Deputy Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Sierra
| Deputy Prime Minister of Kingdom of Sierra Viceprimer Ministro de Sierra (es) 副總理金王國 (zh) Diputado Punong Ministro ng Sierra (tn) Phó Thủ tướng Chính phủ của Sierra (vn) 시에라 부총리 (kr) シエラ副首相 (ja) Stellvertretender Premierminister von Sierra (de) | |
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Executive | |
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| Style | His/Her Admirable |
| Residence |
 Canfield-Moreno Estate Porciúncula, GC, Sierra |
| Term length | At Her Royal Majesty's pleasure |
| Inaugural holder | John C. Frémont |
| Formation | November 27, 1858 |
| Website | dpm.gc.ks |
The Deputy Prime Minister of Kingdom of Sierra is a senior member of the Cabinet and the post is second highest-ranking office of Her Royal Majesty's Government when it has an active officeholder. The deputy prime minister is conferred by the prime minister and does not have an associated ministerial portfolio. The first in line of succession, the Sierran deputy prime ministers succeed the incumbent Prime Minister should the latter die, resign, is removed, or is otherwise unable to fulfill his/her duties. Throughout Sierran history, the office of deputy prime minister has been vacant and has historically been overlooked as an institution. Since the 1980s, the role of the deputy prime minister has increased as prime ministers have generally selected deputy prime ministers to be a link between the government and the ruling party or coalition.
The Constitution of Sierra does not provide any specific constitutional roles to the deputy prime minister other than that he/she is the first in line of succession to the office of Prime Minister. Unlike the Anglo-American-styled vice president, the role of Speaker of the Senate goes not to the deputy prime minister but to the prime minister. In effect, the deputy prime minister has no actual powers or responsibilities as delegated by the Constitution. In practice and convention, the office of deputy prime minister has been conferred to members of Parliament who serve as the prime minister's most important adviser and a senior aide to the Monarch. Similar to ministers without portfolio, the deputy prime minister does not oversee a specific ministry. Due to the deputy prime minister's primacy in the Sierran prime ministerial line of succession and in the Cabinet, the deputy prime minister outranks all other Cabinet officials in terms of salary, precedence, and prominence.
The current deputy prime minister is Kenneth O'Conner of the Royalist Party who has served under Democratic-Republican prime ministers Maggie Chan and Cedric Harrison, the first time since the Great War. He succeeded Nazareth Ontoria-Diaz of the Social Democrats of Sierra on December 4, 2022 following the federal election in November that year.
Roles, powers, and duties
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The Constitution's only prescribed role for the Deputy Prime Minister is that in the event that the Prime Minister dies, resigns, is removed from office, or is otherwise unable to fulfill his/her role as Prime Minister, then the Deputy Prime Minister assumes the office.
Statutorily prescribed roles of the Deputy Prime Minister including being a member of the Cabinet, the Privy Council, co-chairing the Royal Security Council, and serving as the curator for the National Archives of Sierra.
Much of the deputy prime minister's roles in the modern-day have been defined by the precedents set forth by previous deputy prime ministers. The office has evolved from being a mere adviser to the prime minister to becoming an important office that influenced policymaking and key political decisions. The deputy prime minister has served as the prime minister's chief spokesperson, a substitute for the prime minister and monarch at foreign visits or state ceremonies, and a government organizer. Still, some have criticized the lack of importance of the deputy prime ministers and decried it as a waste of taxpayers' money. Those holding the titles themselves lamented that the office had little meaning or purpose.
Appointment and term
Similar to other members of Cabinet, the deputy prime minister is nominated by the prime minister, reviewed by the Senate, and formally appointed by the Monarch. The deputy prime minister may be dismissed or replaced during a cabinet reshuffle at the prime minister's discretion.
The term of the Deputy Prime Minister of Sierra is subject to the discretion of the prime minister or at Her Royal Majesty's pleasure. In the latter case, this occurs whenever a new government is elected in the House which replaces the incumbent prime minister. In the event of a prime minister's death, resignation, or incapacity to fulfill his/her roles as prime minister, thus requiring the deputy prime minister to succeed the office, the deputy prime minister will immediately assume the role of prime minister. Unlike the office of the prime minister, which can never be vacant, the deputy prime minister can and has been vacant on numerous occasions.
Eligibility qualifications
Since the deputy prime minister is the first in line for succession to the Prime Minister, he/she must meet the legal prerequisites of becoming prime minister in order to fulfill the role of deputy prime minister.
The qualifications require that the deputy prime minister:
- Must be a citizen of Sierra and must renounce any dual citizenship.
- Must be of 25 years or older.
- Must have physically lived in any of the provinces or other lands (e.g., overseas military bases) of Sierra for 10 consecutive years or a total of 14 years with the last 7 years being consecutive as a resident.
- If Naturalized, must have been a citizen for at least 15 years, and must renounce any dual citizenship if elected.
- Must have not been convicted and served a sentence for a felony within the past 20 years, a serious offense within 15 years, a criminal offense within 10 years, or a misdemeanor/minor crime within 5 years.
- Must have never been convicted of treason.
Although not required by law, by convention deputy prime ministers are chosen from within the House of Commons. As such, all deputy prime ministers to date have been members of Parliament.
Inauguration and oath
Prior to taking office, the deputy prime minister must take an oath or affirmation of allegiance to the Monarch and Constitution of Sierra upon their appointment by the Monarch at Parliament Building. Although not constitutionally required to swear or affirm to a precisely worded declaration, the deputy prime minister usually takes the deputy variant of the oath their superior is constitutionally obligated to state:
I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that as the Deputy Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Sierra and His/Her Royal Majesty's Representative and Civil Servant to the Sierrans, that I will faithfully execute the powers ascribed upon me by the Constitution. I declare that any and all actions I undertake shall be scrutinized to the fullest extent and that I shall only work in the interests of the People and the State. Ten thousand years, glory, glory to the King/Queen!
The oath in its entirety is usually administered by one of the Associate Justices from the Supreme Court and it has been traditionally dictated that the declaring deputy prime minister's left hand be placed on Holy Bible (interchangeable with any other religious texts such as the Quran or a secular text such as the Constitution). Following the oath, the deputy prime minister is officially inaugurated into the office with all its responsibilities, duties, and benefits.
Vacancy and succession
In the event of a vacancy, the Minister of Foreign Affairs may fulfill the role as acting deputy prime minister at the request of the prime minister, or until the original deputy prime minister is able to completely fulfill his/her duties again. Such occurrence is rare as the office is usually left vacant or filled within a relatively short period of time. Should the Minister of Foreign Affairs be unavailable or ineligible for the role of deputy prime minister or prime minister, the responsibility transfers down by order of precedence on the line of prime ministerial succession.
Style, compensation, salary, and benefits
| Styles of the Deputy Prime Minister of Sierra | |
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| Reference style | The Right Honorable |
| Spoken style | Your Honor |
| Alternative style | Mr./Mrs./Ms. Deputy |
The deputy prime minister receives a statutory salary of $250,000, a $50,000 personal expense account, a $25,000 travel account, and $15,000 for miscellaneous spending. The official private residence for the deputy prime minister and his/her family during his/her tenure is the Canfield-Moreno Estate, provided and maintained by the government.
Like the prime minister, he/she has unrestricted access to the Occidental Palace, the Getty House, and most other government facilities and buildings. The deputy prime minister, his/her family, and personal guests receive continuous protection from the Secret Service. He/she may continue receiving protection up to 5 years after exiting office. Under special circumstances, this post-office protection may be extended unto former deputy prime ministers at the discretion of the current prime minister. In the case of a severe national emergency, the deputy prime minister can be brought to any of the undisclosed amount of heavily guarded secret locations throughout Sierra to continue normal government operations.
The deputy prime minister is officially styled The Right Honorable and outranks all titles and offices with the exception of the Sierran Royal Family and the Prime Minister.
