The 1942 Constitutional Amendment, formally titled the Chancellor’s Authority Act, was a landmark revision to the Constitution of the Divine Republic of Kresimiria. Ratified in December 1942, the amendment granted the Divine Chancellor the power to veto legislation passed by the Assembly.
This change represented a significant shift in the balance of power in Kresimirian history, transitioning the state from a parliamentary-dominant system to one where the executive branch holds supreme authority. It was championed by the hardline Chancellor Kresimir Kresimirovic II as a necessary measure to ensure stability during the violent insurgency following the death of Lev Ruka.
The provisions of this article have become less frequently used since Chancellor Kresimirovic II died in 1958, and since the 1960s the veto power has been used sparingly by Chancellors Kresimirovic III and IV, who have led the Republic back into a parliamentary-focused system where the Chancellory is mostly ceremonial.
Background
By late 1942, the Republic was in a state of heightened security crisis. In June of that year, Kresimirian security forces had killed the BRC-21 leader Lev Ruka in Operation Serpent’s Head. Rather than ending the conflict, Ruka’s death triggered a wave of retaliatory violence and instability across the southern districts.
Chancellor Kresimirovic II and the ruling Revolutionary People’s Party (RPP) argued that the Assembly, which had become increasingly fractured with the rise of the Civic Renewal Front (CRF) and the Sons of Kresimir (SoK), was too slow and divided to manage the crisis effectively. They contended that the Chancellory needed a “final check” on legislative overreach to preserve the unity of the state.
The Amendment (Article 26)
The Act targeted Article 26 of the Constitution. The original 1921 text explicitly denied the Chancellor veto power. The amendment replaced this with a clause granting broad veto authority, which could only be overridden by a supermajority that is mathematically difficult to achieve in a multi-party system.
Original Text (1921): “The Chancellor does not have veto power on any proposals. This includes any proposals they have the potential to retain personal disagreements with…”
Amended Text (1942): “The Chancellor does possess veto power on any and all proposals… A veto explicitly requires the Proposal to have passed with the approval vote of less than sixteen Senators.”
By setting the override threshold at 16 out of 20 Senators (a four-fifths majority), the amendment effectively gave the Chancellor absolute veto power over any bill that did not have near-unanimous support across the political spectrum.
Voting Breakdown
The passage of the amendment was contentious and relied heavily on the lowered threshold for constitutional changes established by the 1933 Amendment Procedure Act, which required only 12 votes rather than 14.
- The Nationalist Bloc: The RPP held 9 seats following the 1942 election. The Sons of Kresimir, holding 3 seats, enthusiastically supported the measure. Kresimir Basic argued that a strong Chancellor was the only defense against “liberal weakness and Bosken treachery.” This gave the bloc 12 votes.
- The Opposition: Eward Matek of the CRF (5 seats) led the opposition, famously denouncing the bill as “the coronation of a monarch in all but name.” He was joined by the BPP (1 seat), the independent senator for Severnivaraje, Sara Unalina, and the independent senator for Moraviskameja, Adin Vedran.
The final vote was 12-8.
| Senator | Vote |
|---|---|
| Vladi Korunic (RPP) | For |
| Filip Novak (RPP) | For |
| Adam Corak (CRF) | Against |
| Luka Matar (RPP) | For |
| Eward Matek (CRF) | Against |
| Tomislav Saric (RPP) | For |
| Imanuel Iric (BPP) | Against |
| Sara Unalina | Against |
| Nika Radman (RPP) | For |
| Zoran Banit (RPP) | For |
| Leon Rukavin (RPP) | For |
| Mia Colak (CRF) | Against |
| Davor Banit (SoK) | For |
| Jelena Savlek (CRF) | Against |
| Sonja Duval (CRF) | Against |
| Marin Lurcic Grubisic (SoK) | For |
| Johann Valak (RPP) | For |
| Kresimir Basic (SoK) | For |
| Adin Vedran | Against |
| Marin Muller | For |
Impact and Legacy
The immediate impact of the amendment was the consolidation of Kresimirovic II’s authoritarian rule. He utilized the veto frequently during the 1940s and 1950s to block attempts by the CRF to investigate the conduct of the Council for Internal Affairs or to soften the Faith Restriction Clause.
The provisions of this article have become less frequently used since Chancellor Kresimirovic II died in 1958, and since the 1960s the veto power has been used sparingly by Chancellors Kresimirovic III and IV, who have led the Republic back into a parliamentary-focused system where the Chancellory is mostly ceremonial.