The President

As the Head of State of the Republic, a mixture of the American President and the British Crown, the President of the Republic has various discretionary powers vested in him by the Constitution, most of which being explained below.

Above all else, he is charged as the “guarantor of the sovereignty, law and tranquility” of the Republic, and in such capacity takes care that the Constitution “be enforced and preserved in due respect” and that “justice be ensured and the general welfare be promoted”.

Election

The President is elected at large by the entire nation every five years, using the two-round runoff method.

He must be 35 years old; either be a natural-born citizen, or have been naturalized during or before the year 2033; and have been a resident of Silofais for 14 years.

When elected, a candidate for the presidency must not have already “served or acted in the same [o]ffice longer than seven of the preceding fifteen years”. Under normal circumstances, this would limit a President to two full terms out of any four.

Between 2020 and 2030, the President is elected every two years and may be 18 years old (instead of 35).

Appointments

The President is empowered to appoint the judges on any Court, the admirals and generals of the military, and the ambassadors and other consuls and envoys of the Republic. However, this is not absolute: to make the appointments, he must nominate a person to the Chamber of Delegates, the lower house of the legislature, for their advice and consent. There the nominee is scrutinized and, ultimately, is confirmed or rejected by the Delegates.

Diplomacy and Military

As the commander-in-chief of the military and the chief diplomat of the nation, the President forms foreign policy and is the chairman of any national security councils and diplomatic corps. He makes treaties with other nations and international organizations, subject to advice and ratification by two thirds of the Senate, the upper house of the legislature.

The legislature must be notified whenever the military intervenes abroad, and any such intervention must end after 30 days if the legislature disapproves it. States of siege, rebellion, or other great crises are declared and resolved by the President, in coordination with the military and other organs of government.

Domestic Affairs

The President is ex officio the chairman of the Council of State, a body not unlike the French Council of Ministers or the British Privy Council. Comprised by the highest-ranking heads of diplomatic, martial and executive affairs, the Council is the nation’s advisory and deliberative organ meant to ensure and foster the welfare of the Republic.

Laws passed by both houses of the legislature, before they take effect, are presented to the President for his approval, and he may sign or veto each; his vetoes may be subsequently overridden by the legislature only though an affirmative two-thirds vote in both houses. As well, the President may convene the legislature for special sessions, or must do so if two thirds of the legislators petition him for it.

Pardons, commutations, reprieves or respites may be granted at the President’s discretion, though the consent of two thirds of the Senate is required for any amnesties or clemency of treason; and all national awards, honors and titles are also presented and adorned by the President.

Perhaps the most important function of the President is his appointment of the Chief Secretary, the Silofaisan equivalent of a prime minister and the head of the Executive Branch. Much like his French counterpart, the President appoints the Chief Secretary at his discretion and, on the latter’s recommendation, appoints and removes other members of the Cabinet, but lacks completely the power to remove him; the latter may keep his office indefinitely, so long as he and his Cabinet collectively maintain the confidence of the Chamber of Delegates. In this regard, the President’s initial appointment of the Chief Secretary can have either deep, lasting impacts on the execution of the law and domestic policies, or none at all.