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There are always storylines surrounding elections. Most of the time they are of a negative nature or designed to harm some of the participants involved. This election saw some gentler, kinder campaigns, it saw some actual ideas being presented and debated. Most importantly for our purposes, it saw the triumph of hope and perseverance over experience. Derek Harland staid true to himself and Canada will be enriched by it. The Freeholder Press sat down with the President following his election to conduct this interview.

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The Freeholder Press: Congratulations President Derek Harland on your win. President, after the time put in and all the hard work, how does that sound?

President Derek Harlan😛 First of all, thank you Alias for the interview and the congratulations. After my third election try, I finally get to feel what it's like to win and I am very proud of myself and everyone who helped me. President Derek Harland has a beautiful ring to it.

FHP: This was your third campaign as presidential hopeful (you have been nominated in numerous cabinets), the first time you lost to Jacobi in December '09 by 217 votes and the second time you lost to Jacobi once more but by a mere four votes. Was there doubt in your mind that this would ever come to pass?

DH: In January, when I decided to run for the second time, I thought it would be my last chance to run. I wanted to give other DAL members a chance and I felt that running twice and failing both times would be enough. I didn't want to turn into Octavian F running every election and failing all the time (just kidding 😛) but I wanted new blood to step into the spotlight. This month however, there was a new sense of urgency in me. I think it was my drive for war that I have recently gotten. I wanted to bring war to eCanada and I thought that the best way to do that would be to run for President. So to answer your question, no, I didn't think I would ever be elected. The four vote loss was a huge heart breaker at the time.

FHP: Even considering the media blitz of the last couple days, this campaign has been relatively quiet. Acacia Mason, your vice-president, who has been known as a very dedicated campaigner, even went off message with a few humorous articles preceding/during the vote. Is this a fair impression or even a tactical consideration on your part?

DH: To be honest, the campaign I ran this term was a lot less intense than against Jacobi. Jacobi is a political giant that needs to be respected as someone who has changed eCanadian society. He was a previous 5-term president and I knew it would be an incredible landslide going up against him. So I worked my ass off that election and I am still happy with the result I got. This election however, I have had a new understanding of elections. I decided to present new ideas to the people and let them take me to victory. I presented my ideas in separate parts and let them do the talking for me. It turned out to be a smart strategy and I am glad I did it. Acacia Mason was also a huge help for me. He sent out PMs asking people to vote for me, he wrote articles, took out ads all to help me. I am extremely grateful to have him by my side.

FHP: Your opponents in this race where all Canadians with important pedigrees and yet the result was a landslide victory. Your 55.91% of the popular vote is the third highest margin in Canadian history to Bruck's 57.8% in May of '09 and Zanalan's 65.06% in January of '09 (at a time when only 269 total votes were cast). This was the first time since August of last year (Jacobi 54.83😵 that a presidential candidate managed to garner a majority of votes. Why this term and why you?

DH: I am extremely proud of myself garnering a majority vote. It is something that eludes candidates so often and to get one with a total of 5 candidates is something I never expected. I am utterly content right now and I couldn't be happier with the result. My other competitors had hard campaigns and I applaud them for it but I think the main difference is that I had the preparedness and the background of being in recent elections. I announced my candidacy before the PP elections I believe and I worked hard at developing ideas and putting them into a well thought-out platform. This allowed eCanadians to see what I had to offer early on before the other candidates. Bruck and Caesar all declared last minute essentially and it didn't give them enough time to prepare an effective campaign while I had a couple of weeks. Couple this with the fact that I was only a few months off one of the most if not the most exciting election in eCanadian history and I had a winning campaign. My experience in previous elections were invaluable to my success and I am happy I took the initiative and ran before even against tough odds in Jacobi.

FHP: A story that is exploding with force today is the theft of the Civil Defence budget by a member of The Crimson Order. It seems that no presidential term is ever free of complicated issues but few start out as abruptly as this one. Can you tell us what your first reactions are to this event? It is easy to assume that changes will be forthcoming, can you give us a hint at what those changes might be?

DH: I was in disbelief today when I saw what had happened. TemujinBC I consider to be one of my good friends on this site and he is always so generous and kind to me. He supported my campaign even when most TCO members voted for Bruck, understandably. I was extremely disappointed in his actions. I am all for the lulz, it is necessary in this game for sure. But this took it too far. To steal from government money that pays for our dedicated CAF is taking things to a level that has gone 5 miles across the line. He has been removed from his position as MoCD but that does NOT mean I will take away funding from the TCO. I am a huge fan of the private militias and with v2 coming I want them all to be running at full efficiency. The TCO has made it clear they don't accept these actions and they don't deserve to be punished for the actions of one man. Next time I see TemujinBC on IRC I will talk with him and hopefully we can sort things out more detailed.

FHP: With each new term, every incoming president sees his chances increasing of being the one at the helm when the conversion to V2 happens. Are you intimidated by this prospect? Do you find yourself well prepared to tackle the challenges this migration will represent?

DH: I am hoping that I will be the President when v2 comes out. I am not a mind reader, I can't see into the future but this will likely be my only term. I am very much hoping for v2 to come out during my term because I will make sure eCanada is more prepared than any other nation. My opponent and good friend Treian, is my minister of v2 Preparation and Kronos Q is his deputy. Together they have already formulated great ideas and strategies that will go a long way to help eCanada. I welcome the challenge that the migration brings and I hope I can tackle it. I am working on a massive plan that is sort of like the CPF's Team 120 plan but on a country-wide scale. I want eCanada to have self-sufficient armament companies, a civilian militia or planned strikes between civilians that employ combined-arms tactics crucial on the battlefield. v2 Preparation is one of my major goals and we will be ready if it comes during my term.

FHP: Can you state once more your position on the issue of titanium region rentals? Also, what kind of argument, if any, would you foresee that could change the debate and incite you to change your stated position?

DH: My current position is a firm no on the subject. Call me a nationalist or someone who is not seeing the pure gameplay elements of it, but renting the region takes away from eCanada and in my opinion deprives us of this wonderful opportunity to lead on a world stage and be more involved in international affairs. With such limited supply of titanium around the world, I think this is a great chance for us to have our own priorities and turn our country into a great nation, instead of one stuck moving laterally. For me to change my mind on this debate, there would have to be a rental offer of unimaginable gold. I combine roleplaying and gameplay aspects but I understand that if there is a great offer on the table, sometimes it needs to be taken.

FHP: The New World today is in flux. The Eden alliance, along with the US and Canada does not always seem to be on the same page. Is Canada safer with Derek Harland presiding? Do you see Canada playing an active role in patching, maintaining this international alliance?

DH: Whether eCanada is safer, I won't answer that question. I plan on getting us involved in war that while I don't plan activating any MPPs neighbouring us, the possibiity is there. I can guarantee that if there is ever an invasion of eCanada, there won't be a disaster like last time. We won't be divided into Phoenix occupation zones, but instead we will use our activated MPPs and take the offensive to the agressor. I recognize the fact that titanium is a precious resource and people will be gunning for it. If they do, all I say is bring it on because they won't get what they are after. As far as the EDEN alliance, I don't plan on pulling us out of it yet. I want to mend fences wherever possible and keep the US and EDEN in at least joint military planning if not at least in an official alliance.



FHP: We wish to thank you for your time and congratulate you once more and your impressive win. As is traditional in our interview articles, we would like to leave the final words to you Mr. President...

DH: Thank you once again Alias, it has been a pleasure talking with you today. I would like to extend my thanks to all of my supporters as well as applaud the other candidates for taking the initiative and putting their name forth. To end with, all I can say is eCanada will be a much more fun place to be in over the next month.