Co-Sovereigns of Northwood-Oregon

Co-Sovereigns of Northwood-Oregon
Coat of arms of Northwood-Oregon
Carson I Since 29 September 2020 Sarah I Since 10 November 2020
Details
Styles	Their Majesty (Carson I) Her Majesty (Sarah I)
First monarchs	Carson I & Sarah I
Formation	29 September 2020 (As a monarchy) 10 November 2020 (As a co-monarchy)
Residences	Ville de l'ombre, Kingsland Gospodarstwo Rolne, Queensland

The Co-Sovereigns of Northwood-Oregon is the collective reference for the diarchical heads of state and government of the Kingdom of Northwood-Oregon. The current Co-Sovereigns are Carson I and Sarah I who are also known as King and Queen-Regnant respectively. The Co-Sovereigns originate from two independently existing royal families, those being the House of Snyder and the House of Freck, and make up the co-monarchy of Northwood-Oregon. The succession of the position of Co-Sovereign can be described as a hereditary elective monarchy, meaning that the children of the outgoing Co-Sovereign would be the only individuals eligible to participate as candidates in the election of the new Co-Sovereign.

The Co-Sovereigns play an integral role in Northwood-Oregon. Diarchal in nature, both share the same powers and responsibilities. Most important of these responsibilities would be the duty to preside over the Northwood-Oregonian Parliament. The Co-Sovereigns also have the ability to veto legislation within the Parliament and to issue royal decrees. Aside from political responsibilities, the Co-Sovereigns are important cultural figures, setting standards and expectations for Northwood-Oregon.

History

The monarchy of Northwood-Oregon originated on 29 September 2020 along with the foundation of Northwood-Oregon itself. Starting as an absolute monarchy, the position was only held by Carson I. While a constitutional monarchy was planned from the beginning, It would not be until November that the concept of Co-Sovereigns would be conceived. Then serving as the Duchess of Propinquity, a member state of Northwood-Oregon, Sarah I became a popular figure. With Propinquity being based around family owned farmland, it was the largest member state in terms of size and quickly became such in terms of population as well. Due to the planned distribution of voting power in the upper-house of the Northwood-Oregonian Parliament, the Royal Deluge, the population and citizenry of Propinquity would give Sarah I a majority of votes. Recognizing the potential political ramifications of this, Carson I eventually made their intention known to ascend Sarah I to a position equal to their own. After approximately an hour of negotiations, Sarah I was unilaterally ascended to the position of Co-Sovereign by Carson I on 10 November 2020, which is now celebrated as Propinquity Day. Due to the ascention of Sarah I to Co-Sovereign, the Canon Governing Document had to be amended, pushing the timeline for it's ratification back. The document would not be finished until 16 December 2020 and not fully ratified until 8 January 2021.

Since the passage of the Canon Governing Document, the powers of the Co-Sovereigns had largely remained the same until 8 December 2021 when the Quicker Governance Amendment was passed which allowed the Co-Sovereigns to issue royal decrees as binding legislation.

Role in politics

The Co-Sovereigns act as both the head of state and head of government of Northwood-Oregon.

Chairpersons of parliament

The Co-Sovereigns can also conduct diplomacy. Pictured is Carson I (right) signing a treaty of mutual recognition with Crown Prince Phillip (left) of Pibocip.

The Co-Sovereigns are responsible to act as a chairperson and parliamentarian to the Northwood-Oregonian Parliament. This applies to both houses of parliament, those being the Royal Deluge and the Preclusionary Committee. Only one of the Co-Sovereigns may act as chairperson and parliamentarian at a time, and if a dispute arises over who will act in that position both parties must agree on a solution before proceedings can move on. Co-Sovereigns are not voting members of either house of parliament, rather they both hold a veto they can independently use on any legislation passed by the Royal Deluge.

As the sources of citizenship

The Co-Sovereigns are the gatekeepers of Northwood-Oregonian citizenship. If a dispute arises, both Co-Sovereigns must agree on the course of action. They are the supreme authority on who receives citizenship and any other citizenship related issues as laid out by the Canon Governing Document.

As the sources of authority

The consent or approval of the Co-Sovereigns is necessary for individuals to receive before they can fill various positions within Northwood-Oregon. Notably, they must approve judges to fill the judiciary of Northwood-Oregon. The approval of the Co-Sovereigns is also needed for individuals to serve in the upper house of the Northwood-Oregonian Parliament, the Royal Deluge. Not only is approval of the Co-Sovereigns needed for new member states to be admitted, meaning that by extension its leader needs to be approved whom would then serve in the Royal Deluge, but the Co-Sovereigns can also appoint vicegerents to vote on behalf of a member state leader who is not fulfilling their duties.

Royal decrees

The Co-Sovereigns were given the power to issue royal decrees after the passage of the Quicker Governance Amendment on 8 December 2021. This allows the Co-Sovereigns to either independently or jointly issue decrees that are legally binding. These decrees are able to be overturned by the Northwood-Oregonian Parliament, but as of March 2023, this has not yet occured. From the implementation of the Quicker Governance Amendment to the end of 2022, twenty-eight royal decrees were issued.

Role in culture

Co-Sovereigns Sarah I (front) and Carson I (back) are depicted on the pendant of the Royal Order of the Sovereigns.

Being the first Co-Sovereigns, Carson I and Sarah I played a pivotal role in establishing the culture of Northwood-Oregon. Through their participation in activities such as theatre and groups like musical ensembles, the Co-Sovereigns attracted a citizenry to Northwood-Oregon that shared similar beliefs and interests to them. This created a culture that was easily represented by who the Co-Sovereigns Carson I and Sarah I intrinsically were, rather than the Co-Sovereigns needing to represent a separate cultural identity.

As cultural figures

While both representing the performative background of Northwood-Oregon in the formative stage of its culture, the Co-Sovereigns can be presently described as being more specialized in their embodying of Northwood-Oregonian culture. This split into specialization occured over the following months after the formation of the co-monarchy in November 2020 when Sarah I became more focused on representing Northwood-Oregon on a local level. Despite not necessarily needing to continue accumulating citizens to increase her own political power due to her ascention to Co-Sovereign, Sarah I continued to seek out new citizens and act as a local face for Northwood-Oregon. With this, Carson I was able to pivot towards developing the political culture of Northwood-Oregon through the further development of government structures and introduction of new Northwood-Oregonian politicians.

As the founts of honour

The Co-Sovereigns act as the founts of honour of Northwood-Oregon. They are considered the grand masters, or a legal equivilant, of the honours of Northwood-Oregon. The Co-Sovereigns can also confer titles of nobility which form the peerage. This was first done on 26 October 2021 by Carson I as part of their eighteenth birthday, though these titles would not be legally legitimatized until 8 December.

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