The Examiner: Election Tracker

[Јas]

The Examiner

28 February 2008

Naso expresses interest is cabinet position
Earlier today, Mike Naso, the former Southeastern Governor and close ally of President-elect Keystone Phil, made known that he feels he has what it takes to be the next Secretary of Forum Affairs. The President-elect has yet to make any detailed public comments about the intended make-up of his cabinet, and has, so far, declined to comment on such questions to the press.

SoEA Al resigns over Russia policy
Yesterday, Al submitted his resignation to President Wixted and stood down as Secretary of External Affairs. The former Secretary disagreed with the President over the line the DoEA should take regarding the Russian Federation. Al expressed the view that to revise his proposed policy position would leave unacceptable inconsistencies in the overall foreign policy and that a revision along the President's suggested terms would mean that he could no longer claim to stand over a moral foreign policy. The resignation comes in the final days of the Wixted administration; no replacement is expected before the current term of office expires.

[minionofmidas]

Is this an official press release by the Vice President's office?

[Јas]

Is this an official press release by the Vice President's office?

No. I had decided a few months ago that setting up a newspaper might be a worthwhile venture - I think there's been a considerable gap in the Atlasian news industry in recent months. I planned on waiting until I was out of office, but with only a few days left, I decided to open early today.

[Robespierre's Jaw]

I wish you all the best of luck in your venture Jas.

[Јas]

The Examiner

29 February 2008

Naso Appointment “on hold”
President-elect Keystone Phil yesterday confirmed two of his staff appointments only to rescind one within hours. Mike Naso was announced as to be Phil’s Chief of Staff; and Walter Evans Edge as the White House Press Secretary and Deputy Chief of Staff. However, over the course of the day, the role which Mr. Naso seemed set to play changed considerably.

Confusion
Yesterday morning, Mr. Naso indicated he was not interested in any Atlasian position. An hour later, he made known his interest at possibly becoming the new Secretary of Forum Affairs.  Shortly thereafter, the President-elect announced that Mr. Naso had accepted the position of Chief of Staff.

Following a number of citizens expressing their concern at the possible appointment of Mr. Naso as SoFA, the President-elect announced that the appointment of the Chief of Staff was "on hold". The appointment of Mr. Edge as Press Secretary appears to remain, despite the fact that the President-elect issued no fewer than 3 corrections to the Press Secretary's announcements within 24 hours of him having assumed the role.

Cabinet Positions
The President-elect also confirmed that he will announce his cabinet nominees on Monday. No indications or leaks have been made public about the likely candidates.

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Sen. Friz on course for re-election
Voting is underway in the Pacific run-off election between incumbent Sen. Friz (JCP-PAC) and Xahar (PLP-PAC), which came about due to the tie in last week’s general election, 4-4. The result seemed to represent a shift on the west coast, where all elections in recent times have been dominated by JCP candidates. Sen. Friz had come under heavy criticism from some Atlasian quarters, for his relative inactivity as a Senator.

Xahar, though, has also come in for criticism. Claims of arrogance and that he tried to blackmail a Pacifican voter have not endeared him to the electorate. As of going to print, unofficial tallies place the race at Friz’s advantage, 6-2 ahead. At this stage, Xahar’s 4 vote deficit seems to be insurmountable.

Xahar has indicated he intends to stand for the District 5 Senate seat to be vacated by Vice President-elect Ebowed next week. So far, CultureKing (PLP-PAC) has also expressed his intent to run.

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gporter/WillyWoz offer "leadership" to Southeast
Yesterday, persistant electoral hopeful, gporter (FP-SE) launched his bid to be the new Southeastern Governor. gporter hopes to be elected along with sitting Lt. Governor Willy Woz (APP-SE). No other known candidates have yet declared for either position. No indication of any substantive platform has yet been released.

[AndrewTX]

I reckon this is some good readin! Keep it up!

[Hash]

CultureKing is PLP now, IIRC.

[Sensei]

Xahar will NOT stand for D5. Heard it from the horse's mouth.

[Хahar 🤔]

Xahar will NOT stand for D5. Heard it from the horse's mouth.

And I'll confirm that. Though I will be writing myyself in. I'm not voting for a candidate who cost me the election.

[Јas]

The Examiner

1 March 2008

Phil's Cabinet
Well placed sources have informed The Examiner that President-elect Keystone Phil has decided upon his prefered cabinet. Masterjedi is set to be nominated for the position of Secretary of External Affairs and Mr. Moderate as Secretary of Forum Affairs. Phil believes these candidates can get the necessary votes in the Senate but fears that left wing elements in the legislature have the potential to stifle nominees or actions deemed to be too conservative. Most particularly, the JCP appears to be the political group Phil is concerned about - ironically a group without which he would not have won the Presidency.

The Examiner has also learned that Phil has sought Peter Bell (his lawyer who helped overturn the voter fraud conviction which threatened to prevent his election) for the position of Attorney General. The offer is unlikely to be accepted, leaving Phil with limited time to find an AG nominee before his self-imposed Monday cabinet announcement date.

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Xahar concedes defeat
Senatorial candidate in the Pacific run-off election, Xahar (PLP-PAC) has conceded that he is facing defeat. Following the vote of Everett (JCP-PAC) for the incumbent Sen. Friz (JLP-PAC), giving the Senator a 7-2 lead, Xahar admitted that his prospects were gone.

Xahar has also informed The Examiner that he will no longer seek to contest the upcoming District 5 by-election. The decision has almost certainly been informed by the swing in support away from him in the region over the past week. As it stands, CultureKing (PLP-PAC) is the only declared candidate for this election. Should he win he will be the first non-JCP elected representative on the west coast since January 2007.

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Regional News

Northeast
Incoming Northeastern Governor AndrewCT has selected Hashemite to be the new Chief Judicial Officer (CJO) of the Northeast. Hashemite resigned as Attorney General to take up the position with immediate effect. Hashemite appeared to be very happy to accept the position. The Examiner is not aware of any cases having ever come before the Northeastern CJO.

Southeast
Gporter displayed his enthusiasm and potential leadership yesterday, casting a vote for himself as Governor in a voting booth that was improperly and illegally opened weeks ago by his proposed administration partner, Lt. Governor Willy Woz. As yet, gporter’s failure to demonstrate any particular competence have yet to encourage anyone else into the race.

[Keystone Phil]

I'm sorry that I have to do this but it must be done. Jas' news organization lacks journalistic integrity and he knows exactly what I am talking about. I ask that Jas explain his mistake with the people. I'm really embarrassed that he would pull such a stunt.

[Јas]

The Examiner

2 March 2008

Everett enters D5 Senate race
Pacifican Lt. Governor Everett (JCP-PAC) has declared her candidacy for the District 5 Senate by-election. Already, she has secured the backing of Pacific Governor and JCP leader, Jesus (JCP-PAC).

With the impeccable record of JCP candidates in elections on the west coast, few believe the result of the election to be in doubt. Indeed, the other declared candidate, CultureKing (PLP-PAC) seems to be of the same opinion. Pacifican Governor Jesus, did indicate that should CultureKing switch his party registration to the JCP, then his future electoral career could be a lot more successful.

[bullmoose88]

Dear editor,

I'd like to complain about your comment about no cases ever coming before the CJO....see the Bullmoose election cases, where this writer...cough...where the CJO had to deal with issues relating the election law...

Sincerely yours,

Sitting on a park bench in my robes

[minionofmidas]

Dear editor,

I'd like to complain about your comment about no cases ever coming before the CJO....see the Bullmoose election cases, where this writer...cough...where the CJO had to deal with issues relating the election law...

Sincerely yours,

Sitting on a park bench in my robes

He said he was not aware of them, not that there weren't any. I'm not aware of them either.

[Ebowed]

There was a Northeast case over the regional gay marriage law which was declared unconstitutional.

[TomC]

Has Everett declared she will indeed take the oath of office if elected?

[Robespierre's Jaw]

There was a Northeast case over the regional gay marriage law which was declared unconstitutional.

Really? I thought the Northeast passed a law on Gay marriage?

[bullmoose88]

There was a Northeast case over the regional gay marriage law which was declared unconstitutional.

We had such a case?  I don't think it was when I was CJO.

[Јas]

The Examiner

3 March 2008

Friz Re-elected; Bgwah defends JCP
The SoFA has provisionally certified that Sen. Friz (JCP-PAC) has been re-elected in the Pacific run-off election, defeating challenger Xahar by a vote of 7-3 with 1 NOTA ballot cast. In spite of very limited Senate activity and no substantive campoaign effort, Friz increased his tally by 3 votes from the original election. The result underlines the power of the JCP in the region. Following criticism of the JCP, the party leader (and Pacifican Governor) Bgwah, issued a vigorous defence of the party claiming that the Pacific region is in a healthy condition judging by recent turnout figures.

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Tik ticked-off!
Following his receiving of notification from the SoFA, Lewis Trondheim, that he was about to be removed from the voter registration list following his failure to vote in the general election, Tik vented his anger over the deletion. The move has prompted Sen. Moderate (NLC-D2) to introduce a constitutional amendment to end the practice of removing first time registrants from the voter rolls for failing to vote in federal elections.

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Letter to the Editor

Dear editor,

I'd like to complain about your comment about no cases ever coming before the CJO....see the Bullmoose election cases, where this writer...cough...where the CJO had to deal with issues relating the election law...

Sincerely yours,

Sitting on a park bench in my robes

Ed: That's what we get for not employing any research staff!...so noted

[Јas]

The Examiner

4 March 2008

TCash elected Southeastern Governor
Following a wide open election, with only 1 declared candidate (gporter), the Southeast has seen TCash declared elected. From a turnout of 7, TCash took 4 apporval votes. The nearest competitors, on 3 votes each, were new Atlasian, Cookies and Milk, and the declared candidate, gporter. gporter has yet to issue any comment on the result.

TCash will now begin his second Southeastern administration and has announced that the Lt. Gubernatorial run-off election will be administered this weekend. The candidates, who each received 3 votes in the first election, will be Cookies & Milk; Willy Woz; and Dave 'Hawk'. In The Examiner's estimation, Dave 'Hawk' is the prohibitive favourite and is likely to sweep the election - if he wants to.

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SoFA Lewis Trondheim does his research
In response to Tik's recent outburst (see The Examiner, 3 March), SoFA Lewis Trondheim defended the deletion of Tik from the voter rolls, but clarified confusion regarding the removal of first time registrants from voter rolls.

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Editorial: President-elect delays Cabinet announcement
President-elect Keystone Phil has announced that his cabinet nominees will be made officially public on Wednesday, a delay from his original intentions. It is understood that the nomination for the Attorney General is yet to be finalised.

The Examiner would advise the President-elect to consider nominating Frodo for the position. Through regular efforts updating the wiki's legislative record, Frodo has proven himself to be cabable and willing to do the most labour intensive role of the AG. Also, as a red avatar holder, his nomination would go towards giving a public image to the campaign message of the Phil/Ebowed campaign that this administration would be one to represent all Atlasians, not just the political right.

[Јas]

The Examiner

5 March 2008

Editorial: Glory days are here again?
Tomorrow the new Phil/Ebowed administration and the 24th Atlasian Senate will assume their responsibilities. The Senate will see some changes in personnel; hughento (NLC-MW) and meekermariner (PLP-ME) join the line-up, replacing Speed of Sound and Sensei; and the District 5 seat shall be vacant as Ebowed returns to the Vice Presidency. Ideologically it seems then the Senate will move slightly towards the centre, but will still retain a left-leaning character.

The President-elect has yet to reveal any matters of policy which he hopes to address. During the campaign, he promised "real reform", but no indications have been made as to what this will entail. Setting the bar even higher, Phil has also promised to "bring Atlasia back to its glory days". What this means, if indeed it means anything at all, should hopefully start to become clear tomorrow.

The one regular theme of Phil's campaign was the apparent need for "moving past ideological gridlock". Finding himself out of step ideologically with the majority of the Senate, the President-elect will have to heed his own message to achieve his goals - whatever they may be.

[Јas]

The Examiner

6 March 2008

Editorial: "Our new day has come"
So said the incoming President, Keystone Phil, in his inaugeral address to Atlasia today. The address set about dampening expectations for the Phil administration, declaring that, "It's hard to live up to expectations" and despite his election win describing himself as occupying "a hostile environment".

The address risked the possibility of raising questions about whether Phil has any policies at all. No fewer than on two occasions during the speech did he seek the public's advice on policy direction, saying at one point, "I also ask that whatever suggestions the people have, please bring them to my attention". Indeed the one policy announcement that was made was to ask the people of Atlasia to recruit newcomers - clearly moves to devolve any hint of failure from himself should it not suceed.

The President concluded his address by outlining his vision of the "glory days"...
"Finally, I am asking each Atlasian to rethink their political allegiances. I spoke throughout this campaign of coming together and putting aside ideological battles. While I believe we must work together, we must also take pride in our partisan preferences. Atlasia's Glory Days featured the dominace of political parties. These days came to an end as our mighty parties faded. Bipartisanship but healthy competition is what we thirst for."

How the President guides the nation to recreate this utopia is yet to be seen.

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Cabinet Announcements; Lewis overlooked
Phil's cabinet nominations were officially made public this afternoon. The nominees were:
MasterJedi for Secretary of External Affairs;
Mr. Moderate for Secretary of Forum Affairs;
and, MAS117 for Attorney General.

SoFA nomination
The public focus after the announcement has been on the decision by the President not to ask Lewis Trondheim to remain on as Secretary of Forum Affairs, with a number of Atlasians surprise at the decision. An Examiner Poll is surveying public attitudes to the decision and so far clearly indicate that the public express complete confidence in Lewis and believe he should have been retained.

Lewis has reacted strongly to the decision, decrying the move. He said, "Clearly then, I must assume that you, and any Senator voting to confirm a replacement nominee, consider me an execrable SoFA." Attention will now turn to the Senate to see whether or not it heeds the President or Lewis and the public.

AG nomination
MAS117 has expressed his satisfaction at being nominated to hold the post of AG again, proclaiming it as surprising that he would be serving in Keystone Phil's cabinet. Outgoing Sen. Sensei was quick to point out his non-surprise given MAS's casting vote for Phil in a previous Senate race. Atlasian psephologists will also recall that MAS voted (and indeed publicly endorsed) Phil during the election campaign.

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Rockefeller Republican for District 2
The editor of The Atlasian Watchguard, Rockefeller Republican has hinted that he may seek the District 2 Senate seat should Sen. Moderate be approved as SoFA in the upcoming hearings.

[Keystone Phil]

Editorial: "Our new day has come"
The address set about dampening expectations for the Phil administration, declaring that, "It's hard to live up to expectations"

I was speaking about the past administration and all administrations. Nice spin.

[Јas]

The Examiner

7 March 2008

The people have spoken; Phil doesn’t care

Examiner Polling returns clearly indicate solid public backing of Lewis Trondheim, in the ongoing controversy of the president’s cabinet nominations. As of going to print, a massive 96.3% of our sample described Lewis’s job performance as ‘Excellent’ or ‘Good’. A huge majority, 88.9%, feel that Lewis should be retained in the position.

It has also come to light that Sen. Moderate, the nominee for SoFA, did infact inform the President that he was in favour of Lewis being maintained as the departmental secretary.

The President has proclaimed that he intends to disregard public opinion. A former running-mate of Phil’s, Speed of Sound, has decried the President’s actions warning that it exhibits incompetence. Indeed, Speed of Sound has gone so far as to organise a petition to seek the renomination of Lewis to hold the position.

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Regional News

Southeast
Incoming Southeastern Governor TCash has opened the voting booths in the Southeastern Lt. Gubernatorial run-off. Dave ‘Hawk’; Cookies & Milk; and sitting Lt. Governor Willy Woz are the candidates. Though voting is at a very early stage, The Examiner is of the opinion that Mr. Hawk should stroll to victory in this contest.

The sitting Lt. Governor has though put forward a controversial proposition that will keep him in attention. His new proposed Southeast abortion law seeks long custodial sentences as penalties for abortions. The move also seeks to criminalise Southeasterners who procure abortions outside of the region. Governor TCash has suggested that the move may not be constitutionally sound.

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

I think Lewis has done a good job, but Phil is in his right as president to nominate whoever he wants. We need as much fresh air in this place as we can get.