Wonder
| James Wonder | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Governor of Dixie | |
|
Assumed office February 11, 2022 | |
| Preceded by | Drunk |
| President pro tempore of the United States Senate | |
|
In office July 15, 2021 – September 10, 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Sandoval |
| Succeeded by | Cabin |
|
In office July 13, 2021 – September 10, 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Lukas |
| Succeeded by | Cabin |
| House Minority Leader | |
|
In office March 13, 2021 – July 13,2021 | |
| Preceded by | Sysadmin |
| Succeeded by | Pepper Potts |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Dixie | |
|
In office January 14, 2021 – July 13, 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Jeb! |
| Succeeded by | Miguel |
| Constituency | 4th District (133rd Congress- 136th Congress) |
| 39th United States Secretary of Defense | |
|
In office May 6, 2021 – July 13, 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Victoria |
| Succeeded by | Bacon |
| Member of the Dixie General Assembly | |
|
In office December 8, 2020 – July 13, 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Jess Reed |
| Succeeded by | Rosa Berry |
|
In office October 8, 2021 – February 11, 2022 | |
| Preceded by | Rosa Berry |
| Constituency | 5th District (16th Assembly- 20th Assembly) |
| Speaker of the Dixie General Assembly | |
|
In office June 10, 2021 – July 13, 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Victoria |
| Succeeded by | Bacon |
|
In office October 9, 2021 – December 8, 2021 | |
| Preceded by | James |
| Succeeded by | Purdy |
|
In office January 23, 2022 – February 11, 2022 | |
| Preceded by | Purdy |
| Succeeded by | James |
| Dixie Secretary of State | |
|
In office May 23, 2021 – June 10, 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Jibble Shucker |
| Succeeded by | Charles Bacon |
| Personal Details | |
| Born |
James Earl Wonder January 4, 1983 Nashville, Tennessee |
| Nationality | American |
| Political party | Libertarian-Republican Party |
| Spouse(s) | Melvakia Wonder (2001-Present) |
| Children | 6 |
| Education | College of William and Mary |
James Earl Wonder (born January 4th, 1983) is an American politician, lawyer, and diplomat who is the current Governor of Dixie. He previously server as the Speaker of the Dixie Assembly, the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, House Minority Leader representing Dixie, and Secretary of Defense under President Bo.
Before entering politics Wonder was a school teacher and Dixie Secretary of Education, which helped him when he ran for his first office. He served in the State Assembly for five terms in between making a successful bid for the United States Senate and U.S. House of Representatives. During his tenure in the State Assembly, he passed over twenty-five pieces of legislation and was credited with reforming education, infrastructure, state parks, and gun control. He quickly rose up in the ranks of political leadership in the Libertarian-Republican Party, eventually becoming chair of the party. Wonder served as Lieutenant Governor candidate for Tulsi in the October Gubernatorial election for Dixie. He has been mentioned many times as a potential Presidential Candidate and Vice Presidential Candidate in the March, July, and November elections.
In February 2022, Wonder ran for Governor of Dixie in the race to succeed Drunk. He faced the longtime Secretary of State Joash Trudeau, where he won with 73.9% of the vote. Since taking office, Wonder was criticized for his attendance record, with critics calling him a hypocrite. During his tenure, he significantly reduced a large group of left wing social programs, increased voting hours, and replaced the electoral college allocation system. He has maintained some criticism for some appointments to his cabinet, with the Libertarian-Republican Party Assembly Members voting his candidates down multiple times. He has not announced if he will run for re-election in June.
Throughout his tenure in politics, Wonder remains a controversial figure across the United States. Lauded by his supporters for his avid legislating, he proposed a controversial election reform bill which contributed to the Elkridge Campaign's victory in the July Presidential Election. His opponents have called him childish, and unfit for office based on his actions on Twitter and while speaking in Congress, and the State legislature. He also had a key role in Budget issues across Dixie, during which he proposed a budget with inaccurate numbers which led to a near budget crisis in May 2021. He has continuously referred to his opponents as "clowns" and certain media stories as fake news.
Early Life
Wonder was born January 4th, 1983 in Nashville, Tennessee (Now Dixie) to Tiberius Wonder Jr., a Professor at Nashville State Community College, and Gloria Etemo-Wonder, a 5th Grade Elementary School Teacher in Nashville. Wonder from a young age was invested in politics, his family volunteered in state legislature elections and went to numerous rallies throughout his childhood. Wonder was an avid debater throughout his life, attending prominent debates on hot-topic issues that were affecting the state. He was an above-average student in school and managed to receive 1215 on the SAT. He attended Hume-Fogg Academic High School where was on the student government association and the youth in government club which allowed him to meet and connect with the state legislators across Dixie. From 1999-2002, Wonder interned with Congressman Van Hilleary, eventually working on his failed gubernatorial campaign in 2002. After interning he received a major in government from the College of William and Mary. He proceeded to become a school teacher in Nashville, teaching civics. He eventually moved up becoming the Superintendent of the Metro Nashville School District. His quick rise and subsequent successful policy implementation methods for public schools led many to persuade him to pursue higher office. Wonder was criticized for being an outspoken supporter of certain political campaigns while in office as Superintendent and donating to certain campaigns. He stepped down from Superintendent to help out family members in Jefferson, Puerto Rico, and the North relating to education and financial issues. He returned to Dixie and continued as a civic's teacher before being offered Secretary of Education.
Political Career
Dixie State Cabinet
Governor Drunk nominated Wonder to serve as Dixie Secretary of Education on November 19th, 2020. His confirmation was expected to pass with the Libertarian supermajority in the Dixie Assembly, but several questions were brought up over his move to the North, Jefferson, and Puerto Rico over recent periods of time. Upon Wonder's explanation and other policy questions, he was confirmed with seven votes in favor and no one voting against him. Immediately when he was confirmed he got to work, sponsoring legislation that was under the purview of the Department of Education. He changed the school hours for students to allow for better rest and addressed mental health issues by ensuring that all school cards include mental health organizations and their websites to contact them. Nearly all the legislation he proposed under his tenure as Secretary of Education was passed and had bi-partisan approval. His actions on school hours, mental health, and nutrition remain one of the most effective and beneficial pieces of legislation compiled by an Education Secretary. Upon his election to the House of Representatives, he resigned from the Secretary of Education post and newcomer Bacon succeeded him.
Wonder briefly returned to the cabinet from May to June of 2021, where he served as Dixie Secretary of State. He made ballots and monitored elections as well. He came under fire when a staff member forgot a candidate on the ballot allowing them to receive 0 votes. This was brought up in later debates but Wonder always turned the blame and attention on the staff member that helped cause the incident. Upon his term ending, he was succeeded by Bacon.
Dixie General Assembly
Elections
December
Wonder first ran for the Dixie General Assembly in the December midterm elections. After winning the primary unopposed he faced Representative Moonguy. His race brought large media attention and was regarded as a tight race between the two candidates. Wonder managed to win in a landslide taking 81.48% of the vote.
February
In his re-election Wonder faced what would be one of the toughest opponents he had faced. Bruce Hill was a strong candidate who many expected to win based on the high number of support for left-leaning candidates across the State at that time and key endorsements for him. Wonder managed to be re-elected closely taking 51.03% of the vote.
April
Wonder was unopposed in his re-election to a third term. As the highest-ranking Libertarian-Republican many thought he could face a strong challenger but none appeared. Wonder won re-election with 82.92% of the vote with the rest going to write-ins.
June
Wonder was unopposed in his re-election taking 78.69% with the rest going to write-ins.
October
Wonder sought his old Assembly seat back after resigning upon being elected to the Senate. He faced incumbent Rosa Berry who had gained notoriety for not completing their campaign promises and being inactive. The election was going to decide the fate of the majority in the General Assembly. After a decisive debate and close campaign, Wonder prevailed earning 50.98% of the vote in one of his closest elections he has been in.
December
After being made Speaker of the General Assembly for the second time again, Wonder attempted to hold on to his majority with his seat. After facing Joash Trudeau, Wonder closely won by earning 50.09% to 48.32% of the vote. While he won his election, the Libertarian-Republicans lost control of the Assembly for the first time in several months.
Tenure
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In his first term, Wonder proposed the Dixie Safety Sports Act which mandated public schools teach about school safety when playing sports. He was an avid legislator who got a lot of support from both sides of the aisle for much of his legislation. He proceeded to move on from educational issues to environmentalists, proposing the Dixie Water Cleanup Act. The legislation was lauded for its strict fines on corporations that refused to clean up spilled pollution in waterways throughout Dixie. Many constituents wrote to Wonder asking for him to do something about public park access for children and Wonder listened. He proposed the Dixie Park Act which made all-state parklands free of charge for those in certain grades of public school, veterans, and the elderly. Wonder held high regard for the first term he held especially when tragedy struck during the Nashville Bombing. To help those affected by the bombing he authorized a commission that helped investigate the findings of the attack and actions to prevent further. As the Assembly session came to a close he ensured friendships with members of all parties including Future President Bo, Malcolm, and Miguel.
In his second term, he was the only Libertarian-Republican Party in the entire Assembly after his party was wiped in general elections. He comprised and worked well with his colleagues even though he was in the super minority. He was a key vote in electing the next Speaker of the Assembly which he handed to Soren. He was appointed Speaker Pro Tempore. After receiving reports of gun violence in his district, Wonder took keen action on limiting citizens to brandishing firearms at least 500 feet of public demonstrations. He also recognized the importance of the Greensboro Four in a passed resolution and made Rosa Parks Day an official state holiday. After facing a tough re-election in February, Wonder kept a quieter profile while continuing to legislate and work with his colleagues. Throughout the term, he quietly worked to build back momentum for the right and win back control of the Assembly. During the midterms, he campaigned hard for many candidates running. This helped propel his internal status in the Libertarian-Republican Party which eventually made him Chair of the Party for two months.
He continued by proposing the Jazz resolution which recognized the importance of Jazz in Dixie and made the Secretary of State susceptible to having to run in a Special Election if a vacancy occurred. He proposed the School Water Plan which helped eliminate lead in pipes in Public Schools. To continue his efforts on education he passed the Cyber School Act which helped teach Digital Citizenship to young students in public schools. In his third term, he sought the Speakership as the most senior Libertarian-Republican in the Assembly. He would go on to lose the primary caucus vote to newcomer Victoria. This term was one of the most partisan and divisive issues due to the Speaker which Wonder was opposed to. There were consistent fights in the caucus which led to rifts and divides and many were angry at each other during this session. He became increasingly concerned of the vacancies of the Dixie State Supreme Court which had just impeached and removed its Chief Justice Mike Smith for inactivity. As there were no judges in the entire State Court, Wonder introduced the Judicial Appointments resolution which requested the Governor fill the seats with qualified and impartial nominees as soon as possible. Issues were brought up when he proposed a budget that had many math figures wrong and received a large portion of the blame even though it was at the time Speaker Victoria who wrote it. This left the damaged and Wonder politically weakened which left many concerns for the upcoming Assembly Elections. The right was able to maintain control and successfully fought off a strong challenge after the May budget debacle.
After running for another term in October, Wonder proposed legislation that would honor police service animals, digital citizenship in schools, and a balanced budget. He would campaign on these programs in December and other elections afterwards. He also passed laws which gave minimum wage workers the right to earn money while on break and earned him bi-partisan political support.
Speaker of the Assembly
After being elected to the Assembly for multiple terms, Wonder was selected by his caucus to be the Speaker of the Dixie General Assembly for the upcoming session. He was able to keep a strong majority for his time period as Speaker, and proved to be one of the fiercest opponents of then Governor Drunk. He proposed multiple pieces of legislation that were vetoed by the Governor, but Wonder used his power to overturn the veto and allow his bills to become law. His first term as Speaker was notable due to the United States presidential election, July 2021, where Wonder played a crucial role in securing the victory for Howard Elkridge by proposing an electoral college allocation resolution at the last minute. This altered the amount of electoral votes opponents would have by giving them all to Elkridge, and it helped allow Elkridge to get a close victory in what was expected to be a contested election. This led many on the left to accuse Wonder of stealing an election and ignoring the political minorities. But Wonder was re-elected to positions several times afterwards which weakened their point of election fraud being committed by Wonder.
After resigning from the Assembly in July upon being elected to the Senate, Wonder returned in October and was unanimously made Speaker of the Dixie General Assembly for another term by his caucus. In his second term for speaker, James Wonder focused on the empty political courts and pushed for Governor Drunk to fill the seats on the court. This proved controversial when Wonder postponed a vote for multiple nominees due to the Global Labour Party pushing accusations of Judges being unbiased and conducting hearings into their ability. His postponement lasted until the hearings were over and were met with uproar by the political minority. After hearing about the postponement, one of the nominees withdrew and it led to further scrutiny over the decision. Wonder's actions proved successful, as the left began facing backlash for their investigations. Wonder also purposely refused to swear another Assemblyman in so that he could pass a veto override for one his pieces of legislation. His actions were taken to court, and the court upheld his decisions as legal. His party lost the majority in the December elections and he was forced to become Minority Leader as the left had full control of the government for the first time in several months.
The third time Wonder became Speaker of the Dixie General Assembly, was after the resignation of Purdy, leaving the Assembly tied at 2-2. When a vote was held the Global Labour Party nominee Ethan, voted present on themselves allowing Wonder to quickly vote yes and become Speaker, despite having the Assembly be tied. He spent the remaining weeks as Speaker overseeing the end of the Drunk Administration, the February State Elections and the overall transfer of power. Wonder's tenure as Speaker of the Assembly was one of the longest, and most partisan it has been in recent modern history. His actions shaped the political atmosphere for multiple months and left a longstanding impact on procedures in the General Assembly.
House of Representatives
Elections
January
Wonder originally faced an opponent but they dropped out in the middle of the race allowing him to win unopposed. He won 86.55% of the vote with the rest going to independents.
March
For his second term, Wonder faced former Representative Kev but Kev was largely absent from the race, basically allowing Wonder to be unopposed. He won around 90% of the vote.
May
Wonder was unopposed in the race for his third term. He garnered around 68% of the vote. The key reason the vote for him was so low as an unopposed candidate was due to the allegations coming out of the State budget he proposed having wrong numbers in them and hurt the Libertarian-Republicans in Dixie.
Tenure
After Wonder’s election to the House of Representatives, he was a member of a 4 person caucus which at the time was not enough to gain a minority status. The left decided to split their membership which allowed for Social Democratic Party and the Global Labour Party to have Majority/Minority Status. Many Libertarian-Republicans were upset with this action, including Wonder. Being in a super minority was very difficult especially when extreme actions like the Federal Government Shutdown of February 2021 happened. He was elected to be head of the Liberty Caucus and remained as the highest-ranking Libertarian-Republican Party member in the house. From his first days, he wrote the Penny Provisions Removal Act which would have removed the penny from circulation and stopped its production. The bill was defeated in committee. He then proceeded to write the Better Highway Infrastructure Act with Howard Elkridge, which helped restore bridges and roads that have fallen out of shape. As the term went on many members left the caucus to join the left as the party became stronger, leaving Wonder in a larger minority than he started. This term was largely shaped around the left growing evermore angry with President Sandoval and it led to the Federal Shutdown which brought Wonder into the spotlight as the only member of the Libertarian-Republican Party in the House of Representatives. He gave a strong defense in the House of the President's veto of the left-wing budget and called to an end for the political games. This helped result in a political victory for the right which helped them gain seats and win the Presidency again.
The Libertarian-Republicans made large gains to the House of Representatives in March following the coattails of Bo win in the United States presidential election, March 2021. They gained enough seats to allow Wonder to become House Minority Leader and have a large influence over the passage of bills and committee makeups. He worked with President Bo to propose the April Budget which brought large changes to Healthcare reform and taxes. He also helped write the Territorial Tax Exemption Act. The largest accomplishment of his second term was the COVID Mental Health Act which established networks for those affected and needed mental health help. A few in his caucus found his leadership lackluster early on due to being behind on introducing legislation which was quickly fought back against. He was a key spokesman for President Bo in the house and helped solidify his base as a strong right-wing reformer. Many scandals plagued the left during this time period and allowed for Wonder to captivate on them and gain seats in the House through special elections and develop a strong right-wing base in the North which was originally left-leaning. The switch from left to right in several strongholds helped them gain mandates in passing right-wing. Wonder, who was in the Executive of the Libertarian-Republican Party helped oversee policy changes which made the party more big tent.
In his third and final term, Wonder was re-elected as House Minority Leader in an extremely contentious House Session where Majority was decided by one seat. In this term, he largely delegated certain responsibilities of political actions to other members of leadership. He once again remained a key partner to President Bo’s agenda and helped push the very large minority to vote on his bills and pass them. He helped write along with the Administration the Juneteenth federal holiday bill which passed unanimously. He also proposed several reforms in President Bo’s final budget which passed and was widely seen to be the next Speaker of the House if his party took control in the next session. Wonder declined to seek a fourth term and ran for the United States Senate, which he won.
Senate
Elections
July
Wonder was unopposed in his race for Senate, which shocked many political pundits. He had a quiet campaign and won 84.44% of the vote with the rest going to write-ins. This election became the first in nearly a year that a Libertarian-Republican was elected Senator from Dixie. The last being Bo who would resign to be Vice President.
Tenure
Wonder swore into the Senate and was elected President Pro Tempore. He was not always present on the senate floor due to emerging family issues which he needed to deal with. This caused some constituents to not be happy with his absences. He proposed a budget, written by the Elkridge administration, with crucial number errors and played a small role in the government shutdown of August and September. He declined to seek re-election in September and was succeeded by former President Cabin.
Governor of Dixie
February 2022 Election
On February 1st, 2022, Wonder announced his candidacy to succeed Drunk who was term-limited. He was the first candidate to announce and garnered the Libertarian-Republican nomination in hours. He faced incumbent Representative and Secretary of State Joash Trudeau, who had faced ethical concerns from his tenure.
The two competed in a debate in which Wonder was seen as the winner and appeared more present at the debate. After the debate performance, left wing planning to hold the governorship largely fell apart. It allowed Wonder to campaign virtually unopposed as his opponents campaign had collapsed.
Wonder won the election with 73.9% of the vote, in one of the largest landslide victories against an opponent for governor. Political pundits contribute his widespread victory to his debate performance, aggressive campaigning, and Joash's unpopularity as Secretary of State.
Tenure
Wonder was sworn in on February 12th, 2022. He became the first right-wing Governor in over a year. On his first day in office he made several nominations to cabinet positions and began consulting the Secretary of State on impending special elections which needed to be held. In his first week, Wonder had faced scrutiny by some for his nomination of Bacon to be Associate Justice of the Dixie Supreme Court, only to withdraw him a day later.
Wonder got his first political win as Governor when he signed the Representative and Senatorial Campaign Funding Act of 2022 on February 21st. Despite a strong campaign by some members of the left to not pass the bill, Wonder and his caucus prevailed, organizing enough votes to pass the bill.
On February 28th, Wonder signed the Budgetary Repeal Act which fulfilled several campaign promises on taxes. He scrutiny by some on the left for repealing a broken tax credit.
Wonder heightened security for cyber attacks against public schools and universities. He also directed the Secretary of Education to help teachers on cyber security and education.
On March 5th, Wonder vetoed his first piece of legislation. He vetoed the New Dixie Flag Act, which would establish a new committee to change the states flag. He cited the past failures of such committees and believing in the current flag as his reasons for doing so.
Wonder and the rest of the Libertarian-Republican Party were criticized for perceived inactivity in the office. This was increased after Wonder announced he would be giving the Lieutenant Governor, Cabin, temporary power as acting governor for a period of ten days. Wonder claimed that his absence was for health and family issues which had plagued him in the past.
After the April State Elections, the Libertarian-Republican Party kept a small majority in the Dixie General Assembly. Wonder announced that his Administration was doing a reboot after the perceived inactivity and planned to introduce new policy initiatives in the new Assembly. Following this announcement he appointed a new Lieutenant Governor, Sandoval, after the incumbent Cabin resigned to focus on his tenure in the Senate. Wonder shifted his focus back onto social issues since the election season was over, helping ensure that passage of E-Verify Requirements with Assemblyman Greg Dover.
On April 28th, the Wonder Administration proposed the Drunk Driving Reparations Act, which would force those who killed a parent through drunk driving would be forced to pay for child support. The bill was highlighted by Wonder as one of his best accomplishments and brought bipartisan support in the Dixie General Assembly. He signed the bill on May 1st.
In an attempt to fulfill one of his campaign promises, Wonder nominated Tulsi to be Associate Justice of the Dixie Supreme Court. He also nominated Assemblyman Jackson Seleukus to be the Secretary of Education. His nominations was met with approval by several Assembly leaders but questions about qualifications remained.
Political Beliefs
Wonder is known as a moderate Libertarian-Republican who is more left-leaning on certain social issues. This has helped him with certain voters on the left which may have helped him win re-election in several of his close races.
Personal Life
Wonder is married to his wife Melvakia, and together they have six children. Ivana, James Jr, Erica, Tiffa, Barron, and Omarosa Ludacris (O.L.). Wonder has a private residence in Nashville and a home in Hilton Head, South Carolina where he resides during the Summer recess. He also had a distant uncle who worked at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) as a Professor.
Honors
Electoral History
Dixie General Assembly
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LP | Wonder | 81.48 | +81.48 | ||
| UL | Moonguy | 17.04 | +17.04 | ||
| Independent | Poliman | 1.48 | +1.48 | ||
| LP gain from UL | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LP | Wonder | 51.03 | -30.45 | ||
| GLP | Bruce Hill | 48.97 | +48.97 | ||
| LP hold | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LP | Wonder | 82.92 | +30.89 | ||
| Independent | Write in | 17.08 | +17.08 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LP | Wonder | 78.69 | -4.23 | ||
| Independent | Write in | 21.30 | +21.30 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LP | Wonder | 50.98 | -33.46 | ||
| SDP | Rosa Berry | 47.52 | -3.03 | ||
| LP gain from SDP | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LP | Wonder | 50.09 | -0.89 | ||
| GLP | Joash | 48.84 | +1.32 | ||
| LP hold | |||||
House of Representatives
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LP | Wonder | 6,957,004 | 86.55 | +4.6 | |
| Other | Write-Ins | 1,081,129 | 13.45 | +13.45 | |
| LP gain from GLP | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LP | Wonder | 7,280,949 | 90.58 | +3.45 | |
| UL | Kevin | 757,193 | 9.42 | -9.42 | |
| LP hold | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LP | Wonder | 10,938,558 | 68.07 | -22.51 | |
| Other | Write-Ins | 5,127,464 | 31.92 | +22.45 | |
| LP hold | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LP | Wonder | 50.63 | -17.44 | ||
| GLP | Chuck | 49.30 | +49.30 | ||
| LP gain from GLP | |||||
Senate
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LP | Wonder | 84.44 | +16.37 | ||
| Other | Write-Ins | 15.53 | -52.54 | ||
| LP gain from GLP | |||||