Valruzia

[Aethan]

Constitutional reform on Head of State approved

Following next year's election, Valruzia will have a different system to choose their Presidents

January 5659

President Aleksandra Bielecka will be the last directly popularly-elected Head of State of Valruzia 

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The Constitutional Reform on the Head of State of Valruzia has just passed its last step following the popular vote by the citizens held earlier this month. With the backing of over two-thirds of the parliament and a clear mandate from the public, the office of the President of the Republic will be permanently transformed after the upcoming 5660 general election.

The reform marks the end of direct popular election of the Head of State, a model that has been in place since the reestablishment of the Republic in the early 5600s. President Aleksandra Bielecka, currently serving her second term, will be remembered as the last directly elected figure to hold the role.

In the public referendum, voters were presented with five possible models for reforming the presidency after agreement with the different political groups, and ranked-choice voting was used to determine the winner. These options were:

• Parliamentary Presidency
  
• Elective monarchy
  
• Rotating Head of State among the Marshalls of the Voivodeships
  
• Collective Head of State among the Marshalls of the Voivodeships
  
• Merge of the Head of State and Government.
  

The final result after tallying all the votes was between Collective and Rotating Head of State, with the former winning by a 53-47% margin. 

Therefore, under the new system that has now been embodied in the Constitution and which represents its second overall modification after the protection of same-sex marriage and abortion in it, the Head of State will no longer be a single individual, but a collegial body composed of the five Marshalls of Valruzia’s voivodeships. The collective presidency will also see its power reduced, being now mainly responsible of:

• Representing the Republic in diplomatic ceremonies and state visits
  
• Signing laws and international treaties after parliamentary ratification
  
• Appoint ambassadors and high civil servants following government proposals
  
• Uphold constitutional formalities and national symbols
  

But most crucially, the collective Head of State will not have any executive or veto powers. The presidency will rotate its spokesperson every six months in alphabetical order of the Voivodeships, unless otherwise agreed by consensus. All decisions will be taken by majority vote among the Marshalls.

The decision to abolish the presidential election is part of a Chancellor Zuzanna Kosowska's broader constitutional evolution toward consensual democracy and federal decentralization, with its supporters arguing that the Marshalls already carry a democratic mandate at the regional level, ensuring legitimacy through their representation, and that this new model avoids presidential personalization and strengthens collective responsibility.

Despite opposition, the measure passed both popular approval and parliamentary ratification, and it will take full effect after the 5660 elections, when the last directly elected president steps down. Some of its critics now argue that the reform is mainly beneficial for the big parties – especially Sovereign Valruzia and Forward Valruzia, who hold four of the five regional governments – while it takes the chance for small parties or personal figures to be able to take over the position. Others fear that this will mean that more people will run for the Voivodeships instead, but the reform has made clear that the offices of President and Chancellor are not compatible and therefore, if one is elected for any of them must resign the other position.

The officeholders were still be named as "Presidents", and the office will remain with the same name, "Presidency of Valruzia".