The historical political system of the Constitutional Monarchy of Jonquiere-Tadoussac, which was created in 1837 with the Fusion Accords, was an important part of Jontadain culture, as especially the antagonism between the two original provinces Jonquiere and Tadoussac have shaped the political and cultural landscape of the country for a long time up to the restructuring of the country in 2006.

National Structure

The Fusion Accords of 1837 created a federal state, with two provinces. These were originally autonomous regions under a weak central monarch. The Kingdom of Jonquiere and the Consulate of Tadoussac each kept to their own affairs, with only National Defence and Maintenance of the Peace (police) being under Federal control. Newly settled areas also fell under Federal jurisdiction; it was because of the growing population here that the central government was able to wheedle control over most areas away from the provinces.

Today, the Federal government keeps control of most areas, with labour resources, transit, and natural resources being the main provincial areas of jurisdiction. The country was composed of five provinces, created as the population spread into uninhabited areas. These are Jonquiere, Chicoutimi, La Baie, Tadoussac, and Alma.

Federal Government

The Government of Jonquiere-Tadoussac is based in the city of Jonquière, with some administrative departments based out of Tadoussac. This level is responsible for most areas of government activity, including, but not limited to, National Defence, Education, Taxation, Criminal Law, and Health Care.

The Executive was comprised of the King or Queen and his or her Royal Council. (Point of Interest: the first female elected as Head of State was Queen Nathalie I, elected in 1928) The Royal Council acted as advisors to the monarchs and the heads of the bureaucracy (analagous to Ministers or Secretaries in many other democracies). It was composed of the previous ten living monarchs of the country.

The monarch was elected in biannual elections, and were chosen from among the general population. Each reigned for only one term, before being relegated to the Royal Council. This continuation allowed for the pursual of policies despite the short term of office, while the lack of reelection meant that the monarch could concentrate on governing instead of reelection (The term limit was a stipulation of Tadoussac in 1837, as this had been their previous practice. The Royal Council came from Jonquiere.) The monarch largely reigned absolutely during their stay in office, though with constitutional restraints on their actions. A further limitation on their power came from the National Assembly, which can block their actions on a 4/5 vote.

The Legislative had two distinct bodies. The first was the Popular Assembly, which was the entire citizenry together. Only called in extreme situations, this came from the old style of Tadoussac's legislative, which was more populist than the reformed version. The Popular Assembly could only be called when one-third of the populace agrees according to an informal vote. Once together, it had the power to operate in the same jurisdictions as the elected National Assembly, and could even overturn legislation which has already passed. Furthermore, the Popular Assembly could force the monarch into action on any issue with a 3/5 vote. It could also overturn any action of the monarch on a 3/5 vote. It was the only body that, on a 95% vote, could change the powers of a given government body.

The National Assembly was made up of the elected representatives of the people. There were 300 seats. 150 seats were elected according to proportional representation using a single transferable vote by party. The other 150 were divided equally among the provinces, which then elected local members by constituencies.

The National Assembly played a balancing role to the monarch, reviewing executive action and judging it where necessary. It had the power to draft and pass its own legislation, but could not take action on it without the approval of the monarch. The National Assembly was also the only body (excepting the Popular Assembly) which could modify the state constitution, though they could not modify the powers of any given government body.

The Judiciary was made up of a Supreme Court (7 Justices), the five Provincial Supreme Courts (each 5 Justices), and local courts. The lowest level judges were elected from the population by the populace. The Provincial Justices were elected from among the lower judges by their peers, to serve a six-year term on the bench. Supreme Court Justices were elected from among the 25 Provincial Justices by their peers, and also served six-year terms.

The Judiciary did not have the power to overturn laws, except where they clearly conflicted with the constitution. They had no leeway to interpret the statutes; instead, they could only refer them to the monarch for review. The main role of the Judiciary was to apply the law, not restyle it.

Provincial Governments

In the beginning, the provinces of Tadoussac and Jonquière had distinct forms of government. As time went on, and new provinces were added, the governance styles were brought closer together, and are now virtually indistinguishable from each other, or from the Federal level.

The Provincial governments mirror the Federal almost exactly. Each is lead by a viceroy, who is elected for a two year term, and advised by a Viceregal Council. There is a Provincial Assembly and Popular Assembly, who perform balancing and legislating roles.

The roles of the Provincial governments were much reduced from before. The primary role of a viceroy and the Viceregal Council was to represent the desires of the people of their province to the monarch and Royal Council. The main direct areas of local power were Transportation, Labour Relations, and Natural Resources.