Part I: The Birth of the Federation
The Integrity Class, launched 2295, represents the first Starfleet vessel to outperform Vulcan ships of the same type. In doing so it established Starfleet as the premier space force within the UFP.
2162-2164: Thomas Vanderbilt (Human)
"The most boring father of any nation in galactic history"
Earth's former defense secretary was responsible for the Daedalus Project during the Romulan War, which gave Earth a cheap, modular, fast to build starship.
He was an expansionist and a military man, who bought Vega Colony and Rigel into the Federation, expanding it to seven members.
Vanderbilt was elected by the council rather than the people, and was always seen as an administrator rather than someone whose personality defined the Federation.
2164-2172: Haroun al-Rashid (Human)
"His vision of a united and harmonious federation survived the brutality of interstellar realpolitiks, for months."
Earth's first Federation Council member was elected in a close election on a Federalist ticket against Anlenthoris ch'Vhendreni - they represented opposing visions of the Federation - Rashid's was federal, united, and peaceful. Thoris wanted an alliance of mutual defence. Under Rashid, the Federation Cuncil began meeting permanently and mechanisms for monetary exchange were established to allow capitalist and post-scarcity communities to interact. This was meant to be a transitional step towards a combined economic policy, but the early dominance of Federalists instead created a working but loose federal structure that they were never able to unify much further.
The Earth Kzinti Wars of 2169-2173 demonstrated the Federation's failure as a defensive organisation. Earth colonies were attacked without the support of the fleets from other worlds, who viewed the Earth colonies as aggressors for moving into former Kzinti space and disrupting the slave trade. The Kzinti were already a society in decline but the war was still an existential threat to the Federation - what the organisation meant was deeply threatened by its inability to act with unity.
2172-2176: T'Maran (Vulcan)
"The Vulcan who accidentally invented starfleet"
The election of a Planetaryist dismayed Earth, which voted by an absolute majority for their own, Federalist, candidate. But the other member species were tired of the Federation being ran from Earth, by Earth and for Earth. Of course, announcing this didn't make the primary political problem go away - Earth had been attacked and nobody had defended it. A unified fleet was needed but the Planetaryists saw this as a step towards the Federation becoming an actual state, which was something they did not want.
The answer was simple, and terrible - Earth wanted a unified fleet, and the other planets feared the formation of an overarching military organisation. Since the Romulan Wars, Earth's Starfleet had become a majority non-military organisation. Therefore, the military wing of Starfleet was separated into a small Earth Defense Force, and the other member planets opted to pay in a small amount to Starfleet. Earth had, and was the primary people to pay for, a combined fleet that only it wanted, and it was avowedly non-military. The idea was that it would never be better armed or prepared than the fleets of the member states, but could render assistance where needed.
On paper, this came to be seen as the point when Earth became, permanently, the capitol of the Federation. But at the time it wasn't seen like that. Earth had just lost 90% of its fleet in the creation of a joint run organisation that was neither as well funded as the Andorians and Tellarites, nor as technologically advanced as the Vulcans. And at the same time, the concept of a joint Federation military had been put to rest permanently. T'Maran was pleased with the logic of the solution.
T'Maran also moved the office of the President to Vulcan, and was the last president to attempt this. The oppressive heat of the city of ShirKahr made things impossible for the Andorian and Tellarite delegations and difficult for the Humans. It became a tradition for the president to build an official presidential residence on their home planet, but they never again permanently hosted the Office of the President
2176-2184: Avaranthi sh'Rothress (Andorian)
"The Andorian Compromise"
Avaran was elected to pursue a moderate path between the Planetaryism of Vulcan, Andoria and Tellar and the growing federalism of their fringe worlds but he had grand ambitions. He had noted that as the Federation's members expanded populations mingled and trade became more easy. There was, therefore, a permanent drive towards federalism. He predicted it could be stemmed by welcoming new member worlds into the Federation, who would be distant, more distinct, and keen to maintain their own independence. Avaran's expansion would take in five new worlds, but he would only oversee two entreants - the Loktarians and the Denobulans but the general logic - of an expanding Federation being a looser Federation, would continue.
Avaran's Ice Palace is one of the grandest presidential residences and has, as yet, not been utilised by any Vulcan president.
2184-2192: Jonathan Archer (Human)
"The Human Planetaryist."
Opinion is divided on whether Archer was a Planetaryist or a Federalist and his administration is seen by some as the point where the initial dichotomy of Federation politics broke down. He pursued policies of expansion and cultural distinctiveness, and frequently deferred to Earth's Prime Minister on internal matters. On the other hand, he saw Starfleet as central to the Federation's diplomacy and defense and began work on the Integrity Class - the first Starfleet ship that could match the Vulcans technologically.
During his time in power the Federation expanded to include the Ithenites, Makusians, Caitians, and Rigellians. The Caitians required a second conflict to free them from the Kzinti and in this Archer rallied support from the whole Federation and reduced the Kzinti to a small, compulsorily de-militarised minor power. Rigel was a more difficult win. The system came with multiple worlds and a GDP comparable to the entire rest of the Federation. It's entry meant that Rigellian vessels suddenly passing through Vulcan space with impunity and almost bought the two planets to war.
Archer, ever the explorer, was uninterested with the state of the Federation behind his frontiers, seeing them as the business of individual governments.
2192-2196: Greshlahrigm (Tellarite)
"The man who saved the Federation and hated every minute of it"
Over four years Greshlahrigm spent much of his time negotiating a deal between Rigel and Vulcan, Vulcan and Andor, Earth and its colonies and, in general, everyone and everyone. He was indefatigable, literally. Tellarites can manage on eight hours sleep in a thirty six hour day, but Greshlahrigm was a polyphasic sleeper and managed on about four. He also never adapted to Paris' sleep schedule. This meant that nobody was ever sure when he'd be awake, and whenever he was awake he might show up. In the space of four years he attended something like 20,000 meetings and had a bank of administrators simply to get him on the table.
His interactions were not always welcome, long, or thought through, but he did ensure that every decision made, every internal diplomatic matter, involved the office of the president. The result was, at best, people being forced to pull together for the common good rather than reaching bipartisan deals. At worst he gave the various planetary factions a common enemy.
Greshlahrigm advocated strongly for more military funding for Starfleet while by the time he left office it was still less well funded that the Rigellian Imperial Navy, new ship designs and technological developments made it the most effective military in the Federation.
It is impossible to characterise Greshlahrigm as a Federalist or Palanetaryist. The labels were breaking down in any case as planet turned against planet, and he was, mostly, indiscriminate in who he shouted at.What was clear was that the various schirmishes between Federation members had been extinguished, by sheer force of personality. Greshlahrigm refused to stand for a second term, declaring that the Federation was a doomed project and anyone who tried to prove him wrong is a naive imbecile who shouldn't be allowed to run a bath. He refused to move out of the new presidential residence on Tellar until his death, in 2205.