the World Assembly, and the latter body formally ceased recognition of the MiriAn monarchy-in-exile.

Tanner won re-election in 2002, defeating challenger Jiang Wang. During this term, the MiriAn Congress passed the Security and Reform Act, the first of many laws centralizing power into the hands of the presidency. MiriAi began to transition away from democracy and towards authoritarianism, best exemplified in the passage of the Insurrection and Internal Revolt Act, placing stringent regulations on assembly and speech in MiriAi, and the Centralization Act, enabling the president to bypass the Congress to sign executive orders into law. Since the 2006 elections, MiriAi has functionally become a one-party state, with Tanner winning every election and political opposition relatively powerless in the nation. Several legislative acts, including the 2007 Bureaucratic Efficiency and Streamlining Act have consolidated power into the presidency, with the MiriAn Congress reduced to largely serving an advisory role.

Tanner has proved a divisive figure both in MiriAi and internationally. Opponents point to the gradual erosion of press freedoms and political liberties under his rule, and condemn the authoritarian nature and democratic backslide of the MiriAn government; supporters of Tanner argue that the measures were necessary to stabilize the fledgling country and are generally benevolent, while also praising his socially liberal policies.

## Early life

Tanner was born Mari Harper in 1964 in Weilai, Ibarkla, now part of the nation of MiriAi. He is the only child of Jurie Kei, an admiral in the MiriAn Navy; his biological father was Cyril Harper, heir of the Futurics Corporation. He was born in the midst of the First MiriAn Revolutionary War, and, as an infant, was adopted by Dimitri Markov, who fled the war to Morigal, Ibarkla, a small village on the border of the Hartdon Demilitarized Zone. A transgender man, Tanner transitioned at the age of 14–15 and was supported by his father, legally changing his name to Jason Carson Markov.

## Second MiriAn Revolutionary War

Tanner enlisted in the MiriAn Army in 1983 at the age of 18. After the start of the Second MiriAn Revolutionary War, he joined the Republican faction and fought for the MiriAn National Liberation Army.

## Presidency (1998–present)

The inauguration of J. C. Tanner as the fourth MiriAn president took place on 1 March 1998.