Maxim Kaygorodov

Maxim Kaygorodov
Offices Held President of Coocoostan Dates Held 22nd August 1990(Interim)-31 December 2005 Political Party National Prior Occupation Lawyer

Maxim Andreivich Kaygorodov(Born July 15,1938) was the first President of Coocoostan and the most important amongst its leaders in the transition from a Soviet subdivision into an independent state. He served for a total of 15 years as both Interim President and President until he was defeated by Tammy Hagans in the December, 2005 Election. In retirement, he has become a well traveled public speaker, speaking about his experiences as president and his vision for the future.

Childhood

Maxim Andreivich Kaygorodov was born in Warsaw, Poland, to Andrei and Natasha Kaygorodov, both Soviet citizens, on July 15,1938. He spent the first year of his life in Poland, before the threat of war caused his parents to move to the city of Khabarovsk, before eventually relocating to Coocoobad, in the Coocoo Federated Soviet Socialist Republic(CFSSR) in the fall of 1944. It was then that Kaygorodov’s father was conscripted into the Worker’s and Peasant’s Army(RKKA) and sent to the eastern front. He would never return. Kaygorodov’s mother gave birth to a daughter, Maria, in the middle of the next year. Kaygorodov went to primary school in Coocoobad, with his family living in the relative squalor of South Coocoobad’s slums. It was at school where his aptitude was noticed and he was selected to attend the C.F.S.R. Grammar School, at the age of 12, in 1950. His family was moved into a modest state-owned apartment. At the Grammar school, Kaygorodov continued to excel and was offered enrolment into the CFSR Military Academy, to finish his initial schooling. He played for their Junior Hockey team, HC Partisan, for three years as a defenceman. He was not drafted. On graduation at 18, he chose not to accept a commission into the Soviet Army, but instead enrolled at the Coocoobad State University, with a double major of engineering and political science.

Adult Life

He eventually focused solely on political science and grauated in 1960 with a B.A. He then chose to enter Law School later that year and after an additional three years of study, was permitted to practice under the modified Coocoo system. He worked at his own private law firm in Coocoobad when he was introduced to Retta Afanasenkova, the daughter of a Coocoobad factory owner. They married in 1968, and Kaygorodov continued to practice law. The couple had their first child, Daughter Ajanette, in 1973. It was in 1975 that Kaygorodov was first asked to work for the CFSR, travelling to Bulgaria to lobby on the behalf of an ethnic Coocoo, who refused help from anyone other than a resident of the CFSR. Kaygorodov had the charges of espionage against the man dropped and was hired as a prosecutor on his return the following year. He worked as a lawyer for the fledgling Environment department, and had his second child, a son, Boyce, in 1980. He continued to move up, becoming the People’s Commissioner for Air and Water quality in 1985. He was in this position in 1990, when during the breakup of the USSR, Kaygorodov was a key member of the coalition of resident Coocoos who took power and encouraged a non-violent transition. On August 22, he was chosen in a vote by this committee to act as president. He was sworn in on August 22,1990.

Presidency

Kaygorodov began an aggressive campaign to remove outward signs of communist influence. He began to remove communists from government agencies and began to remove entire branches of the old beureaucracy. Coocoostan’s first test came in 1994, when opposition parties began to demand elections. He acquiesced and in October of that year, won a vast majority in the People’s Assembly. He would continue to forge a democratic state and in his third term (1998-2002), a massive influx of immigrants from around the Pacific Rim began to move in. It was this group of people that began to slowly change the face of Coocoostan. In 2001, the Trans-Coocoostan Highway was completed, replacing the old A1 with a four-lane expressway from Coocoobad to the Packilvanian border. Kaygorodov sold off many government-owned compaines and allowed private industry in such fields as Air Travel and Oil. Coocoostan entered the United Nations in 2005 .As well, Kaygorodov abolished the People’s Assembly in the same year and replaced it with a Parliamentary Congress, all 32 members of which were directly elected. He lost the election to Tammy Hagans of the Labour Party in December of that year.

Post-Presidency

Almost immediately after his election loss, Kaygorodov and his wife of 37 years, Retta, divorced, citing her infidelity with an advisor. Kaygorodov had the option of pressing charges under Coocoo law but declined to do so. He is now a public speaker and runs a charitable foundation seeking to eradicate poverty.

He is 67 years old and resides in the capital of Coocoobad. He is divorced and has two grown children, daughter Ajanette, who is an executive with Schultz Credit Union and a son, Boyce, who is a graduate student at the University of Panjuhr.

Legacy

While many aspects of the Kaygorodov presidency were largely negative(corruption in government,no relations with any other countries), all things considered his rule benefited the country. It gradually progressed away from being like other post-communist republics and became by the end of his term, a functional democracy. He has become more popular since his defeat, with most citizens respecting him to a great degree and his speeches being well-attended.