8 member council (Republic of Star Island, cities of the future)
Elections
Each member of council is elected to
his/her position in elections that will initially be held every 4
years. Non-person entities, such as corporations, are prohibited from
voting in any elections and donating money to political campaigns. Monetary donations must be
submitted by human citizens, and be traceable to the citizen who
donated the money. The legal limit for a monetary donation by any single citizen will be one thousand Star Island Credits. (*I* 1,000)
Candidates must not openly have ties to any political party in the course of their campaign or term of office. All elected council members are limited to serving two terms of office in their lifetime, whether consecutive or non-consecutive.
Each citizen will be registered with the government upon their entry into the city, and be given a government-issued ID card with appropriate biometrics, which will serve as their voter ID, as well as a base ID for any other licenses or permits they wish to obtain.
Public ballots will be conducted via electronic media, so that people can vote from their homes if they have mobility issues. Advanced biometrics will be used to prevent system abuse. Every citizen over the age of majority (18) gets one vote. Voting is not mandatory, but a record of whether or not someone does cast a ballot when eligible will be kept for statistical purposes.
*In case of system failure, physical ballots will be made available to be marked and counted, but this is only a backup*
Each councilor represents an approximately equal portion of the citizens (as close to 40,000 as can be). They each serve as council chair for 45-46 days of the year. The order in which each council member serves as chair during the year will be determined at the first weekly council meeting, using a randomized drawing procedure, such as picking numbered balls out of a hat. This drawing procedure will be scrutinized by members of the police and the public, to ensure that a fair draw is held.
*In the event that a member of council breaches protocol, their membership in council will be suspended immediately, pending an investigation. If found guilty of breaching protocol (such as having a conflict of interest), they will be removed from office, and a snap by-election will be conducted via electronic ballot one week from the date of the suspension. This measure is in place to prevent councilors from abuse of power.*
Candidates must not openly have ties to any political party in the course of their campaign or term of office. All elected council members are limited to serving two terms of office in their lifetime, whether consecutive or non-consecutive.
Each citizen will be registered with the government upon their entry into the city, and be given a government-issued ID card with appropriate biometrics, which will serve as their voter ID, as well as a base ID for any other licenses or permits they wish to obtain.
Public ballots will be conducted via electronic media, so that people can vote from their homes if they have mobility issues. Advanced biometrics will be used to prevent system abuse. Every citizen over the age of majority (18) gets one vote. Voting is not mandatory, but a record of whether or not someone does cast a ballot when eligible will be kept for statistical purposes.
*In case of system failure, physical ballots will be made available to be marked and counted, but this is only a backup*
Each councilor represents an approximately equal portion of the citizens (as close to 40,000 as can be). They each serve as council chair for 45-46 days of the year. The order in which each council member serves as chair during the year will be determined at the first weekly council meeting, using a randomized drawing procedure, such as picking numbered balls out of a hat. This drawing procedure will be scrutinized by members of the police and the public, to ensure that a fair draw is held.
*In the event that a member of council breaches protocol, their membership in council will be suspended immediately, pending an investigation. If found guilty of breaching protocol (such as having a conflict of interest), they will be removed from office, and a snap by-election will be conducted via electronic ballot one week from the date of the suspension. This measure is in place to prevent councilors from abuse of power.*
In the Republic of Star Island, the
chair also serves as the head of state/government, and as such, will
be the person who meets with other heads of state in international
matters. Due to the nature of this position, all international
affairs will be handled out of a central office, separate from that
of the individual councilors.
Weekly council meetings will take
place, controlled by the current chair, and watched over by an
ombudsman to assure proper protocol is taken.
At council meetings, the chair can
put forward motions and discuss policy, but not vote on matters. This
ensures that no vote will end in a tie. However, if the measure is
specific to the chair's ward, and is considered an emergency, they
can vote on it. In the event of a tied vote, emergency issues will be
presented to the public for immediate vote (Citizens may vote at any time within 24 hours). Non-emergency issues will
be moved to the following week's council meeting for discussion.
Direct democracy
measures
Public ballot issues may be presented for a vote by the public. Any individual or group can present an issue, but must obtain the required amount of support signatures (500) and present this issue to council. The ballot issue must then be approved by a majority vote of council in order to be voted on.
Public ballot issues may be presented for a vote by the public. Any individual or group can present an issue, but must obtain the required amount of support signatures (500) and present this issue to council. The ballot issue must then be approved by a majority vote of council in order to be voted on.
At the end of each quarter (Mar. 31,
Jun. 30, Sep. 30, Dec. 30) public ballot issues will be voted on via
electronic media. Advanced biometrics will be used to prevent system
abuse. One citizen gets one vote. In case of system failure,
physical ballots will be made available to be marked and counted, but
this is only a backup option.
In order for a ballot measure to become a bylaw, a simple majority of votes cast (50%+1) must vote in favour of the proposal. The majority is valid regardless of the total number of votes cast on the ballot measure, meaning that if 500 votes are cast in total, and a majority approve the proposal, the ballot measure is just as valid as if the entire electorate voted on the measure.
Enacted bylaws will be enforced one week after approval via ballot.
In this section, the responsibilities of council will be detailed.
Senate?
Canada and the United States both have secondary chambers of their legislature, intended to act as a counterweight to government power. I don't believe that Star Island would need this, because the citizens themselves would be able to use the mentioned public ballots to challenge any unpopular laws that council decides to put forward.
In order for a ballot measure to become a bylaw, a simple majority of votes cast (50%+1) must vote in favour of the proposal. The majority is valid regardless of the total number of votes cast on the ballot measure, meaning that if 500 votes are cast in total, and a majority approve the proposal, the ballot measure is just as valid as if the entire electorate voted on the measure.
Enacted bylaws will be enforced one week after approval via ballot.
In this section, the responsibilities of council will be detailed.
Senate?
Canada and the United States both have secondary chambers of their legislature, intended to act as a counterweight to government power. I don't believe that Star Island would need this, because the citizens themselves would be able to use the mentioned public ballots to challenge any unpopular laws that council decides to put forward.
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