Date: March/April 2019
Population: 1,116
Delegate Endorsements: 286
Forum: http://10000islands.proboards.com
 
Has your region been invaded, or do you want to get in touch with TITO? If so, contact one of the following nations:
~Chief Executive: Markanite.
~Field Commander: Kanta Hame.
~Tactical Officers: Kortexia, Shy Guyia, Smugglers and Mercs (EF), Sorya.
~Executive Officers: Aschente, Hakketomat.

Election Season

March saw an unusually busy election season, with a Delegate election and a vacated Senate seat meaning that we'd need to hold a total of four contests. Islanders hoping for a hard-fought election with plenty of fireworks were surely not disappointed by the Delegate election, which featured Lower Columbia, United Royal Islands, and Witchcraft & Sorcery.

In the first round of balloting, no candidate won a majority, with Lower Columbia receiving 3 votes, and United Royal Islands and Witchcraft & Sorcery each receiving 24, sending the election to a runoff. This runoff was one of the more intense elections in recent memory, with both candidates and their supporters campaigning vigorously on the forums, the RMB, and our regional Discord. Further, the runoff saw a live Delegate debate on Discord, which is perhaps the first debate of its kind in regional history. During the debate, the candidates made their case to the voters, exchanging competing ideas on foreign affairs, transparency and reform, and the R/D game. The runoff election was a real barn-burner, with the two candidates remaining within 3 votes of each other for virtually the entire 3-day runoff period. In the end, however, United Royal Islands carried the election, with 27 votes to Witchcraft & Sorcery's 22.

In the other elections, Twobagger emerged victorious against Hakketomat in the campaign to fill the shoes left behind by Sargon Reman, while Kuriko and Triora both ran successful (unopposed) campaigns for the other two senate seats. At the time of writing, the Council of Nine is as follows:

Chief Executive: Markanite
Delegate: United Royal Islands
Ministers: Paffnia (Labor), Sargon Reman (Immigration), Tuga Nation's Dragon (Education)
Senators: Jabberwocky (Senior Senator), Triora, Twobagger, Witchcraft & Sorcery*
*Note: Kuriko resigned shortly after taking office, and Witchcraft & Sorcery was appointed to the vacancy.
 
While many Islanders were busy paying attention to the regional elections, others were enjoying the wide variety of regional games that 10000 Islands has to offer. March saw the newly knighted Mingulay Isle host a Cold War-themed Werewolf game, titled "WW63: Werewolves and Rockets." This game ended with the Americans securing their advantage in the Cold War, prevailing over the Soviets. Thanks to Mingulay Isle for hosting, and for everyone (guests and Islanders alike) for participating in a great game!

Also wrapping up in March was our region's take on nation creation competitions, the Fifth Annual Hahiha Contest for Nation Creation! Named for a prominent Islander, this contest had a total of 17 different nations vying to create the best (or least worst!) nation, trying to stay away from the bottom of each day's World Census Report. In the end, the Republic of Tikistan outlasted the competition, taking home the grand prize. Close behind were Mingulay Isle in second, and Neutrality United in third place. Congratulations to the winners, and thanks to Taco Island Charities for hosting, and to all participants for helping to ensure that the competition was a success.

Finally, our regional baseball league, the 10KI Baseball League, heads into its first ever postseason. The Maple Bats (from Cromwell Protectorate) emerged from the regular season as heavy favorites after rampaging through the regular season. The Peoples Players (True Pacific) and New Austin Express (Texan faction) also qualified for the playoffs, with the Sola City Bandits (Twobagger) juuuuust squeaking in to the last playoff spot. As of this writing, the Maple Bats and Peoples Players have advanced to the World Series, with the Maple Bats holding a 1-0 edge in the best of 3 series.

If you think playing games with friends sounds like fun, or if some of these games mentioned above have piqued your interest and you want to see what it's all about, or you just want to see your nation's name in articles like this one, why not take part in the games yourself? Most games are open to the public, including Werewolf games. Feel free to hop on in to our regional forums or Discord for information on how to sign up for the next round of games.
 
March's Nation of the Month was none other than Free Earthian Yap, who is new to our forums and discord this month. Despite being new, Free Earthian Yap hasn't been shy about wading onto the WA part of our forum to debate some of the resolutions with other Islanders. Congratulations!

Also this past month, our University saw a bit of a revitalization under the direction of our Minister of Education (Tuga Nation's Dragon). We've had a plethora of debate threads pop open, with Islanders weighing in on topics from the ethics of assisted suicide/euthanasia to whether or not recreational marijuana should be legal. A hearty thanks to Tuga Nation's Dragon for spurring activity in this oft-overlooked part of our forum!

Last, but certainly not least, Mingulay Isle has been knighted this month! Mingulay Isle has been ever-present on our forums and Discord lately, so it came as a surprise to no one when he was knighted. Congratulations to Mingulay Isle, our 110th Knight, on earning membership to this hallowed group of defenders.