Forest Christopher Ferrell
The Sovereign and Honourable Forest Christopher Ferrell | |
|---|---|
 Presidential portrait (2023) | |
| President of the Sovereign State of Ridgeland | |
| Assumed office 13 November 2022 | |
| Chancellor | Lilly Holland |
| Vice President | Audrey Howell |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Forest Christopher Ferrell March 26, 2010 |
| Military service | |
| Battles/wars |
|
Forest Christopher Ferrell (born 26 March 2010) is a Ridgelantic nationalist, politician, and journalist who has served as the first President of Ridgeland (POTSSR) since 13 November 2022.
Born in March 2010, Ferrell was formally diagnosed with autism at the age of two, spending most of his early life in online school and developmental therapy. Approaching adolescence, he developed an interest in politics and micronationalism. On 13 November 2022, Forest C. F. proclaimed the Sovereign State of Ridgeland.[1], being elected President of the Sovereign State of Ridgeland on the same day[2]. Forest C. F. served in multiple wars as the commander-in-chief of the Sovereign State of Ridgeland, and established diplomacy with multiple micronations. Since assuming the presidency, he has become one of the most famous Ridgelantic political figures.
Early life and adolesence
Forest C. F. was born on 26 March 2010 to the Ferrell family, along with two other triplets. Unlike his older siblings, he was diagnosed with autism at the age of two. After first grade, he was enrolled in the North Carolina Virtual Academy due to behavioral misconduct at his elementary school. Around this time, he gained an interest in micronationalism, often drawing fictional countries on paper maps and creating various micronational projects (although he never used the term micronation until later). One of the most notable of these projects included Noobstonia, a "roleplay nation" that he would eventually abandon for the Sovereign State of Ridgeland.
Forest C. F. briefly declared himself 'king of [his] middle school' after leaving NCVA in 2021, before resigning from the honorary title, asking to be called the 'president of [his] middle school' instead. In early 7th grade, he began preparations for the founding of the Sovereign State of Ridgeland as a micronation. On 13 November 2022, taking heavy inspiration from the founding documents of the United States and the Republic of France, he wrote the Declaration of Sovereignty, declaring Ridgeland as a sovereign state.
Presidency
Early presidency
Most information concerning Ferrell's early presidency is archived through Ridgelantic social media accounts on TikTok and Twitter (now X).
Ferrell assumed the leadership of Ridgeland on 13 November 2022 after the Ridgelantic Declaration of Sovereignty and an impromptu vote decided him as leader of the Ridgelantic government. He eventually declared the annexation of his 7th grade middle school hall[3], and finished writing the Constitution of Ridgeland[4]. The Constitution had various signatures from his classmates, peers, and family, all of whom Ferrell eventually granted the honorary title of 'founding fathers' and granted various provisional government positions.
During the Instability in late 2022, Forest C. F. himself led multiple cyberattacks on enemy micronations, and managed the New Prussia crisis. Initially calling a vote on social media to decide Ridgelantic independence during the New Prussia crisis, the vote was overridden, with Forest C. F. 'the fact Ridgelantic citizens will not be able to vote'. The vote was thus limited to Ridgelantic citizens and leaders of allied states, resulting in the preservation of Ridgelantic independence. Ferrell eventually negotiated a peace treaty between New Prussia and Ridgeland.
Ferrell's government was involved with brief tensions between Gorthia and Cristoria towards the end of the conflict, helping to negotiate a peaceful resolution.
Expansion, government-in-exile, and Almendro-Ridgelantic conflicts
Ridgeland expanded to its modern day borders on 5 February 2023[5], annexing Cavnaria and most of Kramerkolonie. In late May 2023, the Ridgelantic government was exiled to a hotel near the border of Ridgeland after a damaged roof and asbestos were found in the executive residence. Forest C. F. at this time kept Ridgelantic morale high, often flying the Ridgelantic flag outside of his suite's window. On 16 June, Forest C. F. officially authorized Ridgelantic membership of the GARKA Legion, a now inactive micronational alliance.
Forest C. F. directly participated in the Grand Finale, helping lead and organize multiple Discord raids, along with designing propaganda and text copypastas for raids and spamming, along with organizing Operation Red July.
Return from exile and political crisis
After the government-in-exile era ended on 13 August 2023, normal government functions of the Government of Ridgeland resumed. Forest C. F. led a brief conflict against Lemakon in the United Kingdom during mid-to-late September, the Department of Defense was established under the governance of Drew Tucker. On 17 September, 2023, Forest C. F. proposed the Intermicronational Concordat, originally under the name The Intermicronationale, to Lorraine I of Bonesdale as the two nations formally established diplomacy with each other, along with the creation of an online embassy on the Ridgelantic Discord server, Official Server of Ridgeland@Discord. Ridgelantic diplomatic efforts continued into October as the Sovereign State of Ridgeland, Bonesdale, Woodland, and Paxaris officially established the Intermicronational Concordat after a 2-day online conference between nations.
On 4 October, 2023, President Forest C. F. received an e-mail from Joe Biden, President of the United States, after sending a short diplomatic message via the White House website. The e-mail contained Biden’s opinion on Ridgeland, complementing the “passion” behind Ridgeland, but hoping to solve any differences in the near future, and stating that he would continue to be a president for “all Americans”.
After the Conversation affair, Forest C. F. and Lorraine I of Bonesdale eventually chose to dissolve the Intermicronational Concordat after Forest C. F. failed negotiations to reenter Bonesdale and Gorthia into the alliance.
Kramerkolonie Putsch and Party Outage affair
On 25 October 2023, Ridgelantic intelligence eventually leaked a reported 'coup d'etat' plan created by Drew Tucker, whom he had recently removed from the Ministry of Defense. Forest C. F. confronted Tucker, with Tucker providing a self-written bill that would have forced the resignation of Forest C. F and his government (although Tucker claimed the bill would've reinstated his power). Forest C. F. had torn the bill using a pencil Tucker had provided him, and once again engaged in heated argument before Tucker eventually backed down and tore the remnants of the bill into pieces, and peacefully reconciled.
After the Kramerkolonie Putsch failed, President Forest C. F. inquired Gage Coley about the newly formed Democratic Opposition, a political party lead by Tucker that claimed to be the successor of the Conservative Party. Coley responded by claiming that he had never agreed to join the party, despite Drew Tucker claiming that he had agreed with him hours after the Kramerkolonie Putsch. On 30 October 2023, Forest C. F. had told Gage Coley to attempt to revert the reformation to the Democratic Opposition, resulting in a confrontation between Coley and Tucker. Tucker repeatedly refused reverting the reformation, claiming the interference of President Forest C. F. The incident eventually led to further dispute between the Ridgelantic administration and the Democratic Opposition, and a split in the party between the anti-Democratic Opposition conservatives and the party leadership.
2023 Federal elections
On 2 November 2023, Candidate Drew Tucker attempted to infiltrate the Sovereignty Party via Ridgelantic Election Campaigns@Discord, sending a political spy by the pseudonym Cristius Vail to pretend to be an aspiring member of the Sovereignty Party. Immediately, an argument ensued with multiple members of the server accusing Cristius Vail of being Drew on an alternate account, before Vail spontaneously 'switched ideologies' and claimed support for the Democratic Opposition. After his identity as a spy was revealed, he left the server completely, along with Tucker minutes later.
On 8 November, 2023, a general snap election was called by Forest C. F. After 23 total votes, the Sovereignty Party ticket of Forest C. F. as President and Audrey Howell as Vice President beat the Democratic Opposition ticket of Drew Tucker as President, and the Conservative Party ticket of Gage Coley as President. Although Tucker claims polls were closed too early and that the turnout was minimal. Eventually Ferrell led an agreement with Tucker that they would annex Tucker's home street as the Autonomy of Tukundy (Ridgelantic: Tukund) on November 13, 2023, and Tucker would become governor.
On 16 November 2023, the Ridgelantic Constitution Day, A Ridgelantic citizen (named by Ridgelantic media as the Mad Carroter) encountered Forest C. F. and Drew Tucker having a conversation while walking on an outdoor track in Kramerkolonie, Ridgeland. The Carroter threw two Baby-cut carrots at Forest C. F. from behind, one of which missed and the other of which bounced off his jacket. Immediately, The Carroter was questioned Forest C. F., before the carroter eventually threw another carrot at Drew Tucker, resulting in him being chased and apprehended, with the help of nearby physical education teachers. He was eventually tried in absentia and found guilty of terrorism[6]. On 21 November 2023, the Ridgelantic government removed the Mad Carroter's legal full name from Ridgelantic media due to legal concerns among American-installed Kramerkolonie authorities.
On 24 November 2023, Forest C. F. declared war against the United Socialist Republics of Almendria after raids and cyberattacks against Ridgelantic allies. The Paxari government quickly followed suit, and the Micronational Coalition was founded. Ridgelantic cyberwarfare operations lead by President Forest C. F. attacked multiple Almendrian-sponsored media sources, along with government communications. After the dissolution of the alliance between the United Nations Envoy Micronations and the Micronational Coalitions, Forest C. F. created the Treaty of Piedmonton, which was signed by Supreme Leader Tipton of Hoku, who had joined the United Socialist Republics as a spy, on behalf of Almendrian leadership.
Recent events
On 15 March, A Sovereignty-Conservative Coalition was established by Forest C. F. and Chris Ferrell for the upcoming snap elections in the Ridgelantic National Assembly after an agreement between Chris Ferrell and Forest C. F while Drew Tucker formed a coalition with Rami Hamad's Best of Men. Ten days later, the 2024 Ridgelantic legislative snap elections were declared for all three seats in the canton of Piedmonton, with the newly established Sovereignty-Conservative Coalition gained all three Piedmontic seats in the National Assembly in a landslide election.
On 2 April, 2024, Tucker announced his plan for an election fraud charge against the Ridgelantic government under accusations that elections for the third Piedmontic seat of the National Assembly had been altered due to discrepancies between previous electoral predictions and outcome. President Forest C. F. personally made multiple statements refuting these charges on behalf of the federal government. Seventeen days later, Ferrell negotiated Local Motive's admission into the Sovereignty-Conservative Coalition.
Personal life
Family
Personal views
As the leader of the Sovereignty Party, Forest C. F. considers himself a Democratic Socialist with Social Democrat sympathies. He self-identifies as a Ridgelantic nationalist. Concerning economic issues, he believes in the institution of a wealth tax, along with trade unionism and universal healthcare. He is socially liberal—but does not have an official stance on abortion.
Internationally, he is a supporter of a two-state solution in Palestine and his government has donated to humanitarian aid in Ukraine.
Religion
Forest C. F. religiously considers himself a Lutheran under the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. He began attending a congregation in Cavnaria in August 2024.
Titles, honours, and awards
Awards
Paxaris: Order of the Golden Star
Titles
Ridgeland: The Sovereign and Honourable
References
- ↑ https://www.tiktok.com/@ridgelant.rl/video/7165599247763541290
- ↑ https://www.tiktok.com/@ridgelant.rl/video/7165609745989012779
- ↑ https://www.tiktok.com/@ridgelant.rl/video/7166005655386541354
- ↑ https://www.tiktok.com/@ridgelant.rl/video/7166769921710591278
- ↑ https://www.tiktok.com/@ridgelant.rl/video/7209075406107004206
- ↑ https://piedmontontimes.wordpress.com/2023/11/16/constitution-day-interrupted-by-mad-carroter/