Talk Elections

We, the people of the states of Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, Wisconsin, and Vermont, acting in accordance with the great precept that all men and women are created equal, and for the purpose of preserving the blessings of liberty for ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for Lincoln.
 
DECLARATION OF RIGHTS
Section 1. All people are born free and equal, and accordingly none shall be deprived of life, liberty, or property but by due process of law.
Section 2. All citizens shall be afforded equal protection under the laws of this Region.
Section 3. Neither slavery, nor involuntary servitude, except as punishment for crimes of which the accused has been duly convicted, shall exist within the bounds of this Region.
Section 4. The freedom of speech and the freedom of the press are together the greatest bulwark against the institution of a despotic government, and accordingly neither shall be withheld or abridged by any public authority.
Section 5. No law shall be enforced or enacted by this Region effecting the establishment of religion, nor obstructing the freedom of worship, and no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under this government.
Section 6. In accordance with the great precept that all honest governments are founded upon the consent of the governed, and that government ought therefore to be accountable to the people, the right to peaceably assemble and to petition for the redress of grievances shall not be infringed.
Section 7. A well-regulated militia being necessary for the security of a free people, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.
Section 8. The seizure of private property for public use without just compensation shall be prohibited.
Section 9. The right of two consenting adults to marry shall not be denied or abridged on account of gender or sex.
Section 10. The Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not be suspended, except in times of war or internal rebellion when the public safety may require it.
Section 11. The right of the people to be secure in their persons, homes, records, communications, and possessions shall not be infringed, nor the warrantless search, seizure, or surveillance of the same permitted; and no warrants shall be issued but upon probable cause, supported by oath of affirmation, and particularly stating the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
Section 12. In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall have right to a speedy and fair trial by a jury of their peers in the state wherein the crime shall have been committed, to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation, to be confronted by the witnesses against them, to have a compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in their favor, and to have the assistance of counsel in their defense. No person shall be compelled to bear witness against themselves, nor subjected to excessive bail, nor excessive fines, nor cruel or unusual punishment.
Section 13. Insofar as the foundation of any just government is and should be the consent of the governed, and that therefore the people ought to act as the first and greatest bastion against the growth of tyranny, the health and survival of any free nation depends on an educated and thoughtful populace. To this end, it shall be the duty of this government to erect and maintain a system of public schools, open to all minors residing within this Region, and ordered according to the provisions set forth by the legislative power.
Section 14. No soldier shall, in times of peace, be lodged in any house or private building without the consent of the owner, nor in times of war except in the manner prescribed by law.
Section 15. No law shall be enforced or enacted by this Region requiring voters to denote their state of residence in the voting booth.
Section 16. No budget or appropriation bill shall be passed by the legislative power of this Region for which the totaled expenditures exceed the sum of all revenue collected in the previous year.
Section 17. The enumeration of certain rights in this Constitution shall not be construed as to deny or disparage those other natural rights and liberties herein unmentioned.

ARTICLE I
The Legislative Power.
Section 1. All legislative powers granted herein shall be vested in the Assembly of Lincoln.
Section 2. The Assembly shall be composed of a number of delegates elected every second month by the entire body of eligible voters. No person shall be a delegate who is not a registered voter of this Region.
Section 3. In all elections for the Assembly, the number of delegates to be elected shall be determined according to the number of declared candidates contesting the election. If five or fewer candidates appear on the ballot, then three delegates will be elected; but if six or more candidates appear on the ballot, five will be elected.
Section 4. The Assembly shall have the power to determine its own methods of proceedings, to elect its Speaker and other officers, and to judge the qualifications of its members.
Section 5. No Regional officer shall be refused the right to introduce legislation in the Assembly, nor shall any rule be made disbarring a group of two or more citizens from exercising the same privilege.
Section 6. Every bill passed by the Assembly, before it becomes law, shall first be sent to the Governor. If he approves of it, he should sign it and it will become law; but if he disapproves he may veto it, and it shall be returned to the Assembly. If the Assembly then passes the same bill again by a four fifths vote, it shall become law regardless of the opinion of the Governor. If the Governor fails to either sign or veto a bill within 120 hours of its passage, it shall become law.
Section 7. The Assembly may, by a four fifths vote, impeach the Governor for gross negligence or criminal acts; but the Governor shall not be convicted without the concurrence of four fifths of the members present, and the penalty for his conviction shall not exceed removal from office and disbarment from holding any office under this Region for eighteen months.
8.  Whenever a vacancy should occur in the composition of the Assembly, the Governor shall appoint a replacement to fill the unexpired term. If the vacancy arises fewer than 336 hours before the commencement of the next regularly scheduled election, the appointed delegate shall serve the remainder of the present term; otherwise, they shall serve only until a new delegate may be elected. Vacancies occur upon resignation, recall, impeachment, failure to swear in within one week of the legislative session’s opening, failure to vote on four consecutive pieces of legislation without publicly declaring absence, or failure to participate in Assembly debate for one month.
Section 9. In the event of a tie in a legislative vote, the Governor shall have the power to break the tie.
 
ARTICLE II
The Executive Power.
Section 1. The executive power shall be vested in the Governor of Lincoln.
Section 2. The Governor shall be elected every fourth month by the entire body of eligible voters. No person shall be Governor who is not a registered voter of this Region, nor who has been a citizen thereof for fewer than 720 hours.
Section 3. The Governor shall have the power to carry out all acts in association with the enforcement of the laws passed under this Constitution; to fill vacancies in the Assembly; to command the militia in times of war; to appoint, with the consent of the Assembly, the heads of any executive departments which may be established by law; to issue pardons and reprieves for crimes committed under the laws of this Region, which shall be permanent upon their issuance, though he shall have no power to pardon himself; to appoint, in accordance with Article V of the Constitution of the Republic of Atlasia, the Associate Justice for this Region; and to approve, or veto, all acts passed by the Assembly.
Section 4. The governor shall appoint the Lieutenant Governor of the Commonwealth, who shall act as president of the Assembly in the absence of a Speaker, and who shall likewise administer all elections and referendums mandated by this Constitution, except where otherwise stated herein. No person shall be Lieutenant Governor who is not a registered voter of this Commonwealth, nor who is not a sitting delegate in the Assembly.
Section 5. Should the Governor, by reason of death, impeachment, recall, or resignation, become unable to execute the duties of his office, then the Lieutenant Governor shall become Acting Governor until a new governor may be elected. If there is no Lieutenant Governor at the time of the vacancy, then the Speaker of the Assembly shall become Acting Governor. If there is neither a Lieutenant Governor nor a Speaker at the time of the vacancy, the delegate with the longest continuous service in the Assembly shall become ActingGovernor. The person serving as Acting Governor need not vacate their post in the Assembly, but they shall have no vote in its proceedings and shall exercise no administrative powers over it so long as they continue to exercise the powers of governor.

ARTICLE III
The People.
Section 1. The people of Lincoln may initiate the recall of any officer of this Region, except the Associate Justice of the Circuit Court, by delivering to the Lt. Governor a petition stating the reason for recall and signed by one quarter of the total population of the Region.  The Lt. Governor shall then open the voting booth, according to the rules and regulations for elections set forth in this Constitution; but if the officer to be recalled is the Lt. Governor, then the Speaker of the Assembly shall open the voting booth. The ballot question shall be, “Shall [A.B.] be recalled from the office of [name of the office held]?” A vote of “YES” shall be considered a vote for recall; a vote of “NO” shall be considered a vote against recall. Abstentions will not affect the results. Recalled officers shall forfeit their offices immediately.
Section 2. Whenever the Assembly shall be equally divided over any bill, order, or resolution, the Governor may choose to refer the issue to the people. Accordingly, the Lt. Governor shall call a referendum on the proposal, with the ballot question “Shall [name of bill, followed by text] be made law?” A vote of “YES” shall be considered a vote for passage; a vote of “NO” shall be considered a vote against passage. Abstentions will not affect the results. Referred legislation shall immediately become law upon its passage by the people.

ARTICLE IV.
The Senate.
Section 1. Elections for the Senate of the Republic of Atlasia shall be conducted at regular intervals, in the months prescribed by the Constitution thereof.
Section 2. Senators shall be elected by a direct vote of the people, and no person eligible to vote in elections for Governor and Assembly shall be denied the right to vote for Senator.
Section 3. Should a vacancy occur in the representation of this Region in the Senate, the Governor shall appoint an Acting Senator to serve until a replacement may be elected. Special elections for the Senate shall begin on the Friday following the creation of the vacancy; but if the vacancy shall occur on a Thursday, the special election shall begin on the second Friday following the creation of the vacancy.
4. Senators who are elected in a regularly scheduled election shall take office on the first day of the next session of Congress.  Senators elected in a special election shall take office immediately upon election.


ARTICLE V.
Elections.
Section 1. The right to vote in all elections and referendums called according to the provisions of this Constitution shall be exclusive to those persons being eligible to vote in elections for President of the Republic of Atlasia who have been registered to vote in one of the states of this Region for a period of at least 168 hours prior to the commencement of the election.
Section 2. Voters shall be permitted to edit their ballots until 20 minutes after posting them in the voting booth. No voter shall edit their ballot after the official end of the voting period.
Section 3. All elections and referendums of this Region shall be administered by the Lt. Governor. Whenever the Lt. Governor is unable to execute this duty, the Speaker of the Assembly shall administer the election.
Section 4. Elections for Governor shall be held in the months of February, June, and October. Elections for Assembly shall be held in the months of February, April, June, August, October, and December.
Section 5. Candidates for Governor, Assembly, and federal Senate must declare their candidacy in the appropriate thread by 12:00:00 AM, Eastern Standard Time, on the Wednesday preceding the election in order to appear on the ballot.
Section 6. Except in December, all elections for Governor, Assembly, and federal Senate shall begin on the penultimate Friday of the given month. In December, all elections shall begin on the second Friday of the month. All special elections for Governor and Assembly shall begin on the Friday following the creation of the vacancy to be filled; but if the vacancy shall occur on a Thursday, the special election shall begin on the second Friday following the creation of the vacancy. The appropriate election administrator shall open the voting booth at 12:00:00 AM, Eastern Standard Time. Voting shall continue for 72 hours, and no vote cast more than 72 hours after the voting booth was opened shall be considered valid. The election administrator must accept any absentee ballots cast no more than 168 hours prior to the commencement of the election.
Section 7. Following the expiration of the voting period, the election administrator shall have 24 hours to produce a tally of the votes cast and to announce the persons elected.
Section 8. All elections shall be by single transferable vote, unless otherwise specified by law.
Section 9. The terms of the elected Governor and delegates shall begin at 12:00:00 PM, Eastern Standard Time, on the Thursday following their election. Prior to assuming office, all officers shall swear the following oath: “I, [A.B.], do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of [state office name] and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitutions of Lincoln and the Republic of Atlasia.”
Section 10. All referendums on referred legislation, proposed amendments to this Constitution, and proposed amendments to the Constitution of the Republic of Atlasia shall begin on the first Friday following their passage by the appropriate body; but if the passage shall occur on a Thursday, the referendum shall begin on the second Friday following passage. All recall elections shall begin on the first Friday following the receipt of the valid petition for recall; but if the petition is received on a Thursday, the recall election shall begin on the second Friday following receipt. The appropriate election administrator shall open the voting booth at 12:00:00 AM, Eastern Standard Time. Voting shall continue for 72 hours, and no vote cast more than 72 hours after the voting booth was opened shall be considered valid.
Section 11. In all referendums, a “YES” vote shall be considered a vote in favor of passing the referendum and a “NO” vote shall be considered a vote against passing the referendum. Abstentions shall not affect the results of the referendum. In all cases, a simple majority of those voting “YES” or “NO” shall be required to pass the referendum.
 
ARTICLE VI
Amendment.
Section 1. The Assembly shall have the power to propose amendments to this Constitution. Whenever the total body of delegates should be five in number, a two thirds of all sitting delegates vote shall be sufficient to propose amendments; but when the number of delegates should be three, a unanimous vote of all sitting delegates shall be required. Amendments shall become operative following their ratification by a public referendum.
Section 2. The Region shall ratify amendments to the Constitution of the Republic of Atlasia by public referendum.
 
ARTICLE VII
Implementation.
Section 1. The assent of a three fifths of the voting citizens of this Region shall be sufficient to ratify this Constitution.
Section 2. Following the ratification of this Constitution, the president of the Legislative Committee shall organize the election of a Governor and Assembly to serve until the regularly scheduled October elections.
Section 3. The seat of government shall be determined by a referendum conducted alongside the vote mandated by Section 1 of this Article, and once established shall not be changed but by the method prescribed for the amendment of this Constitution.