The Federated Planets Of Earth

Summary
Founded in 2117, The Federated Planets Of Earth, also known as the Federation, is a democratic, interstellar empire spanning across 21 systems as of 2220. What began as a loose federal system of the majority of nation-states on Earth at the time, including the Pan-Pacific Federation, the European Union and The Central African Republic, has grown into a powerhouse of economic and scientific progress that soon encompassed the colonies of Luna, Mars and Titan.

Before unification, Earth was divided into several ' superstates', the natural evolution of former 21st Century nation-states. Rapid changes in the planets political landscape, climate change, and the need to cater to the off-world colonies necessitated global and system-wide unification.

Currently, the Federation has a population of approximately 47,000,000,000 and is lead by President Evelyn Reeves.

Executive Branch
The President of the Federation wields the highest executive and military power, as the head of government and head of state. They are elected directly via ballot by a majority vote from the general populace. The President also heads the Federal Assembly, which is responsible for the executive governance of the Federation. The President is not bound by term limits and can remain in power indefinitely. However, they must maintain the confidence of the general populace, and the parliament and a general election must take place once every ten years.

Legislative Branch
The legislative branch of the government is known as the Federal Parliament. The Federal Parliament's legislative branch comprises two chambers, the lower house being the Federal Senate and the upper house being the Federal Council.

The Federal Senate comprises senators from every planet within the federation and is the dominant chamber within the federal parliament and to whom the President is solely responsible. For a world to have a representative within the federal Senate, it must formally be recognised by parliament, usually after reaching self-sufficiency.

Representatives are elected democratically by the population which they represent. The number of senators a planet has depends on a planet's population and therefore is seen to represent the federation's population proportionally. For instance, Earth has 28 senators, two from each "nation" on the planet, whereas Nova, during its early colonisation, had just two senators as of 2235. As Senators are democratically elected via the population of their planet, they are seen to represent best the world's values and views on issues passing through the council. As of 2250, there are 142 senators in the Senate, which is only expected to grow in the future.

A senator is elected for a five-year term but has no limits on the number of terms they can serve. For instance, Elena Ward, Senator for Earth, served from 2197 until 2221. The Senate is responsible for passing bills and discussing the budget of the FPE as well as the FPE military, and advising the President in questions of foreign policy. Legislation requires approval from both the Federal Parliament and Council before it passes either passes to the Federal High Court or the democratic process to become law. However, due to the nature of the senates collaboration and backhand dealings, the outcomes of votes are almost always known before they reach the Senate floor.

The Federal Council is the upper house of the Federal Parliament. It comprises two council members from each planet within the FPE and is directly elected by the population. The Federal Council intends to act as the voice of the worlds that they represent and pass legislature provided by the Federal Senate. While the Federal Council can propose laws to the Senate, they usually approve laws passed through from the Senate to act as the "second-thought" of legislative decisions.

Pre-2200
Historians often regard the 21st century as one of the many turning points of humanity. By 2040, unchecked climate change and rapid overpopulation had escalated beyond the ability of even the largest nations to manage successfully. Pandemics and economic disasters combined with advances like fusion power and colonising other bodies across the solar system drove the political climate to a tipping point. With the ever-increasing demand for resources and the militarisation of nations across the globe, the institutions that upheld the global power structure failed to keep their constituents in check. Without UN interference, widespread political instability and economic strife gripped the globe. The outbreak of wars in East Asia, Central Europe and Northern Africa only intensified these crises wasting precious resources and time.

Throughout this period of political uncertainty on Earth, the solar system colonies began to rise in power both culturally and economically, threatening to cut ties with Earth entirely as nationalism rose across Luna, Mars and Titan. As regional military and economic alliances shifted, the rise of so-called "super-states" such as the European Union, the North American Federation and the People's Republic of Asia prompted several off-world colonies to claim independence, feeling wholly ignored by their Terran counterparts. While these super-states unified large blocs of political, economic, industrial and technological power, save for a few nations, it was nearly entirely wasted on military campaigns that failed to break the global stalemate. And with that came a tenuous peace.

In 2071, following the threat of indirect nuclear annihilation for the first time since the 2040s, the Pan-Pacific Federation, Caribbean Confederacy, South American Federation and the European Union began to cede various elements of their sovereignty over to a new alliance, a revitalised and restructured United Nations. Historians differ as to whether these nations were motivated by necessity or some form of utopian ideals, but the results were unbelievable. Under UN initiatives, extraordinary developments in renewable energy production, atmospheric processing and space exploration saw the sustainable development of its founding nations and the reintegration of scattered off-world colonies into the UN power structure. Using these innovations as the ultimate negotiating asset, the UN successfully integrated the majority of the globe before the end of the 2080s, including past rivals, relatively peacefully.

However, with a united Earth, albeit loosely, came pushback from many off-world colonies, some of whom were still reliant on their founding nations, which once again felt ignored and pushed to the sidelines. While an uneasy peace remained between the colonies, the threat of war and an effective cease of all trade from several Martian colonies forced Earth to seek a new solution.

In 2117, the United Nations was reformed entirely in a slim majority vote into a new institution, The Federated Planets Of Earth. The Federation possessed its own internal market, a standardised system of laws and a directly elected parliament. As the Federation improved and settlements across the solar system began to join The Federated Planets, its power grew to a level that could not be ignored. While its member nations retain responsibility for their internal affairs and armed forces, The Federated Planet Of Earth has the potential to become humanity's first world government.

Yet, for all the effort invested into this new Federation, many members still have grievances. Lingering resentments from old wars threaten to throw the world back into chaos and split the organisation apart. Its critics claim that just as the United Nations before it when the time comes, The Federated Planets will become bogged down its bureaucracy. If this is true, then it may be more accurate to say that humanity has failed. Failed to live up to its own ideals of a future, one with the potential to have its first united government—one of peace, justice and freedom. But what these critics fail to understand is that the Federated Planets is not the product of some nieve do-gooders. It is harshly real. The day may still come when humanity truly sees the Federation not as some abstraction but as a power they made themselves.

If its member nations can forgive old resentments and throw aside their petty politics, then the true human spirit may be unleashed. The Federated Planets Of Earth can spread across the stars unhindered. No hardship beyond its resolve, no tyranny beyond its judgement, no star beyond its reach..