Cabinet
| Government Branches | |
|---|---|
| Executive | Cabinet |
| Legislature | General Assembly |
| Judiciary | Supreme Court |
| Current: 2nd Podria Cabinet | |
 | |
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Branch | Executive |
| Leader | Secretary |
| Membership | Secretary, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Minister of Information, Minister of Recruitment, other appointed roles at the Secretary's discretion |
The Cabinet is the executive branch of The Leftist Assembly. It consists of the Secretary and all of their appointed Ministers or deputies.
The Secretary's term lasts for three months, with elections commencing at the start of March, June, September and December, while the Ministers are appointed by the Secretary and confirmed by citizens in individual confidence votes.
This body advises the Secretary as relevant to each member's designated portfolio, assists the Secretary in their responsibilities, and enforces the laws enacted by the General Assembly.
History[edit | edit source]
Formation[edit | edit source]
The Separate Cabinet legislative package, introduced by the 14th General Assembly and passed in August 2019, formally established the Cabinet as the region's independent executive branch. Previously, it had been incorporated within the General Assembly, which served as a combined executive and legislative branch; the Secretary served as executive leader of the region and their freely appointed ministers as well as legislative leader of the General Assembly's Senators. As per the package's changes, the executive and legislative branches were entirely separated, and the directly elected Secretary was to only serve as head of the executive Cabinet, which would consist of their appointed and confirmed Ministers, deputies, and any other desired portfolios. The only positions that were required by law were the Secretary, Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Minister of Recruitment.
Ministerial changes[edit | edit source]
The Minister of Information legislative package, introduced by the 15th General Assembly and passed in November 2019, mandated the existence of the Minister of Information, which was already a voluntarily-appointed portfolio (earlier as Minister of NationStates Affairs). Its responsibilities were specified as regularly running the census and Culture Competitions, maintaining citizenship rolls, and later on enforcing the endorsement cap.
Other voluntarily appointed portfolios since the establishment of an independent Cabinet have included the Vice Secretary, Ministers of Apocalyptic Affairs, Community Affairs, Events, Roleplay, and World Assembly Affairs, and a short-lived museum Curator role.
Separate elections[edit | edit source]
The Splitting Elections legislative package, introduced by the 22nd General Assembly and passed in July 2021, separated direct elections for the Secretary and Members of the General Assembly (MGA's). Secretarial elections remain scheduled for the start of every March, June, September, and December, while Legislative elections are scheduled to begin on the 15th of every January, April, July, and October. This meant that Secretarial election campaigns, as well as the subsequent appointments and confirmations of Cabinet members, could take place without simultaneous planning and campaigns for election as MGA's, giving the Secretary and Cabinet its own dedicated electoral cycle.
Since the separation of election cycles, partly intended to increase election participation and year-round regional activity, all Secretarial elections have each seen at least three candidates nominate. The December 2021 Secretarial election was notable for featuring eight final candidates for Secretary on the ballot.
Terms[edit | edit source]
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