LastMcGovernite
Ringorules
Jr. Member
Posts: 828
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« on: November 14, 2013, 04:50:24 PM » |
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It has been a while since I've participated fully in this site, but I do have an idea that may be worth exploring. I've been following the nominations for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and thought it might be fun to translate that idea into an American Politics Hall of Fame on US Election Atlas. This would acknowledge great lawmakers and statesmen in U.S. history since the passage of the Constitution.
Here's how it would work: there would be one week reserved for nominations of eligible political figures. "Eligibility", in this case, happens on a rolling basis, sort of like the Rock Hall's rule of waiting 25 years since your first record. In this case, each "Class" would add for consideration nominees who first held high office (see definition in the next paragraph) during a particular decade, or earlier- starting with the 1790s, the first full decade under the Constitution. During the next nomination period, statesmen who first held high office in the 1800-09 decade would become eligible, although, of course, earlier politicians could still be nominated. To provide an example, Thomas Dewey held only one high office in his life: governor of New York from 1943- 1954. Therefore, he would be first eligible with the "Class of 1940s", although if he fails to get in, he could also be nominated in the "Class of the 1950s", or any other class afterward.
To encourage a greater breadth of inductees, all U.S. presidents are considered automatically inducted from the start.
During the nomination period, eacb person can nominate:
-up to 2 individuals for the main inductee category, "Politicians"- limited to people who held high office: Vice-presidents, senators, congressmen, governors, cabinet officials, and mayors of major cities. Someone who did not hold these offices (such as Wendell Willkie or Nucky Johnson from Atlantic City) can, however, be nominated if their nomination is seconded.
-and 1 individual each for auxiliary categories (similar to the Rock Hall's "early influence", "sidemen", and "non-musician" categories. These can be nominated with some elasticity regarding which decade is eligible, since it is much harder to pinpoint their careers as starting in a particular decade. These auxiliary categories would include:
"Thinkers": This would include those who made intellectual, philosophical, spiritual, literary, and/or academic contributions to U.S. politics. Someone like Thomas Paine, Russell Kirk, or Arthur Schlesinger (Sr. or Jr.) would fall into this category.
"Activists": This would honor people whose contributions to U.S. politics took the form of rallying or organizing their fellow Americans to a particular cause. Frederick Douglass, Susan B. Anthony, Phyllis Schlafly, and Carrie Nation are all individuals who would fit well into this category.
"Early Influence"- This final category would recognize politically influential individuals from the colonial and revolutionary eras, whether they held office or not. Caesar Rodney, Anne Hutchinson, or Powhattan would be examples of nominees for this category.
II. This is followed by a week of voting: Each voter must publicly post a ballot with no more and no less than 7 Politicians, 2 Thinkers, 2 Activists, and 2 Early Influences. You are allowed to vote on inductees, even if you did not vote for nominees. The Hall shall induct the 7 Politicians, 2 Thinkers, 2 Activists, and 2 Early Influences for each class. In the event of a tie, a 3-day tiebreak vote will follow, where ties are ranked by preference. (That is, in a 3-way tie, your first choice gets 3 points, your second choice gets 2, your last choice gets 1). Any ties remaining after this vote will see all tied nominees inducted. You are usually not allowed to edit your vote once it is posted.
How does this sound? Any tweaks or suggestions you would make? Would there be enough interested participants to make this worthwhile?
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