Gary Donnelly

Gary Donnelly (b. September 17, 3498) is a Dranish historian, author and politician of the right-wing Rally for the Republic currently serving as High Commissioner in the Dranish Autonomous Zone. He is the founder of the RFR's nationalist wing.

Life
Donnelly was born in 3498 in Ddraig Môr (Loren). His parents were car salespeople and ran a joint business. While they were not academics themselves, they encouraged their son's talents and made sure that he was able to attend university without having to rely on loans.

He studied political science at the Greater National University of Loren from 3416 to 3420 before attending a private diplomatic academy in Iglesia Mayor. After graduating, he worked as a foreign policy analyst in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Simultaneously, he joined the RFR, which at that time advocated a relatively isolationist idea of foreign policy, which Donnelly appreciated.

Politics
In 3427, he ran for Parliament, and, as the candidate in the rural Lorenian district of Tylwaerdreath, secured the seat for his party against the nationwide trend. In 3528, he became foreign affairs critic for his party.

In that position, he mostly opposed the foreign policy initiative of Yuko Asukai, arguing that "there is a difference between internationalism and openness to the international community and surrendering national sovereignty." He also criticized President Sean Yates over his hard-line stance against the communist Kazulian regime, calling him a hypocrite for pushing allegedly socialist policies at home and condemning them abroad. Donnelly also clashed with then-DAZ High Commissioner Timothy Omundsson, who he accused of having plagiarized his modernization plan for the zone.

In 3530, rumors about his leadership ambitions emerged, and he was increasingly regarded as a rival to Éléonore Gascoyne, another young RFR rising star. In 3532, he openly defied the party line by delivering a big speech proposing to abolish foreign aid and shut down the borders. Two years later, he launched a new "libertarian nationalist" RFR faction, whose ideals he described as follows:

''"Libertarianism has so far been associated mostly with cultural liberalism, which does not recognize the traditional values most individuals in this country cherish. Individual freedom should not be minority-focused to an extent where it ignores the ideals the vast majority of our population follows. We must recognize that the freedomite attitude this country is renowned for is based on the customs and traditions of our native cultures. Especially, but not exclusively, it has been the Draddwyr who have cultivated and spread the believes that allowed our ancestors to build a civilized society, and only by ensuring that these values prevail throughout the course of time we can also preserve our liberty. National sovereignty is the framework of our culture of freedom, and without protecting it we cannot protect liberty. Borders are not arbitrarily drawn lines, but separate cultures and believes for the benefit of all sides. This does not mean that we must shut ourselves off from the outside world, but it must mean that we establish a more culturally sensitive attitude to issues like immigration. As a general fact, unless goods, you cannot import people without importing their culturally predetermined traits. There are exceptions in individual cases, but we cannot deny this general rule. Thus, we must not be afraid as libertarians to embrace a proud belief in nationalism, a term that has been misused, twisted and defamed by the left-wing elite beyond recognition but really stands for the very foundation of freedom."''

Although the faction remained small in its initial phase, Donnelly became one of the RFR's best-known figures, and several politicians of The Good lauded him for his ideas. At one point, it was even suggested that he could become the nation's first Taoiseach and thus thwart the ambitions of Gascoyne, who in the meantime had become the RFR's de facto leader.

In 3535, after a very public clash between Gascoyne and Donnelly in Parliament over the issue of immigration, a secret deal was reportedly made between the two, which would assign the post of DAZ High Commissioner to Donnelly in exchange for not challenging Gascoyne for the party leadership. It is still unknown whether this deal ever took place, but as soon as Gascoyne became Taoiseach, Donnelly was announced as the new High Commissioner.

In his new position, he did not refrain from pushing his nationalist agenda. For example, he proposed an ethnicity-based DAZ settling policy favoring Draddwyr and Kyo settlers. He also endorsed calls from activists in the Zone to make the Commissioner an elected position, which was again opposed by his rival Gascoyne. Despite all controversies, a poll taken by the Enomoto-si Bulletin, a DAZ newspaper, in October 3538 showed that nearly two-thirds of DAZ residents approved of his performance, regarding him as independent-minded, quirky, and supportive of local interests rather than those of the central government.