Ministers

The politic life of your country will be lead by the head of state, the head of government, and the cabinet. The head of state and head of government are appointed through elections (or coup d'etat in case of totalitarian regimes) while the members of the cabinet, or minister, can be appointed at any time during the year. New ministers will be available every January 1^st. Each politic figure will have a trait (e.g., autocratic charmer) which will give your country bonuses.

Head of State

Heads of State are not manually changeable, and only change during elections in some government types that have elections. Their effects are highly varied.

Trait	Modifiers
Autocratic Charmer	IC -5% Consumer Goods During Wartime -50%
Stern Imperialist	IC +5%
Resigned Generalissimo	Supplies +10% Consumer Goods During Wartime +2.5%
Insignificant Layman	Money +5% Consumer Goods During Wartime +2.5%
Ruthless Powermonger	Land Organisation -5% National Unity Changes -20%
Power-Hungry Demagogue	National Unity Changes -10% Espionage Bonus +5%
Barking Buffoon	National Unity Changes +10% Intel During Peace +5%
Popular Figurehead	Ruling Party Support +10%
Pig-Headed Isolationist	Susceptibility to External Pressure -50% Change in Neutrality +0.01
Benevolent Gentleman	Susceptibility to External Pressure -5% Organisation Regain Rate +5%
Weary Stiff Neck	Susceptibility to External Pressure +5% Organisation Regain Rate +5%

Head of Government

As with Heads of State, these are not manually changeable, and change during elections in government types that have elections. Their effects are highly varied.

Trait	Modifiers
Backroom Backstabber	IC -5% Ruling Party Support +10%
Silent Workhorse	IC +5%
Happy Amateur	Money -5% Consumer Goods During Peace -2%
Ambitious Union Boss	Consumer Goods During Wartime +5% Daily Dissent Change -5%
Corporate Suit	Money +10%
Smiling Oilman	Crude Oil +5%
Political Protege	Ruling Party Support +5% Consumer Goods During Peacetime -2.5%
Flamboyant Tough Guy	Tendency to Drift Due to Internal Factors +5%
Naive Optimist	Threat Impact -10%
Old General	Land Organisation +10%
Old Admiral	Naval Organisation +10%
Old Air Marshal	Air Organisation +10%

Foreign Minister

For the most part, these affect diplomatic options, or internal politics: increasing drift towards a certain faction, amplifying the effect of threat, affecting the popularity drift of various parties, and in one case, supporting the ruling party.

Trait	Modifiers
Great Compromiser	Susceptibility to Axis +10%
Cloak-And-Dagger Schemer	Susceptibility to Allies +10%
Biased Intellectual	Susceptibility to Comintern +10%
Iron-Fisted Brute	Threat Impact +5% Ruling Party Support +10%
Ideological Crusader	Tendency to Drift Due to Internal Factors +5%
Apologetic Clerk	Tendency to Drift Due to Internal Factors -5%

Armament Minister

These provide bonuses to various industrial aspects and/or decrease (primarily theory) knowledge decay.

Trait	Modifiers
Administrative Genius	IC +10%
Military Entrepreneur	Supplies +20%
Corrupt Kleptocrat	Supplies -10% Ruling Party Support +10%
Laissez-Faires Capitalist	Consumer Goods During Peacetime -2.5% Consumer Goods During Wartime -2.5%
Resource Industrialist	Resources +5% Chemical Engineering Decay -25%
Infantry Proponent	Infantry Theory Decay -25% Militia Theory Decay -25%
Tank Proponent	Automotive Theory Decay -25% Mobile Unit Theory Decay -25%
Battle Fleet Proponent	Naval Engineering Decay -25%
Submarine Proponent	Submarine Engineering Decay -25%
Air-To-Sea Proponent	Naval Engineering Decay -20% Medium Bomber Practical Decay -5%
Air-To-Ground Proponent	Aeronautical Engineering Decay -20% Light Aircraft Practical Decay -5%
Strategic Air Proponent	Aeronautical Engineering Decay -20% Heavy Aircraft Practical Decay -5%
Air Superiority Proponent	Fighter Focus Decay -10%
Theoretical Scientist	Nuclear Physics Decay -25% Jet Engine Theory Decay -25%

Minister of Security

These ministers have various internal security bonuses, either obfuscating enemy intelligence, aiding the capture of spies, increasing the support of your regime, or aiding the increase of national unity or decreasing neutrality. One also provides a bonus to leadership.

Trait	Modifiers
Man of the People	Leadership Modifier +5%
Silent Lawyer	Neutrality Change -0.01
Efficient Sociopath	National Unity Changes +10%
Crooked Kleptocrat	IC -3% Ruling Party Support +10%
Prince of Terror	Ruling Party Support +15% Partisan Efficiency +10
Efficient Sociopath	Counterintelligence +10%
Back Stabber	Daily Dissent Change +1% Counterespionage +10%
Crime Fighter	Counterespionage +10%

Minister of Intelligence

These increase the accuracy of the information presented on the Intelligence screen in specific areas.

Trait	Modifiers
Technical Specialist	Espionage Bonus +5%
Dismal Enigma	Land Intel +10% Naval Intel +10%
Research Specialist	Land Intel +20%
Naval Intelligence Specialist	Naval Intel +20%
Industrial Specialist	Industrial Intel +20%
Political Specialist	Political Intel +20%

Chief of Staff

Nearly all of these provide a bonus to a particular military stat.

Trait	Modifiers
School of Fire Support	Attack Reinforce Chance +10%
School of Defense	Defend Reinforce Chance +10%
School of Manouevre	Combat Movement Speed +10%
School of Psychology	Organisation Regain Rate +10%
Logistics Expert	Supply Throughput +10%
School of Mass Combat	Human Wave Doctrine Decay -10% National Manpower Modifier +5%

Chief of the Army

Most of these decrease practical decay for land units.

Trait	Modifiers
Guns and Butter Doctrine	Supply Consumption -10%
Static Defence Doctrine	Infantry Practical Decay -25% Militia Practical Decay -25%
Elastic Defence Doctrine	Mobile Unit Practical Decay -25%
Decisive Battle Doctrine	Artillery Practical Decay -25%
Armoured Spearhead Doctrine	Armour Practical Decay -25%

Chief of the Navy

Most of these decrease practical decay for naval units.

Trait	Modifiers
Base Control Doctrine	Naval Base Efficiency +10%
Open Seas Doctrine	Destroyer Practical Decay -25%
Indirect Approach Doctrine	Cruiser Practical Decay -25%
Decisive Naval Battle Doctrine	Capital Ship Practical Decay -25%
Power Projection Doctrine	Aircraft Carrier Practical Decay -25%

Chief of the Air Force

Most of these decrease practical decay for air units.

Trait	Modifiers
Naval Aviation Doctrine	Medium Bomber Practical Decay -15% Naval Engineering Decay -10%
Air Superiority Doctrine	Light Aircraft Practical Decay -25%
Army Aviation Doctrine	Medium Bomber Practical Decay -25%
Carpet Bombing Doctrine	Heavy Aircraft Practical Decay -25%
Vertical Envelopment Doctrine	Strategic Airpower Focus Decay -10%

Clarifications

Counterintelligence bonuses decrease the accuracy of the information presented in the Intelligence screen for other countries with spies in your nation. For this reason, this trait is pretty much useless during single player games because the AI will not use the information collected from its intelligence to its advantage. During multiplayer games, this trait can be use to provide inaccurate intelligence to other human players.

Counterespionage will increase your chances of finding enemy spies in your country (i.e.: works as the tooltip says). For more, see Slan's post.

The Espionage Bonus trait is an increase in the accuracy of all information presented on the Intelligence screen, and the various Intel bonuses provide bonuses to the accuracy of the area specified by the trait.

The National Unity Changes trait does not in fact raise or lower National Unity as previously explained. Any effects that change National Unity will be amplified or weakened accordingly. This has the curious effect that, when one wishes to raise national unity, it is to one's advantage to choose ministers and laws that have the red positive percentages.

The Tendency to Drift Due to Internal Factors trait does not, as previously thought, affect drift within the diplomacy triangle. The popularity of every party regardless of organisation are (presumably randomly) assigned an Internal Factors value that affects the change in popularity during that month. This trait amplifies or weakens these values by the stated percentage. It is highly likely that the difference between organisation and popularity for a given party has a strong effect on this value as well.

The Undistinguished Suit minister trait is unique to a single Belgian Leninist minister, Georges Vereecken. Curiously, he has it present as both Chief of the Navy and Chief of the Air Force, a unique situation when all other traits are restricted to a single position. As it has been reported as a bug on the Paradox Forums, it will not be mentioned further in this article unless clarification is given that there that this is not in fact a bug.