Johann Hauptsmann

    

Johann Hauptsmann
Official Portrait, 2020
Secretary-General of the Conference of American States
Incumbent
Assumed office January 5, 2015
Preceded by	Jefferson Malcolm (AST)
Member of the House of Delegates for New Rhineland (Dakota's 4th district)
In office December 18, 2003 – October 18, 2014
Preceded by	Heinrich Adelhart
Succeeded by	Georg Metzerberg
Governor of Dakota
In office November 19, 1992 – November 14, 2000
Preceded by	Denise Engelbart
Succeeded by	John Longfellow
Member of the Diet of Dakota
In office November 10, 1982 – November 10, 1992
Preceded by	Dave Bumgardner
Succeeded by	Felix Golpher
Personal details
Born	(1950-11-03) November 3, 1950 Heisenburg, Dakota, Superior
Political party	Christian Democratic
Other political affiliations	Conservative (1982-1988)
Spouse(s)	Melissa Martine (m. 1978; d. 1991) Angela Willkie (m. 2002)
Children	3
Alma mater	Cumberland University (MA)

Johann Frederick Louis Hauptsmann (born November 3, 1950) is a Superian politician and lawyer serving as the Secretary-General of the Conference of American States since 2015. Prior to his career in the CAS, Hauptsmann was a member of the House of Delegates, the lower chamber of the Parliament of Superior, from 2003 to 2014 and served as the Governor of the state of [[Dakota from 1992 to 2000. Hauptsmann was born in {{w|St. John, North Dakota|Heisenberg]] and grew up in a rural environment. He attended Cumberland University, receiving a master's degree in law. Hauptsmann privately practiced law in Augustus from 1976 to 1982. In 1982, Hauptsmann was elected to the Diet of Dakota as a member of the Conservative Party. In 1988, he left the Conservative Party and joined the newly-formed Christian Democratic Party. In 1992, Hauptsmann ran in the 1992 Dakota gubernatorial election and was narrowly elected in an upset victory. Hauptsmann's victory was considered a political alignment in Dakotan politics, as after his victory the Christian Democrats emerged as a major party within Dakota. As Governor of Dakota, Hauptsmann persued policies aimed at protecting Dakotan wildlife and improving the state's fluctuating economy. He was re-elected in 1996 and left office in 2000 with high approval ratings.

Hauptsmann re-entered politics in 2003, being elected to the House of Delegates in the 2003 federal election. As a member of the House of Delegates, Hauptsmann was viewed as a moderate liberal conservative, being a supporter of multi-partisan cooperation. From 2003 to 2007, Hauptsmann served as the parliamentary leader of the Christian Democrats as party leader Sigmund Alfreder was unable to be elected to parliament. In 2009, Hauptsmann was elected as chair of the Christian Democratic Study Committee and in 2011 he was elected as the co-chairman of the National Unity Group. He was re-elected in 2007 and 2011 before his resignation in 2014.

In 2014, Hauptsmann was nominated by the American Council to succeed Jefferson Malcom of Astoria as the next Secretary-General of the Conference of American States. His nomination was unanimously supported by the American Council. On October 17, 2014, the American Parliament voted in favor of Hauptsmann's nomination, and in response he resigned from the House of Delegates to prepare for his role as secretary-general. He was officially sworn in as secretary-general of the Conference of American States on January 5, 2015 and was elected to a second term in 2019. As secretary-general, Hauptsmann has spent most of his tenure comabting growing Ameroskepticism, most notably during the 2019 Kingdom of Sierra CAS membership referendum and the 2020 American Parliament election.