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Volaworand · 03-24-2019, 11:08 AM

(03-24-2019, 10:40 AM)North Prarie Wrote:
(03-24-2019, 08:29 AM)Volaworand Wrote:
(03-22-2019, 06:09 PM)North Prarie Wrote: I've made this Google Doc outlining my proposed changes to the LC Elections Laws. Additions are in green. Subtractions are in red. Please comment or make suggestions via the comment or suggest feature.

just getting a chance to accually dig into this.

Why would you like the removal of the waiting period for Cabinet members running for LC? It seems reasonable to me that they are under the same sort of waiting period as term limited LC-ers?

Why extend the official Nomination period to 7 days? Are we losing potential quality people with the 4 day period?

Just trying to understand if these solves a problem I don't know that we don't have... in the last three LC elections at least all had very large pools of good candidates running.
1. Considering those rules don't exist for the LC (a Local Councillor doesn't have to wait a term to run for Cabinet) I think it would be a two-way street.
2. My intention was not only to find more quality canidates, but to allow the CRS and the general populace more time to find a canidate who isn't honest in their CoI/is a security threat.

ok that makes sense, except the two term LCers are barred for running again for one term. It basicly equates Cabinet Officers with a 2 term LCer's. I think it's there to allow the LC to incubate fresh faces, and not just become an office traded around among the usual suspects.

Would a term like this allow the CRS enough time to verify CoI's?
- If, at any time before the election is certified, the Election Commissioner or the Council on Regional Security determines a candidate's Conflict of Interest Disclosure is not fully truthful, the candidate will be disqualified from the election.

- In the event a candidate who has won a round but is later disqualified by the Election Commissioner or the Council on Regional Security, that round’s results are voided and a new round shall be added.

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Volaworand · 03-24-2019, 11:21 AM

What do you think of something like this:

Local Council Elections Act
An act detailing elections for Local Council

1. Timing of Elections

(1) Local Council Elections will be held every June, October, and February. The exact date will be decided by the sitting Local Council, but the nominations period must start at some point during these months.

2. Election Commission

(1) An Election Commissioner will be appointed by the Council on Regional Security to administer all Local Council elections.

(2) The Commissioner will be responsible for the communication of election notices, the organization of election dispatches, the verification of candidate eligibility, the administration of election polls, and certifying results.

(3) The Commissioner may not run for office or hold the office of Delegate, Prime Minister, or Cabinet Minister or Local Councilor, during their tenure as Commissioner.

(4) The Commissioner will be a permanent position and shall be replaced as needed due to inactivity or ineligibility by the Council on Regional Security.

(5) Any election-related disputes will be arbitrated by the Election Commissioner; should the dispute be on a matter of law, the Commissioner shall refer it to the High Court. The Commissioner will not finalize any election until all disputes have been settled.

3. Candidate Eligibility

(1) A candidate may only run for one seat on the Local Council.

(2) The CRS can prevent any candidate from running if they deem them to be a security threat.

(3) To be eligible, any nation running must be a resident of The South Pacific, and all candidates must file a Conflict of Interest disclosure to the Election Commissioner, fully listing all nations they control and can access and disclosing any positions held in other regions.

(4) The Election Commissioner shall share the Conflict of Interest Disclosure with the CRS to allow a security check.

(5) Candidates shall publicly post their Conflict of Interest disclosure in a dispatch, which may be their campaign dispatch. At the request of the candidate The Minister of Military Affairs may authorize the waiving of the public disclosure of nations participating in SPSF operations. In such cases the public disclosure should state that SPSF participating nations are not listed as authorized by the Minister of Military Affairs.

(6) If, at any time before the election is certified, the Election Commissioner or the Council on Regional Security determines a candidate's Conflict of Interest Disclosure is not fully truthful, the candidate will be disqualified from the election.

(7) Any Local Councilor can serve a maximum of two consecutive terms.   If they serve that maximum, they must wait for one full term before they can run for the LC again.   Any member of cabinet must wait one full LC term after leaving the cabinet before they can run for the LC.

4. Election Process

(1) The election will be three game side polls, each lasting three days. The winner of each poll will be elected onto the Local Council, and all remaining candidates will move on to the next poll, until three candidates have been elected.

(2) If there are three candidates or fewer, all candidates will be automatically elected. If there are fewer than three candidates, the delegate will assign any remaining spaces on the Local Council which need to be filled.

(3) If there are between four and eleven candidates, the election will occur as stated.

(4) If there are more than eleven candidates, the vote will be split into two three day polls with the top eleven vote-receiving candidates continuing onto the set of normal voting periods.

(5) Re-open nominations (RON) must be an option on all of the three normal voting periods

(6) In the event of a tie, all tied candidates will be elected unless this takes the number of Local Councillors to greater than three, in which case there will be a separate three day poll for the tied candidates.

(7) In the event of RON winning a poll, any candidates elected prior to that poll will be allowed to take their place on the Local Council without running again, and the nominations would re-open for the remaining places.

(8) In the event a candidate who has won a round but is later disqualified by the Election Commissioner or the Council on Regional Security, that round’s results are voided and a new round shall be added.

(9) The terms for the incoming Local Council begin when the Election Commissioner certifies the results and the Delegate assigns Regional Officer Powers, before which any and all election-related disputes must be settled. The outgoing Local Council will maintain their offices until then.

5. Vacancies of Office

(1) A special election will be held for vacancies arising within the Local Council, if more than half of the term remains. If less than half of the term remains, or the position is vacant due to nobody running in its election, the Local Council may appoint a replacement until the next scheduled election or may call a special election.

(2) If the Local Council can not agree on a replacement within one week the Delegate may appoint a replacement or call a special election.

6. Separation of Powers

(1) Offices of the Coalition are the Delegate, the Prime Minister and Cabinet Ministers, the Chair of the Assembly, Local Councilors, the Chief Justice, and any of their appointed deputies.

(2) It is not permitted for any individual to hold more than one office within the Coalition's government.

(3) It is permitted to seek election or appointment to new office while holding an existing office.

(4) Election or appointment to a new office constitutes explicit resignation of an existing office.

7. Amendment and Constitutional Law designation

(1) The Local Council Election Act is a constitutional law, and further amendments to it must meet constitutional amendment requirements.

(2) Additionally, such an amendment must meet approval game side by a three-fifths supermajority vote (60%) in a three day, 2 option approve/disapprove regional poll with the electorate limited to native World Assembly residents of The South Pacific.

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(This post was last modified: 03-24-2019, 11:34 AM by Volaworand.)

New Haudenosaunee Confederacy · 03-24-2019, 11:25 AM

Suggestion:

Quote:(5) Candidates shall publicly post their Conflict of Interest disclosure in a dispatch, which may be their campaign dispatch. At the request of the candidate The Minister of Military Affairs may authorize the waiving of the public disclosure of nations participating in SPSF operations. In such cases the public disclosure should state that SPSF participating nations are not listed as authorized by the Minister of Military Affairs.

how am i even still a legislator at this point...?

Volaworand · 03-24-2019, 11:35 AM

(03-24-2019, 11:25 AM)New Haudenosaunee Confederacy Wrote: Suggestion:

Quote:(5) Candidates shall publicly post their Conflict of Interest disclosure in a dispatch, which may be their campaign dispatch. At the request of the candidate The Minister of Military Affairs may authorize the waiving of the public disclosure of nations participating in SPSF operations. In such cases the public disclosure should state that SPSF participating nations are not listed as authorized by the Minister of Military Affairs.

yes, good idea, added

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North Prarie · 03-24-2019, 11:45 AM

We shouldn't appoint a permanent EC; Election Commisioners are normally decided based on who has time for it.

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Volaworand · 03-24-2019, 11:47 AM

(03-24-2019, 11:45 AM)North Prarie Wrote: We shouldn't appoint a permanent EC; Election Commisioners are normally decided based on who has time for it.

I figure taking it out of the hands of the LC and leaving it with the CRS would prevent an LCer from say... appointing their own puppet as Election Commissioner. And we've piggy backed off the Assembly's Election commissioner like this for as long as I can remember. This just formalizes that.

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(This post was last modified: 03-24-2019, 11:55 AM by Volaworand.)

Volaworand · 03-24-2019, 08:53 PM

Following internal discussion within the LC I've made the following changes.
https://www.nationstates.net/page=dispatch/id=1186281

we are getting a bit hung up on a discussion around requiring nominations for LC candidates or not.

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Volaworand · 03-25-2019, 07:55 PM

Regional Poll • Official LC Poll

This poll regards the nature of nominations and their role in LC elections. The question posed is as follows: how stringent should nomination requirements for a nation before being able to officially enter an LC election be? The results of this poll are not legally binding, but will inform the LC

https://www.nationstates.net/page=poll/p=139681

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Volaworand · 03-29-2019, 11:14 AM

Having split the difference on nominations, we have settled on a new LC Election Act which we passed this morning:

https://www.nationstates.net/page=dispatch/id=1186281

Local Council Elections Act
An act detailing elections for Local Council

1. Timing of Elections
(1) Local Council Elections will be held every July, November, and March. The exact date will be decided by the sitting Local Council, but the nominations period must start at some point during these months.

2. Election Commission
(1) An Election Commissioner will be appointed by the Council on Regional Security to administer all Local Council elections.
(2) The Commissioner will be responsible for the communication of election notices, the organization of election dispatches, the verification of candidate eligibility, the administration of election polls, and certifying results.
(3) The Commissioner may not run for office or hold the office of Delegate, Prime Minister, or Cabinet Minister or Local Councilor, during their tenure as Commissioner.
(4) The Commissioner will be a permanent position and shall be replaced as needed due to inactivity or ineligibility by the Council on Regional Security.
(5) Any election-related disputes will be arbitrated by the Election Commissioner; should the dispute be on a matter of law, the Commissioner shall refer it to the High Court. The Commissioner will not finalize any election until all disputes have been settled.

3. Candidate Eligibility
(1) A candidate may only run for one seat on the Local Council.
(2) Candidates must receive and accept a nomination on the Regional Message Board from a resident WA nation in The South Pacific that is not thier own account or controlled or accessible by the candidate nominated. The acceptance post must quote the nominating post in full and mention the Election Commissioner using nation tags. Nominations and declined nominations should not tag the Election Commissioner.
(3) To be eligible, a candidate must be a resident of The South Pacific, and all candidates must file a full Conflict of Interest disclosure to the Election Commissioner, fully listing all nations they control and can access and disclosing any positions held in other regions.
(4) The Election Commissioner shall share the Conflict of Interest Disclosure with the Council on Regional Security to allow a security check.
(5) The CRS can prevent any candidate from running if they deem them to be a security threat.
(6) Candidates shall publicly post their Conflict of Interest disclosure in a dispatch, which may be their campaign dispatch. At the request of the candidate The Minister of Military Affairs may authorize the waiving of the public disclosure of nations participating in South Pacific Special Forces operations. In such cases the public disclosure should state that SPSF participating nations are not listed as authorized by the Minister of Military Affairs. The Minister of Military Affairs shall confirm this by sending confirmation to the Election Commissioner.
(7) If, at any time before the election is certified, the Election Commissioner or the Council on Regional Security determines a candidate's Conflict of Interest Disclosure is not fully truthful, or the CRS determines a cadidate represents a security threat, the the candidate will be disqualified from the election.
(8) An intentional deception or omission in a Conflict Of Interest, or knowingly abetting in another's claims to a false identity, wherein this fraud threatens the security of The South Pacific, or circumvents the laws and legal processes of The South Pacific, including the electoral process described in this Act, shall constitute Identity Fraud and be subject to referral for prosecution by the Election Commissioner or Council on Regional Security.
(9) Any Local Councilor can serve a maximum of two consecutive terms. If they serve that maximum, they must wait for one full term before they can run in a regularly scheduled election for the Local Council again. Any member of cabinet must wait one full Local Council term after leaving the cabinet before they can run in a regularly scheduled election for the Local Council.

4. Election Process
(1)Prior to the opening of the first voting period of the LC election, there will be a period of 3 days where residents can nominate candidates, and candidates can accept nominations, which will commence after a region-wide telegram sent by the Election Commissioner announcing the opening of nominations. This will be followed by 3 days where candidates can campaign, which will commence after a region-wide telegram sent by the Election Commissioner announcing the close of nominations and start of the campaign.
(2) The election will be two game side polls, each lasting three days. The winner of the first poll will be elected onto the Local Council, and all remaining candidates will move on to the next poll, where the top two candidates will be elected.
(3) If there are three candidates or fewer, all candidates will be automatically elected. If there are fewer than three candidates, the elected Local Council shall fill any remaining spaces on the Local Council under the terms outlined in Section 5 of this Act.
(4) If there are between four and eleven candidates, the election will occur as stated.
(5) If there are more than eleven candidates, the vote will be split into two three day polls with the top eleven vote-receiving candidates continuing onto the set of normal voting periods.
(6) Re-open nominations (RON) must be an option on both normal voting periods.
(7) In the event of a tie, all tied candidates will be elected unless this takes the number of Local Councillors to greater than three, in which case there will be a separate three day poll for the tied candidates.
(8) In the event of RON winning a poll, any candidates elected prior to that poll will be allowed to take their place on the Local Council without running again, and the nominations would re-open for the remaining places.(9) In the event a candidate who has won a round but is later disqualified by the Election Commissioner or the Council on Regional Security, that round’s results are voided and a new round shall be added.
(10) The terms for the incoming Local Council begin when the Election Commissioner certifies the results and the Delegate assigns Regional Officer Powers, before which any and all election-related disputes must be settled. The outgoing Local Council will maintain their offices until then.

5. Vacancies of Office
(1) A special election will be held for vacancies arising within the Local Council, if more than half of the term remains. If less than half of the term remains, or the position is vacant due to nobody running in its election, the Local Council may appoint a replacement until the next scheduled election or may call a special election.
(2) If the Local Council can not agree on a replacement within one week the Delegate may appoint a replacement from a list of candidates submitted by each Local Councilor or call a special election.
(3) Special Elections shall follow the same procedures outlined in this Act except the candidate restrictions in the terms of Section 3, point 9 on term limited Local Councilors and Former Cabinet Ministers are waived. Such persons are allowed to run in Special Elections.

6. Separation of Powers
(1) Offices of the Coalition are the Delegate, the Prime Minister and Cabinet Ministers, the Chair of the Assembly, Local Councilors, the Chief Justice, and any of their appointed deputies. For clarity, positions under a Deputy in rank, such as interns and advisors, are eligible to run for Local Council.
(2) It is not permitted for any individual to hold more than one office within the Coalition's government.
(3) It is permitted to seek election or appointment to new office while holding an existing office.
(4) Election or appointment to a new office constitutes explicit resignation of an existing office.

7. Amendment Process
(1) This Local Council Election Act can be amended by approval game side by a three-fifths supermajority vote (60%) in a three day, 2 option approve/disapprove regional poll with the electorate limited to native World Assembly residents of The South Pacific, or a simple majority regional vote under the same conditions and a unanimous Local Council vote.

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(This post was last modified: 03-29-2019, 02:17 PM by Volaworand.)