Lisa Cassidy

The Right Honourable Lisa Cassidy DSC Commander in Chief of the St.Charlian Armies Supreme Protector of the Commonwealth
2nd President of St.Charlie
In office April 20, 2010 - February 1, 2012
Prime Minister	Alexander Reinhardt Nicolò Alvisi
Predecessor	Whisky I
Successor	James Lunam
Personal information
Born	16 February 1993 (1993-02-16) Bologna, Italy
Citizenship	St.Charlian
Nationality	Italian
Residence	Tor Pendente, St.Charlie
Religion	Roman Catholic

Lisa Cassidy DSC (born Lisa B., Bologna, February 16, 1993 - ) is a former politician and assemblywoman. She served as the 2nd President of the Federal Republic of St.Charlie from 2010 to February 2012, when she was succeeded by James Lunam. She was the first woman to to hold the office, as well as the first human President ever elected in the Federal Republic.

Confirmed as President on April 20, 2010, succeeding Whisky I, Cassidy's presidency was marked by the establishment of the St.Charlian Commonwealth, the Alvisi Administration, the decline and resurrection of the Union of Italophone Micronations, and the growing opposition to micronational warfare, but also criticism to her mandate as President by both National and Socialist Party supporters who denounced a considerable absence from foreign affairs. A poll conducted in June 2011 showed an average of 55% approval ratings, against 72% recorded weeks after her election.

Early years

Cassidy was born on February 16, 1993, in Bologna, in an upper middle class Italian family. She grew up outside Bologna and attended the same school as many other citizens of Tor Pendente. There she also met James Lunam, who later informed her of the existence of St.Charlie. Cassidy grew interest in the micronation and later applied for citizenship, becoming part of the Federation of District in August 2009, coincidentally, at the same time as her future political rival at the Presidential Elections, Alberto Schönfeld.

Her period as citizen of the capital city was very short. Soon after the establishment of Tor Pendente, on August 25, 2009, she became a citizen of the newly-established Federation together with her classmates and soon grew interest in local politics.

Micronational career

Federal Assembly

Lisa Cassidy started off her career by working as councillor in the local assembly of Tor Pendente, unofficially referred to as the "Federal Assembly" (Assemblea Federale di Tor Pendente). As the Federation had just been created, she participated in the first sessions and soon became a supporter of Valentina Marchesi, at the time a local secretary for the National Party of St.Charlie. Albeit her decision not to be affiliated with any St.Charlian political party, Cassidy still collaborated with Marchesi during her attempt to become President of Tor Pendente, something she was able to achieve in November 2009.

With Marchesi as President of the federation, Cassidy was chosen as her personal advisor to the Governor's Palace, an office she held until the death of Whisky I on March 23, 2010, when the local government of Tor Pendente proposed her as a candidate for the Presidential elections, together with Alberto Schönfeld.

Presidential campaign

On March 31, 2010, after widespread rumors, Magnus de Armis, at the time President of the St.Charlian Parliament, announced the names of the candidates for the Presidential elections. Of all the federations, only Cassidy and Schönfeld showed up. Surprisingly, both candidates decided not to be affiliated with any political party, with Cassidy referring to herself as an "Independent" and commenting to the Observer that "the President should represent everyone [...] the affiliation to a political party might be dangerous".

The presidential elections officially started on April 13, 2010, with the General Assembly electing one of the two candidates. On April 20, the results were published on the St.Charlian Forum by then-Prime Minister Alexander Reinhardt and later echoed on the St.Charlian Observer, which announced Cassidy's victory by a landslide, 87.5%, against Schönfeld. The news of Cassidy's victory were welcomed positively by Francisville, New Scireland, Nemkhavia, Flandrensis, the Federated Republics of A1 and the Cisalpine Republic. The following day she was nominated Dame of the Royal Order of Saint Christopher, together with Alexander Reinhardt.

Inauguration

The inauguration of Lisa Cassidy as 2nd President of the Federal Republic of St.Charlie took place on Saturday, May 1, 2010. This inauguration marked the commencement of her two-year term as President. The event had been awaited with some expectation, since Cassidy became the first woman, and the first human, in the history of Sr.Charlie to take office as President. For the first time, the event took place in a public place, with the oath of office being recorded on video and broadcasted on the SCBN. According to the Federation of Tor Pendente, around 12 people attended.

Presidency

Cassidy's term as President was quickly the subject of various reforms originated by the creation of the St.Charlian Commonwealth. On May 23, 2010, following its establishment, Cassidy was nominated "Supreme Protector of the Commonwealth". Her term was also marked since the beginning by a strong will to merge micronationalism with macronational politics, particularly those of Italy, marked at the time by protests against Silvio Berlusconi and his government. In July 2010, following nationwide protests, Cassidy authorised the declaration of a temporary state of emergency together with Colonel Alessio Giovanrosa of the Army, and Major General Roberto Sanchez of the Border Troops.

It is customary that, during government meetings, during both the Reinhardt and the Alvisi Administrations, Cassidy attended meetings and acted as chair of each discussion. At the October 2010 meeting of the Second Reinhardt Administration in Tor Pendente, she held talks regarding the Atlantis Civil War and the admissions of Sandus and Eleytheria to the Commonwealth, which she is said to have opposed.

She was also a key member during the St.Charlie Expo 2011, promoting the idea of "communitarism" within St.Charlie, as opposed to the one of "hobby micronationalism". Cassidy requested the help of other micronations in order to improve the standards of all those micronations who have serious intentions, and backed Reinhardt's stance on new micronations, denouncing a "growing number of 7th World [nations] who have no intention to improve ".

Public image and perception

Claims of inactivity

Cassidy's presidency was always marked by criticism of her involvement into foreign affairs, seen by many as nonxistent. On October 3, 2010, Patryk Adam Bronisz, at the time a journalist and commentator for the St.Charlie Broadcasting Network, criticized Cassidy's inacivity on his program, "Bronisz's Parquet". The journalist implied that she was failing her duties as President and requested her resignation.

Cassidy ended up by addressing Bronisz's concerns through an official letter on the St.Charlian Forum on October 11. In her letter, she admitted her absence from the St.Charlian Forum or any other online venue, but claimed she was always informed about what was going on in St.Charlie, citing her will to carry out her duties "in real life". She then refused to resign, claiming she will report her activities when possible on the Forum, though this never took place.

Approval

Cassidy's popularity was highly variable during her presidency. She began her term with approval ratings over 70% in April 2010 and was higly popular within the federation of Tor Pendente. However, following another opinion poll in June 2011, Cassidy was shown to have dropped by 20% in 14 months. Of all those interviewed, only 1 in 2 people actually supported her tenure as President, with 60% of the participants being worried about her absence from foreign affairs, and 5% claiming she has never done anything contructive since her inauguration. The July 2011 poll also showed that citizens in District are less likely to support Cassidy than those in Tor Pendente.