Government of Drahen

His Imperial Majesty's Government (HIMG), commonly known as the Government of Drahen is the unitary government of the Imperial Republic of Drahen. The Drahn govenrment is divided in four branches: the executive, which is headed by the Prime Minister and Cabinet; the legislative, whose pwoers are vested by the Constitution in the General Assembly; the judicary, whose powers are vested in the Supreme Court and lower courts; and the monarchy, which is headed by the Emperor and advised by the Council of State.

Monarchy

The Drahn Emperor is the head of state and sovereign, but not the head of government. Today the sovereign takes little direct part in governing the country, and normally remains neutral in political affairs. However, the legal authority of the state that is vested in the sovereign remains the source of executive power exercised by the government.

In addition to explicit statutory authority, in many areas the sovereign also possesses a body of powers known as the Imperial Prerogative, which can be used for a variety of purposes, such as the issue or withdrawal of passports and declaration of war. By custom, most of the powers are now delegated from the sovereign to the various ministers, who may use them without having to obtain the consent of the General Assembly. However, the Constitution attributes these powers to the sovereign to use or delegate as they see fit, and the sovereign may choose to exercise these powers themselves if they so wish.

The Council of State is a body of appointed advisors to the sovereign of Drahen. The council is lead by the First Advisor (Primo consigliere imperiale), who is traditionally the Prime Minister with up to 5 other Advisors (Consigliere imperiale). The Council provides advice to the Emperor if he requests it, reviews petitions on the Emperor's behalf, and act as ceremonial stand-ins for the Emperor at various events and ceremonies. The Emperor alone appoints all members of the council, and the Council's offices are in the capital of Telos.

Executive Branch

The executive branch or government is lead by the Prime Minister (Protasekretis), who along with the other ministers (Logothetes) belong to the he supreme decision-making committee, known as the Cabinet. The Prime Minister is selected by the Emperor from a list of three candidates chosen by the Upper House of the legislative branch after the General Election every 9 years and can serve up to 3 terms. The prime minister, as head of the executive branch, is also the leader of the Cabinet of Drahen. The prime minister has been granted the prerogative to appoint or remove any minister he or she so chooses. As the most visible member of the government the prime minister represents the country abroad and is the main spokesperson for the government at home.

The Council of Ministers is compromised of the following departments: Foreign Affairs, Interior, Finance, Defense, Social Development, Public Functions, Labor, Environment, Energy, Agriculture, Education, Health, Tourism, Attorney General, and Transportation.

Legislative Branch

The General Assembly of The Imperial Republic of Drahen is composed of 324 delegates, split into two chambers, the Senate, with 54 senators and the Chamber of Deputies, compromised of 270 general deputies. The prerogatives and authority granted to the legislature by the constitution means that the legislature plays a major and indispensable role in the functioning of the government. Only the General Assembly can create an enact laws.

The legislature also holds the power of the purse and is required to annually authorize expenditures and taxes. In addition the General Assembly also sets the size of military forces and can create and dissolve government organizations. The constitution requires that the General Assembly, or a subset of it be consulted about declarations of war, treaties and the conduct of international relations. This means that the legislature can block or limit government decisions, influence appointments and force reconsideration of policy unless overridden by Imperial Prerogative.

Deputies are elected by majority vote from their District for 3 year terms, while Senators are elected by their respective Provincial Assembly for nine year terms. Life Senators, of which there are 12, are chosen by the Emperor and hold their positions until they either retire or pass away.

Judiciary Branch

Drahen has a unitary three-tier independent judiciary that comprises the Supreme Court, headed by the Chief Justice of Drahen, 24 High Courts, and a large number of trial courts. The Supreme Court has original jurisdiction over cases involving fundamental rights and over disputes between states and the centre; it has appellate jurisdiction over the High Courts. It has the power both to declare the law and to strike down union or state laws which contravene the constitution. The Supreme Court is also the ultimate interpreter of the constitution.

Provincial Government

A Provincial Assembly is composed of 24, 36 or 48 elected deputies, the number depending on the size of the province's population. The election of provincial deputies followed the same procedure as used to elect deputies to the national Chamber of Deputies. The responsibilities of the Provincial Assembly include: defining provincial and municipal budgets and levying the taxes necessary to support them; providing primary and secondary schools (higher education is the responsibility of the national government); oversight and control of provincial expenditures; and providing for law enforcement and maintenance of police forces at the provincial level. The Assemblies also control the creation, abolishment and salaries for positions within provincial civil services. The nomination, suspension and dismissal of civil servants is reserved for the Praetor (governor) of the province, but how and under what circumstances the governor can exercise these prerogatives is delineated by the Provincial Assembly. The expropriation of private property (with due monetary compensation) for provincial or municipal interests is also a right of the Assembly. In effect, the Provincial Assembly can enact any kind of law—with no ratification by the legislature—so long as such local laws do not violate or encroach upon the Constitution or national laws. However, provinces are not permitted to legislate in the areas of criminal law, criminal procedure laws, civil rights and obligations, the armed forces, the national budget or matters concerning national interests, such as foreign relations. The provincial Praetors are appointed by the Emperor and confirmed by the Senate and are, in theory, charged with governing the province. In practice, however, their power is somewhat intangible, varying from province to province based upon each Praetor's relative degree of personal influence and personal character. Since the national government wanted to ensure their loyalty, Praetor are, in most cases, sent to a province in which they have no political, familial or other ties. In order to prevent them from developing any strong local interests or support, Praetor usually are limited to terms of only a few years in office. As the praetor usually spends a great deal of time away from the province, often traveling to their native province or the imperial capital. As a result, in many provinces the de facto governor is the Kephale, who was chosen by the Provincial Assembly and is usually a local politician. With little power to undermine provincial autonomy, the Praetor is an agent of the central government with little function beyond conveying its interests to the provincial politicians.