During the presidential election, there is a lot of talk about the military ranks of the candidates. What if a young person who has not yet completed military service was chosen as commander-in-chief?
Lieutenant (Rehn), second lieutenant (Harkimo), Corporal (Stubbs) civil servant (Haavisto and Halla-aho) released from service (Wave) or outside military service (Andersson, Essayah, from Urpi). The voter has enough options if he makes his voting decision based on the military rank of the candidate.
However, one interesting option is missing. What if the future president of the republic was still a conscription himself?
It is possible. According to the constitution, any Finnish citizen by birth can be elected president of the republic. So a young man could be selected, who has yet to complete his conscript service or civilian service.
When Mannerheim became president, he was a marshal.
The Conscription Act states that working as a Member of Parliament, a member of the Government Council or a member of the European Parliament is grounds for postponing the start of service. The position of the President of the Republic is not mentioned. So could a male president of the republic find himself in the middle of his term? Would he be a rookie and a commander-in-chief at the same time?
Couldn't and wouldn't, answers the professor of constitutional law Tuomas Ojanen. Even if the president of the republic would still be conscription, he would not be called up while on duty.
“No one can be a rookie and a commander-in-chief at the same time. Therefore, the president of the republic could not be called into service”, says Ojanen.
Acting as commander-in-chief would still not exempt you from being called up permanently. If the term in the state leadership ended before the president turned 30, the former president of the republic would receive an invitation to serve, Ojanen estimates. On the other hand, if the season lasted more than thirty border washes, the president would get out of conscript service like a dog out of a dog.
However, conscription applies to all men under the age of 60. In the event of a war, the former president of the republic and commander-in-chief of the army could also be called to the front.
Elisabeth Rehn was the Minister of Defense who had not completed military service. In the presidential election in 1994, he narrowly finished second.
Correction on January 6, 2024 at 1:55 p.m.: Marshal Mannerheim's picture was previously a mirror image. The picture is turned right.
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