Lord of Council

From Mizahar Lore

Each Councilor and the Lord Councilor are elected directly from Zeltiva citizens by popular vote. On paper the Lord of Council retains all administrative power as well as jurisdiction over Zeltiva’s military and police force: The Wave Guard. The only balance to the Lord Councilor’s absolute authority is through unanimous vote by the Council. The Council’s primary purpose is to serve as advisers to the Lord Councilor, and if necessary can also hold cessation or veto his/her power under the circumstances of absolute mutual agreement that the Lord Councilor’s decision was not what is best for the city and its people. This structure was originally set with the expectation that Councilors would not be able to agree easily on halting the Lord Councilor’s decisions unless it was absolutely necessary. What they writers of this government did not anticipate was the influence of large factions and guilds within the city attempting to divert the source of power to themselves.

In reality the Lord of Council is nothing but a figure head. Over time The Council has used its veto and cessation power to its advantage by throttling the Lord Councilor’s authority so that he may not achieve anything that is not specifically approved by the Council. They use their position as official advisors to direct the Lord of Council in their favor. By working together the Council unanimously votes to hold a cessation which they will continue until the Lord of Council yields or the Council ultimately decides to veto the decision.

While the Lord of Council must follow strict rules to not be associated with any faction or be a member of any guilds, no such limits were placed on Councilors, as no one anticipated the Councilors having decision making power. While they technically do not, they have blackmail power which has become so commonplace in the government, it is all but written into the law. As a result, the Board of Regents and the Sailor’s Guild, two of the largest factions in the city, have elected positions in their leadership specifically for Councilors. It is almost guaranteed that the Councilor will be selected from these positions because it is expected that all members and supporters of the Sailor’s Guild or Board of Regents will vote for this pre-selected representative.

The current Lord of Council is Lile Frithisen.