President of the United Federation of Planets

The President of the United Federation of Planets, is the person in which all executive power in the Federation resides. The President is elected democratically by all Federation Citizens and serves as the Head of State and Head of Government for the Federation.

Election and Term of Office

The road to becoming President begins when a candidate submits their name for consideration to the Federation Council, who screen candidates to ensure their viability and to ensure the ballot paper doesn't become too clogged. A candidate must also secure a secondment from the government of a member world to aid in this process.

Once the candidates have been screened, they are passed to the Federation Electoral Commission, who then ensure the candidates campaign within the rules. This process is completed six months before the election and it is then that campaigning begins in earnest. On October 11th every four years the election is held and on that date, all Federation citizen are eligible to vote and as many as want to, do so. The winner of the Election is then the candidate with the highest number of votes. Usually there around around ten candidates in an election.

The Candidate who wins is then sworn in on the 1st of November immediately following the election and from the on, serves a four year term as President. At the end of the term unless a candidate specifically states that they will not be running again, their name is automatically submitted to the Council and provided it is seconded, the process begins again.

A Federation President may sit as many terms as they are elected for, with no limit on the number that can be served.

Foreign Policy Role

The Federation President, as Head of State is critical to the Federation's foreign policy, as in the Presidents hands is the power to make treaties, appoint ambassadors and to declare war. The President is also the Head of the Civil Service, a role in which gives him control of the Federation Diplomatic Service.

As such, the President's primary role is to deal with threats external and to try and ensure peace and prosperity for the Federations citizens, however it also often expands to include interstellar conflict resolution, as the Federation is seen by many as a fair arbiter of disputes.

Military Role

The Federation President is also the Commander in Chief of Starfleet. In this role, he takes on a dual role, of being able to direct military operations in wartime (although this is usually left to Starfleet Command) and having a more ceremonial role, issuing commissions and medals as well as inspecting Starfleet members, ships and installations.

Head of Government

The Federation President fulfils a role as the Head of Government for the Federation, it is from the President that the agenda for the Council is traditionally set and his mandate which he attempts to get enacted by the utilisation of allies in the Council.

The President also has the power of veto, which whilst it can be overridden by the Council, is a potent tool at his disposal to ensure that legislation contrary to his agenda does not get passed.

Appointments

The Federation President is also responsible for a wide range of appointments, in practice he will only appoint a handful of members of the Civil Service, but theoretically he has to appoint every member of the Civil Service and members of his Office, the Office of the President of the United Federation of Planets. The President when elected will select a Cabinet, heads of Government Departments (although these tend not to change) and when a vacancy becomes available makes appointments to the Federation Supreme Court. The Federation President is also theoretically responsible for all promotions in the miltiary, however in practice, he only selects members of Starfleet Command.

Forms of Address

The proper form of address for a President of the United Federation of Planets depends upon the President's sex and species, and are as follows:

• "Mister President" if a male (any species)
• "Madam President" if a female (any species)
• "Shir" President if an asexual president (of any asexual species)

Constitutional Role and Powers

• 1. The Executive Functions of the United Federation of Planets shall be vested in a President, who shall serve as the Head of State.

• 2. The President shall select a Vice-President to serve as his assistant and to ensure that in the event of the President becoming unable to fulfil his duties, the continuity of government is ensured.

• 3. The President shall be elected to serve a four year term in office, by all the citizens of the Federation. The winner of said election shall be the candidate with the most votes. A President may serve an unlimited number of terms of office, provided he is elected at the beginning of each one.

• 4. Any Federation citizen over the age of majority is eligible for candidacy for the Presidency of the United Federation of Planets. If a President is successfully elected then they shall immediately resign any other positions they hold. No citizen in the process of serving a Penal sentence may submit their candidacy for the duration of their sentence. Once they have served their sentence in Penal Servitude they may then submit their candidacy.

• 5. The President shall appoint a Cabinet to assist him in the running of the Civil Service, consisting of one Cabinet member for each Department within the Civil Service.

• 6. The President of the United Federation of Planets shall have the following powers:
  • a. The President, as Head of State, serves as Commander in Chief of any Military Organisation created by the Federation and shall be responsible for ensuring that it is led by the finest persons within said organisation.
  • b. The President has the power to declare war, provided he has secured the assent of the Council
  • c. The President has the power to grant pardons to convicted persons
  • d. The President, with the assent of the Council has the power to make and ratify treaties with other powers.
  • e. The President has the power to appoint a Cabinet, Judges to the Supreme Court and Foreign Ambassadors, all of which require the assent of the Council.
  • f. The President has the right to veto any legislation passed by the Council.
  • g. The President has the right to make decrees, which have the full force of law, but these may be overturned by a simple majority of members of the Council.

• 7. The President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the United Federation of Planets, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanours. Officers of the Federation removed in this manner cannot be pardoned by the President of the United Federation of Planets and must suffer whatever punishment is impose by a jury of his peers, in a court of law, like any other Federation citizen.

Notable Federation Presidents

For a full list of Federation Presidents, see here

Notable Federation Presidents
Term	Name	Reason for Notablility
2161-2165	Thomas Vanderbilt	First President, First Human President
2177-2184	Avaranthi sh'Rothress	First Andorian President
2184-2192	Johnathan Archer	Ex-Starfleet Admiral, Commanding Officer NX-01 Enterprise
2192-2196	Graless	First Tellarite President
2196-2200	Sardix	First Vulcan President
2233-2241	Mazda Bral	First Trill President
2285-2288	Hiram Roth	President during Genesis and Whale Probe Crises
2289-2300	Ra-ghoratreii	First Efrosian President, President during Khitomer Conference
2321-2328	Thelianaresth "Thelian" th'Vorothishria	President during Cardassian First Contact
2329-2340	Hikaru Sulu	Ex-Starfleet Officer, Longest Serving President (Four terms)
2353-2360	T'Pragh	President during Federation-Cardassian War
2360-2368	Amitra of Pandril	First Pandrilite President
2368-2372	Jaresh Inyo	First Grazerite President, President during Layton Coup
2373-2379	Min Zife	President during Dominion War, First President to die in Office
2379-Present	Nanietta Bacco	Current President