President of the Republic

It is necessary to have a university degree in any domain with a preference for political science to hold this position. Most candidates have in addition previous political experience and a certain advancement in the personal career even if it's not official requirements because it's generally appreciated by the electorate.

The candidates must be citizens of the Republic, meet the necessary qualifications, be of legal age, not be the subject of legal proceedings at the time of filing their candidacy, not have been convicted of a crime within twenty years preceding his candidacy to hold this position. Finally, if he held a high public office, he does not claim to have been convicted of a political crime or to have violated the Republican Code of Political Ethics. His candidacy must be approved by the Federal Electoral Commission which will check his criminal record and if he does indeed meet the requirements.

The candidate is chosen in the federal election which lasts seven months, the first step is the selection of candidates, this process is led by the Federal Electoral Commission who must approve the candidacies according to the requirements of to be President of the Republic. The candidates wishing to run for office must during two months register to the Federal Electoral Commission one month before the official start of the election. The contestants once approved can represent the party of their choice in the Parliament of the Republic or they can also remain completely independant althought this is relatively rare since being attached to a party generally gives more visibility. A deputies can stand for the presidential election if he does not represent himself for his district at the same time.

The political parties can also choose from among the candidates a specific one to represent them which gives him more chance of winning. The citizens must give their signatures to either candidate on the website of the Federal Electoral Commission when all candidates are registered. The number of candidates admitted to the second stage depends on the number of parties in the Senate with the current number being five since there are four parties plus one for the independents. The people with the most signatures can enter the next stage which is the election campaign lasting four months. It is during the campaign that the five candidates will reveal their choice for vice presidency with the approval of the Office of the Federal Civil Service and compete for the supreme office.

The election uses the framework of the Republican voting system which is used in each elections within the Federal Republic except the proportional ones of the Parliament of the Republic. The number of rounds can however vary depending on the position that is concerned by the election. The system in shorts allows voters to rank candidates from zero to five in their order of preferences. The presidential election have two rounds, in the first one, the two candidates with the most points move on to the second one. During the latter, each ballot is recounted and the candidate who is the highest ranked wins it, the greatest number of ballots won determines the winner. A ceremony is organized in the People House one month after the election for all members of the government including the President to be sworn. It is then that they officially take up their duties which completes the transfer of powers between the old and the new administration.

The President has a duty to respect the Constitution of the Federal Republic, to discharge these responsibilities with integrity, to act in the interests of the citizens as well as of the Republic and to represent the Republic well during in every situations.

The President act as the head of state, of the armed forces, the representative of the Republic abroad and need to guides overall foreign policy. The President also is in charge of constituting his coalition from parties at the Parliament in the case where his party has not obtained a majority which happens relatively often. The Vice-President will then be in charge of forming a government which will implement the agenda of the coalition and that of the President.

The president can be removed from these functions if this one is suspected of violating the constitution, to have violated the Republican Code of Political Ethics or committing a crime. He is immediately removed from office during the investigation with the Vice-President responsible for taking the interim. He is permanently removed from this office in the case that charges are brought and he found guilty, but if he is acquitted he can resume his post. It can also be the subject of a Motion of Distrust which can be launched by a party at the Parliement of the Republic.

The proposal must be accepted by the President of the Parliament of the Republic who cannot refuse it under any pretext. It is presented to the Senate once accepted and the President is officially removed from office if 75% of the senators vote in favor. During a presidential dismissal, regardless of the means used, the Vice-President always takes the place of the President for the rest of his term. This one then propose a candidate to be the new Vice-President to the Office of the Federal Civil Service for approval in the case that the President is permanently dismissed from office.