Harrison Grasis
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Sir Harrison Grasis was first elected to the Imperial Senate in 1975, filling the constituency previously held by his father. Originally elected as a member of the Progressive Conservative Party (PC), Sir Harrison was one of a small number of young Senators who resigned from the party in 1981. Believing that the PC had become too progressive, these young Senators formed the Excalbia Freedom Party (FP). The FP is dedicated to promoting "economic freedom." Its program calls for a sharp reduction in labour and business regulation, sound fiscal policies and a large tax cut.
Sir Harrison served as the first chairman of the FP and retains that position today.
In the 1981 elections, the FP won only 12 seats. It reached its highwater mark in the election of 1993, when it won 19 seats. When the party was reduced to 16 seats in 1999, Sir Harrison and the rest of the leadership decided to give up opposition and join a coalition led by the Progressive Conservative Party. Sir Harrison was named Minister of the Treasury and has been given a great deal of control over the Holy Empire's fiscal policy.
Since 2001, however, Government spending has grown rapidly. Initially, spending was directed primarily towards the military. In the past few years, spending on social programs has also increased sharply, leading to a growing tax rate.
During the last government, Sir Harrison and the rest of the FP become increasingly unhappy with the direction of the government and with the Emperor's policies, especially those directed against the Confederation of Soveriegn States and the Order of the Invisible Hand. The FP believed that such crusades are a waste of Government efforts and taxpayer funds. This eventually led Sir Harrison and the FP to leave the ruling coalition just prior to the 2005 elections.
While the FP did make gains in the 2005 election, they were not sufficient to return the party to government. However, when Lady Jessica Tagaarth was named Imperial Chancellor, Sir Harrison found himself the longest serving member of the Senate. In accordance with Senate traditions, and to the chagrin of the government and the Emperor, he was elected Speaker of the Senate
Sir Harrison's first marriage ended in divorce in 1995. He remarried to the former Beatrice de la Costa, who is 26 years his junior, in 1997.
