Mel

Melvin John "Mel" Bradley (born July 13th, 1959) is an English-Dogger politician and trade union leader, who previously served as acting Prime Minister of Doggerland. Mel has been Party Leader since February 9th, 2021 and has been a Labor Worker's Party MP since 2021. He previously served as LWP Deputy Leader and Whip from January 29th to February 9th 2021, after being appointed by Robert La Follette. Before his election to the National Assembly, Mel served as president of the United Dockworker's Union from 1994 to 2020, who was very vocal about supporting the Labor Worker's Party.

Early Career
Melvin Bradley was born in Hoovsted on July 13th, 1959, born to an English working-class family, and attended the University of Steibo. While in University, he got elected president of the Steibo Young Social Democrats, a Youth Wing of the Labor Worker's Party, and then graduating in 1980. He was a prominent figure at the Doggerfundt Riots while he was in university, where he was detained by riot police many times, and where he met his life long friend and fellow LWP politician Robert La Follette. Later that year, Mel was hired to work as a press secretary for the mayor of Hoovsted, Henry Davies of the LWP. The next year Davies would lose reelection, and after his loss in the 1982 election, Mel began to work at the United Dockworker's Union as a political negotiator.

United Dockworker's Union Politics (1982-2020)
Mel continued to work as a negotiator within the United Dockworker's Union for several years, over the years rising to a significant position of power within the Hoovsted Union. It was during this period Mel made an attempt to run for mayor under the LWP in 1986, winning the primary election, however losing to Jack Walker of the Liberals, coming in 3rd place. This experience left Mel avoiding electoral politics for years and focusing efforts on the UDU. Mel was eventually appointed as UDU Vice Chairman in 1991, widely seen as an effort to appeal to the party's left wing. After the retirement of the UDU Chairman, Russell Barlow, Mel was elected leader at the 1994 UDU convention, which was celebrated as a massive victory for the Doggerland left. Mel would have many ideological disputes with the LWP during the early years of his term as Chairman, even threatening to leave the party over its shift to Third Way social democratic politics. In 2000, he was able to negotiate a landmark deal with the Dock companies after a 4 month long strike, which resulted in a rising of wages, less hours, and better working conditions for Dockworkers. The resulting name recognition among dockworkers led him to be continually reelected. He worked closely with LWP politicians and began to have an increasing influence over the local government, often being called in to negotiate with Communist mayor Jackie Campbell.

National Assembly (2021-Present)
During the January 2021 election cycle, after Robert La Follette was elected as Labor Worker's Leader, Mel was appointed as both the Deputy Leader and Whip and was placed second on the party list. He was vocal about his support of the plan to form a left-wing coalition with the United Left People's Party, a goal which ended up being achieved. He has was elected as a Labor Worker's Party MP on January 29th and was the Minister for Industry within the Forward! Alliance for Progressive Action. On Febuary 9th, after Robert La Follette's resignation as Party Leader, Mel served as acting Party Leader, appointed new party leadership, and took La Follette's position as Deputy Prime Minister. There was a controversy during the amendment phase of the Socialist Reform Bill, in which an amendment Mel proposed was contested by the ULPP, before eventually negotiations succeeded and the bill passed with the amendment. On February 14th, a party leadership election took place, where Mel won and is now officially the LWP party leader. Following the resignation of Prime Minister of Kevin Trevor, Mel was appointed acting prime minister of Doggerland. He served as acting prime minister for two days, appointed 5 justices to the supreme court, expelled the Democratic Progressive Party from their confidence and supply agreement, reshuffled the cabinet, and negotiated a merger with the Justice Party. He then stepped down as Ayvind Bjarnason won the ULPP leadership election, which Mel endorsed Kenson in. He had the shortest term of any Prime Minister to date.

Political Positions
Self-identifying as a "bright red social democrat", whether he is ideologically leaning towards social democracy or democratic socialism has often been in contention among his supporters and opponents. He believes that strengthening unions and expanding the welfare system should be the first priority of the government. Mel endorsed the Socialist Reform bill, calling it a "major success for the workers of doggerland". He believes in bipartisanship and cooperation with liberal parties to often be a necessary option for left wing parties to achieve their goals, making him somewhat controversial among more left wing socialists. As well, he has been assessed by some to be slightly Euroskeptic, believing that joining the European Union could be harmful to the power of trade unions within Doggerland unless the deal is made by a left-wing government.