Life in Gotham: A Gotham City Municipal Election Series (1986)
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  Life in Gotham: A Gotham City Municipal Election Series (1986)
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Poll
Question: Who will Gotham City elect as Mayor in 1986?
#1
Deputy Mayor Hamilton Hill
 
#2
Businessman Thomas Wayne
 
#3
Union Boss Carmine Falcone
 
Show Pie Chart
Partisan results

Total Voters: 26

Author Topic: Life in Gotham: A Gotham City Municipal Election Series (1986)  (Read 1505 times)
Bigby
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« on: January 15, 2017, 12:31:25 AM »

While most of the election series on this forum focus on a national level of politics, this series will focus specifically on the politics of Gotham City, the primary location of Batman's crime-fighting. A brief synopsis will precede each election, providing an abridged account of everything that happened after the previous election. Gotham City elections currently run every four years during a midterm year. There are no term limits on the office of Mayor. Though they may optionally announce their political affiliation, the election for Mayor is non-partisan. However, the Gotham City Council, which is a legislative body elected by eleven divided precints of the city, may change these rules should sufficient legislation be passed and signed by the incumbent Mayor.

Founded in 1820 by a Norweigan immigrant and American militiaman who served in the Battle of Plattsburgh, Gotham City has stood proudly on the coastline of southern New Jersey. For much of the 19th century, Gotham could barely be considered a metropolis, often existing as a satellite of the more aptly named Metropolis of Delaware. After the Civil War, however, Gotham's fortunes changed. The city's population skyrocketed thanks to the rise in manufacturing, transportation, and blind luck along with Metropolis' stagnation. (Many feared moving to Metropolis after two battles were fought between the Union and the Confederacy there.)

Even with this newfound fortune, Gotham was far from a utopia. During the Gilded Age, a substantial portion of the horror stories about worker abuse and horrifying conditions came straight from Gotham. The city improved under the guiding hand of Mayor Amadeus Arkham, distant relative of the Arkham Asylum founders. WWI and the Roaring Twenties treated Gotham well, when it legitimately shined and even excelled beyond Metropolis. However, the Great Depression would undo all of that progress. During the 1930's and 1940's, Gotham City devolved into a safe haven and breeding ground for the mob. Things did improve thanks to WWII jumpstarting the economy, but the mafia's hold prevented the city from truly regrowing. Metropolis was favored once again, and this trend continued into the 50's and 60's. The Sixties saw a revival of Gotham, thanks to efforts by the likes of Attorney General Robert Kennedy and President Richard Nixon.

By the 70's, Gotham had finally reclaimed the shining beacon image it had earned during the First World War. Mayor Timothy Burton, a former journalist who struck it lucky during the Election of 1970, has succeeded in his anti-crime and pro-growth agenda. For the first time in history, Gotham boasted a higher GDP, a higher population count, and a higher projected future growth than its rival city of Metropolis. Burton flirted with running again for a fifth term, but has decided against it after he was diagnosed with worsening complications form his arthritis. Some have speculated that his friendship with and support of President Reagan are also factors in his stepping down, but Reagan's neutral approval ratings and Mayor Burton's high approval ratings in Gotham say otherwise. Regardless, the race is a wide-open one.

The Candidates:


Deputy Mayor Hamilton Hill - "A More Tolerant Gotham."

Mayor Burton's selection of Hamilton Hill for Deputy Mayor was seen as abnormal. Burton has garnered a reputation as a Reaganite conservative while Hill has garnered one as "limousine liberal." There was also Hill's own past as a state representative. He was investigated twice for "improper influence" over other state reps and state senators, and was also investigated once for blackmailing. However, all three charges were cleared quickly. Hill is running on a socially liberal platform, with an emphasis on reshaping Gotham into becoming more diverse and cosmopolitan. His economic proposals are clearly liberal, but have been intentionally moderated out of a desire to appear more "reasonable" and "pragmatic," according to Hill's own words. Hill's primary base includes academics, liberal businessmen, and the entertainment industry of Gotham.


Businessman Thomas Wayne - "Good Times Are Here To Stay."

On the other end of the political spectrum exists Thomas Wayne, CEO of Wayne Enterprises and philanthropist. The Waynes have earned an overall positive image in Gotham City, which has been exemplified by their generous donations to charity as well as their willingness to mingle with the middle and lower classes rather than sticking to their wealthy peers. Rather than getting in the mud of personal smear campaigns, Wayne has ran a campaign focused on policy. Those policies largely include further cutting taxes, further controlling wasteful spending, and increased advertising to attract more businesses and residents to Gotham City. Despite the focus on policy rather than personal matters, Wayne has promised to leave his business and focus on running the city full-time if elected. Wayne has repeatedly praised both President Reagan and Mayor Burton, becoming a de facto establishment candidate of sorts. Wayne is regarded as a social moderate and a fiscal conservative, meaning that he wants to further Burton's economic policies while keeping a fine line on the social status quo, neither relaxing mala in prohibita laws nor strengthening them. Wayne's base largely consists of moderate and conservative businessmen, the middle class at large, and recent arrivals to Gotham City.


Carmine Falcone - "Remember The Little Guy."

Running to the economic left of Hill is union boss and political activist Carmine Falcone. Falcone has always suffered from a checkered past, even moreso than Hill. While Hill has only suffered from the occasional investigation into his political activities, Falcone was a delinquent child. However, he seemingly reformed before he turned eighteen and entered Gotham Steel as a manager. While Falcone would later invest in the alcohol and gambling industries, he used his managerial position as a means to become an ardent labor unionist - and one of Mayor Burton's sharpest critics. While Deputy Mayor Hill's main complaints have been social policy, Falcone's have largely been in opposition to Mayor Burton's relaxing of taxes and regulations, particularly regulations. On the other token, Falcone has declared that Mayor Burton's social policies do not go far enough, and that "we cannot let the likes of Hill and Wayne spread degeneracy that inevitably leads to crime." Many consider this odd for a man with deep pockets in casinos and liquor stores and distilleries, but this has effectively doubled down on his core constituents. Speaking of them, they largely include the lower class, unionized labor, and Roman Catholics.

(You have 24 hours to vote. In addition to the regular vote, tell me if you want outside events such as presidential elections to remain the same or to be entirely different from OTL. This second decision will impact the series.)
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Bigby
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« Reply #1 on: January 15, 2017, 10:52:04 AM »

Just a reminder that this remains open until midnight. Please comment on whether or not you want outside events to radically differ from the real world or not.
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FEMA Camp Administrator
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« Reply #2 on: January 15, 2017, 12:01:11 PM »

Falcone, because why not?

Recommendation is to keep polls open 48-72 hours.
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Bigby
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« Reply #3 on: January 15, 2017, 12:04:44 PM »

Falcone, because why not?

Recommendation is to keep polls open 48-72 hours.

Is it too late to change that? I could always roleplay it as the election season lasting longer next time.
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LLR
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« Reply #4 on: January 15, 2017, 12:44:41 PM »

Falcone, definitely.
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Bigby
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« Reply #5 on: January 15, 2017, 12:52:43 PM »

Hill's been doing horribly so far. Considering how often he has been Mayor in many of the comics, I find it hilarious.
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White Trash
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« Reply #6 on: January 15, 2017, 01:09:50 PM »

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Frozen Sky Ever Why
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« Reply #7 on: January 15, 2017, 01:22:49 PM »

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Enduro
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« Reply #8 on: January 15, 2017, 01:51:00 PM »

Which option creates Batman?
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White Trash
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« Reply #9 on: January 15, 2017, 01:54:36 PM »

Anyone but Wayne. I imagine as mayor he would have better security, and would be less likely to go into an alley all but alone after an opera.
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Goldwater
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« Reply #10 on: January 15, 2017, 02:15:51 PM »

Wayne.
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Bigby
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« Reply #11 on: January 15, 2017, 03:28:31 PM »

Anyone but Wayne. I imagine as mayor he would have better security, and would be less likely to go into an alley all but alone after an opera.

I won't spoil anything, but Batman may or may not be Bruce Wayne here. You will need to wait and see. Also, future events will not mirror real life, unless people seriously want them to.
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Antonio the Sixth
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« Reply #12 on: January 15, 2017, 03:34:30 PM »

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President Punxsutawney Phil
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« Reply #13 on: January 15, 2017, 03:54:35 PM »

Hill's been doing horribly so far. Considering how often he has been Mayor in many of the comics, I find it hilarious.
My name is hill Hamilton...and there's a million things I haven't done... Tongue
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Bigby
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« Reply #14 on: January 15, 2017, 11:43:01 PM »

You have less than two hours to vote, so make sure you cast your ballot! Next time, I will extend the voting time to 48 hours instead. Sorry about that. Falcone seems to be the likely winner, unless a surge of Wayne voters pops up.
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Mr. Smith
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« Reply #15 on: January 16, 2017, 01:21:43 AM »

Falcone, he understands the power of fear after all.
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Bigby
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« Reply #16 on: January 16, 2017, 01:26:32 AM »

Falcone, he understands the power of fear after all.

More than anyone from the non-Gotham side of the world will ever know.

Falcone has maintained a decisive lead in the late-end of the voting, so this election is basically over unless Wayne receives a godsend from users. Next time, the election will last 48 real-time hours, but I will likely wait until the afternoon to begin the 1990 election so more people can vote early. How is everyone enjoying this series so far?
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Bigby
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« Reply #17 on: January 16, 2017, 01:32:59 AM »


Thanks to the three-way election, the race remained competitive for much of the general election season. Wayne and Falcone constantly exchanged first place, with Deputy Mayor Hill trailing both of them the entire time. While Wayne was rated as having the most supported and best viewed policies, he began to trail Falcone once Falcone's rhetoric won voters over. While Falcone was polite enough not to ruin Thomas Wayne's personal image, Falcone painted Wayne as "too damn soft to run a damn dog kernel let alone a whole damn city. Guy's better off kissin' babies and givin' dough to charity." Much like Thomas Dewey in the US Presidential Election of 1948, a man whom Wayne admired, Wayne took the high road out of fear. Despite Thomas Wayne's best intentions and polite personality, Falcone's low-road strategy appealed the average voter more.

Deputy Mayor Hill's crash also helped Falcone despite Wayne being the expected beneficiary. During the mayoral debate, Falcone attacked Hill for "bein' a baby-killin', corporate whorin', two-timin' snootbag." In other words, Falcone had attacked Hill for his socially liberal and fiscally moderate views. Falcone also attacked Wayne for his fiscal conservatism, but the man's primary attack plan aimed at peeling away liberals from Hill's camp. Falcone claimed that the "little guy," the working class, was being left behind. Falcone attacked the idea that income inequality was rising, wages have been stagnant, and that the rich of Gotham planned on sucking out all of the blue collar and low-end jobs from the city. Wayne used empirical research to point out the falsities of these statements, but the crowd went wild for Falcone and believed him instead. Unlike Wayne, Hill failed to defend himself entirely. The Deputy Mayor did not remain calm like Wayne did, and it was visible to the audience. This would lead to the evaporation of Hill's share of the vote, which quickly went to Falcone during the last month of the campaign.

Falcone would win 59.3% of the popular vote on Election Night, a whopping 296,500 of the 500,000 vote total. Only one-third of the total Gotham City electorate (1,500,000 of the city's 2,500,000 population) turned out to vote, making this election suffer from the lowest turnout in Gotham's history. Many precincts in wealthy areas, which typically vote for candidates like Hill and Wayne, reported incidents of ballot tampering, fewer ballots reported than checked in, and voter harassment. Meanwhile, precincts in Falcone-style areas reported numerous incidents of ballot-stuffing. In his victory speech, Falcone quickly decried these discrepancies but denied all involvement. Many of Wayne's supporters do not believe Mayor-Elect Falcone, but Wayne has congratulated Falcone for his win and has gracefully avoided involvement in these allegations along with the demands for a recount. Deputy Mayor Hill, however, has vocally decried Falcone as a fraud already. Regardless, Wayne's total tally of 185,000 is unlikely to top Falcone's even if voter fraud was discovered to have existed.

Apart from borderline gloating, Falcone's speech mostly consisted of calls for higher taxes, controls on vices, and increased regulations. Priests and bishops, union workers and blue-collar workers in general, and political activists adorned Falcone's victory rally in his political Holy Trinity. Despite there existing no law against it, Falcone broke precedent by immediately announcing his pick for Deputy Mayor. The Mayor-Elect chose a full-time cop by the name of Truman Dent. Dent had an officially clean record, but the choice was sneered at by those who worked personally with Sergeant Dent. Just like Falcone, those with prior personal history with Truman Dent consider him a glory hound and believe him to be an abuser of his teenage son, Harvey, but the former is merely speculation on his personality and the latter has never been confirmed by  any police report or by Harvey's own confession. Shady men and women of all sorts of political persuasions have been elected before in Gotham, and many of those same shady people have even been good Mayors, so the people of Gotham City are placing their optimism in Falcone. Many citizens of Gotham City have continued the trend towards the idea that they are free to choose their own fate rather than being bound by destiny, though Wayne voters reported those feelings on a larger frequency than Falcone's.
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