Lionel Sarko

Lionel Sarko (born 2 March 1968 in Rimouski, Vale) is a Valois politician and the current President of Vale since 12 April 1712.

Early life and education
Sarko was born in Rimouski, Vale, to István Ernő Sárkö (of Transylvanian origin; died 1696) and Hariet Søborg (of Faroese origin), and his family moved three weeks after he was born to Tórshavn, capital of the Faroe Islands. He attended Tórshavngrunnskóli and Tórshavnframhaldsskóli, a compulsory and upper secondary school in Tórshavn, and graduated from the Université de l'Est in 1700 with a double major in Russian and Economics. He was a classmate in economics of Eztebe Leandro Paredes, the current President of Iberia, who is a close friend. He moved back to Vale in September 1700.

Early political career
Sarko entered politics in late 1700, becoming a member of the Left Party political party. He vowed to bring the Valois economic model to the rest of Kobol. He especially focused his thoughts on Vale's autonomous territories economies and its fisheries and agriculture sectors and on globalization. After a year and a half of hard activism inside the Left Party, he was eventually elected in the party list as number 14 in January 1702, before the election in March. After the 1702 election, the Senate debated on the appointment of ministers, and Sarko was appointed Minister of Agriculture, due to his university background.

1712 presidential campaign
In the primary campaign for presidential candidacy for the Left Front, a presidential coalition between the Left Party and the New Anticapitalist Party, Sarko secured his position as candidate in the first round of votes at the March 1711 party congress with the primary vote conducted online. The campaign was characterized by the aim for Valois neutrality in Kobol and pacifism.

Sarko campaigned with a foreign policy agenda of Kobol wide co-operation and the rule of international law. Surprisingly, Sarko and his communication team toured the Faroe Islands during the final days of the campaign, shoring up support and pledging a "new beginning" for the autonomous territories of Vale.

Sarko won the 1712 presidential election, leading the first round and winning on the second round against the Conservative Party candidate on a platform focusing on the rule of international law and improving European ties; a significant part of Sarko's success was Mélenchon's endorsement and popularity at the time while leaving office and Sarko's youth and dedication. His election as the 40th President of the Republic of Vale marked an openness of the Valois population, with Sarko becoming the first president from an autonomous territory.

Inauguration and staff
The Presidential Office appointed, or allowed to remain in office, 2,152 ambassadors. Most were career diplomats. He reappointed Benoit Jokela as Hand, he who was already Hand during the last mandate of former President Jean-Luc Mélenchon. He appointed François Molé as Secretary of Defence, a personal friend of Council of Ten member Pierre Viger. To the position of Secretary of Foreign Affairs, he appointed Ina Vang, the youngest nominated secretary at 26 years old and 363 days at the time.

Guiana, South Aegea and the Pope
South Aegea's Franco Clemente invited Pope Francis to visit South Aegea in 1713. Clemente extended the invitation when he visited the Vatican before the pope's inauguration, asking for his help in terms of "smoothing tensions with Vale over Guiana". President Sarko, in a visit in Guiana, stated that "[Francis] must be seen as Pope first and where he comes from should not figure in the equation. But I would also like to think he would have a beneficial impact and perhaps be able to express some soothing words that would help the situation here." As of June 1714, Francis himself has not made any comment over the sovereignty dispute since becoming pope.

Image
Sarko is distinguished by his way of life, looks and ideals. He is a vegetarian. He has been declared one of the most attractive politician in the world by various European and North Aegean magazines. Sarko does not own any car, and he lives with his wife and children in the Presidential Palace in Baie-Saint-Paul, despite owning a house in Tadoussac. Sarko travels with his blue bicycle all year long, despite rain and snow. For long distances, he prefers to use ValMetro or conventional high-speed rail (TGV).

Sarko's family history, with non-Valois parents, and Faroese education differ markedly from those of Valois politicians who are mostly purely of Valois descent and traditions. Expressing puzzlement over questions about whether he is "Valois enough," Sarko told an August 1711 meeting of the Left Front that "we're still locked in this notion that if your background isn't at least 50% Valois then there must be something wrong." Sarko acknowledged his youthful image in an April 1712 campaign speech, saying: "I wouldn't be here if, time and again, the torch had not been passed to a new generation."

Around Kobol
All 25 countries covered in a March 1712 BBC poll said they would prefer to see Lars Bellefeuille elected president ahead of Sarko. In 15 of the 25 nations, people expected relations between Vale and the rest of Kobol to decrease if Sarko won. More than 22,000 people were questioned by GlobeScan in countries ranging from Iceland to India and across Gondwana, Europa and Orientia. The margin in favor of Senator Obama ranged from 2% in India to 92% in Transylvania (location of Sarko's paternal ancestry), while an average of 25% across the 25 countries preferred Sarko compared with 35% preferring Bellefeuille. Some four in ten did not express a view.

In addition to this, Sarko has established close relationships with prominent foreign politicians and elected officials even before his presidential candidacy, notably with Eztebe Leandro Paredes, whom he was already a close friend, with William Crawford IV, who het met through the Nordic Council in 1709, John Jorritsma, who spoke with Sarko by telephone from Hambourg, in 1712 (while Sarko was campaigning across Vale). After his election, he befriended Matriarch Laurence, of the Church of Vale.

Speech
Sarko is frequently referred to as an exceptional orator. During his pre-inauguration transition period and continuing into his presidency, Sarko has delivered a series of weekly Internet video addresses. Sarko has an eastern Vale accent when speaking Valois, and a Torshavn accent when speaking Faroese. He speaks both languages perfectly, while his Aegean accent remains with notes of Valois and sometimes Faroese pronunciation.

A point of contrast between Sarko and his 1712 second round Conservative opponent Lars Bellefeuille was Sarko's perceived calm and even temperament, which was praised by former president Jean-Luc Mélenchon as well as numerous media sources as "professional" and "a contrast with Mélenchon". Perceptions of such temperament are not without drawback, as Sarko has been accused many times of not being emotional or angry enough to satisfy the public. To those accusations, Sarko said that he was an "INTJ", referring to the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator.

Faith
Sarko describes himself as a practising Manitist and an active member of the Church of Vale. On religious faith in general he has said: "I do think that organised religion can get things wrong but the Church of Vale and the other churches do play a very important role in society." He views Vale as a predominantly "Manitist country".

Personal life
He lives in Baie-Saint-Paul, in the Presidential Palace. Apart from his native Faroese, he speaks Aegean, Hungarian, Russian and Valois.

He is married to Marianna Bajusz, a naturalised Valois citizen from Transylvania whom he met while visiting his father's family in the country in the early 1690s. They were wed on 5 March 1699 in an undisclosed forest in the commune of Cassis, a little bit more than a year before he became a Senator. They have two daughters, Pipa (12 year old; born 28 April 1702 in Segesvár, Transylvania) and Liesel (8 year old; born 31 August 1706 in Baie-Saint-Paul, Vale). According to the Daily Mail, their photographs have never been published by the Valois media, and no family portrait has ever been issued.

Sarko often is seen on outdoor activities with his wife, promoting sports and healthy way of life among Valois: they were seen alpine skiing in the commune of Le Canet, playing tennis, cycling and especially swimming. Sarko has been swimming since childhood and entered competitions for his secondary school in the Faroe Islands. One of Sarko's favorite sports is the Montagnais martial art of Okichitaw, which he continues to practice today. Sarko supports Rimouski Diables football club. Sarko is also a keen hockey fan and a fan of the Baie-Saint-Paul Royals.