FT 7-10: Parliament Enumeration Amendment (Passed)

[The world will shine with light in our nightmare]

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Sponsor: Speaker Scott

Debate is now open.

[The world will shine with light in our nightmare]

Essentially, current election laws allows for there to be an unlimited number of seats in Parliament depending on how many candidates are running.  I believe that this is counterproductive to competition and activity in Fremont, and cheapens the value of public office in our Commonwealth.

By capping the number of available seats in Parliament to five, we will strengthen competition in our elections and give incumbent MPs more incentive to be active and engaged in Parliament affairs.

[Pericles]

Yep, this is probably the easiest possible election to win, and Fremontian parliamentary elections should be competitive and have the risk of some candidates losing(otherwise, why even hold elections?)

[YE]

I view regional level legislature work as an entry level position, with Nayman being the big event, so I don't really have a problem with the law as is. I'm not a fan of particularly competitive elections at this level of government, and while I don't think floor votes should be something a free for all in which anyone could vote (that'd be out of control quick) I'm somewhat inclined to be against denying as few of people as possible from participation. Aside from the Koopa recall (who if I followed the intent of the original law would have made it in anyway), Parliament has been decently active, and I'm also weary of the idea of incumbents losing to other incumbents due to a downsizing, which in the current situation could possibly happen if enacted given the current size of government.
 

[The world will shine with light in our nightmare]

I view regional level legislature work as an entry level position, with Nayman being the big event, so I don't really have a problem with the law as is. I'm not a fan of particularly competitive elections at this level of government, and while I don't think floor votes should be something a free for all in which anyone could vote (that'd be out of control quick) I'm somewhat inclined to be against denying as few of people as possible from participation. Aside from the Koopa recall (who if I followed the intent of the original law would have made it in anyway), Parliament has been decently active, and I'm also weary of the idea of incumbents losing to other incumbents due to a downsizing, which in the current situation could possibly happen if enacted given the current size of government.

As a former Atlasian Senator and PPT who stepped down with the intention of going back into regional politics after my hiatus, I strongly disagree.  I believe that regions need to be strengthened in their role in the game.  Certainly they should be just as relevant as the federal government.  More competition in good for the game as a whole.  And with all due respect, First Minister, I think viewing the legislature as an 'entry-level position' hurts the spirit of having regional governments in the first place.

And, indeed, incumbents could and probably would lose if the amendment were to be passed.  But that, again, is the reason we ought to have competitive elections and should have active campaigns, as we do (or should) for everything else.

Might I ask if seven or nine seats would be a reasonable compromise to you, or are you insistent upon keeping the status quo?  Surely it would be unusual for a region as small as ours to have a bigger legislative body than the House of Representatives, if such an election were to produce that result.

[Pericles]

I don't think it's unreasonable to have a smaller parliament-at least until our population reaches a higher level. I am sympathetic to the view that regional government is an 'entry-level position'. As someone who only stopped being a zombie voter because of the opportunity of regional government, regional governments serve as a good start to the game and so we should be careful with this bill. This shouldn't just be a carbon-copy of the federal government. But at the same time it still would not be hard to win elections, and indeed given our recent activity crisis MPs shouldn't be able to be inactive and glide to re-election. This will not, in my view, jeopardize that opportunity for newcomers, but will ensure Fremontians have the best MPs and parliament possible.

[YE]

I view regional level legislature work as an entry level position, with Nayman being the big event, so I don't really have a problem with the law as is. I'm not a fan of particularly competitive elections at this level of government, and while I don't think floor votes should be something a free for all in which anyone could vote (that'd be out of control quick) I'm somewhat inclined to be against denying as few of people as possible from participation. Aside from the Koopa recall (who if I followed the intent of the original law would have made it in anyway), Parliament has been decently active, and I'm also weary of the idea of incumbents losing to other incumbents due to a downsizing, which in the current situation could possibly happen if enacted given the current size of government.

As a former Atlasian Senator and PPT who stepped down with the intention of going back into regional politics after my hiatus, I strongly disagree.  I believe that regions need to be strengthened in their role in the game.  Certainly they should be just as relevant as the federal government.  More competition in good for the game as a whole.  And with all due respect, First Minister, I think viewing the legislature as an 'entry-level position' hurts the spirit of having regional governments in the first place.

And, indeed, incumbents could and probably would lose if the amendment were to be passed.  But that, again, is the reason we ought to have competitive elections and should have active campaigns, as we do (or should) for everything else.

Might I ask if seven or nine seats would be a reasonable compromise to you, or are you insistent upon keeping the status quo?  Surely it would be unusual for a region as small as ours to have a bigger legislative body than the House of Representatives, if such an election were to produce that result.

I mean I have nothing against being regional governments, just trying to tell the truth here. Your case is sort of different since you were a Lincoln PPT senator who took a hiatus, jumped to Fremont, and basically restarted your career since you wanted to be in regional government. But a typical Atlasian politician career pathway involves some sort of experience in the legislature or maybe in Congress before an executive position or a Senate position.

Nine legislators is not realistic and would require 11 candidates to file for office. I'm fine with capping it at seven (which not counting Koopa is how many we have right now) for the main reason that floor votes could get hectic with more than that, but at the same time, I don't really wanna turn too many candidates away from any sort of participation in government in general.

[The world will shine with light in our nightmare]

Fair enough.

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Members have 24 hours to object.

[VPH]

No objection here.

[The world will shine with light in our nightmare]

Hearing no objection, the amendment is adopted.

[YE]

Do you have anything against even numbers?

[The world will shine with light in our nightmare]

Do you have anything against even numbers?

Yes, in that they are more likely to produce tied votes.

[YE]

Do you have anything against even numbers?

Yes, in that they are more likely to produce tied votes.

You realize an odd sized parliament once you include the FM would have an even number of voting members, right?

[The world will shine with light in our nightmare]

Do you have anything against even numbers?

Yes, in that they are more likely to produce tied votes.

You realize an odd sized parliament once you include the FM would have an even number of voting members, right?

...I actually totally forgot about this.  *facepalm*

[YE]

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Amendment offered.

[The world will shine with light in our nightmare]

Members have 24 hours to object.

No objection from me.

[The world will shine with light in our nightmare]

Hearing no objection, the amendment is adopted.

I'll open a final vote tomorrow if nobody objects.

[YE]

Can we hold off a vote so that if this passes this happens the same moment as the house and presidential race? Make things easier for zombie voters and it'd help turnout too.

[The world will shine with light in our nightmare]

Can we hold off a vote so that if this passes this happens the same moment as the house and presidential race? Make things easier for zombie voters and it'd help turnout too.

I'd be willing to do that, sure.

[Southern Delegate matthew27]

Fremont deserves more representation, not less.

Fremont is nearly half of Atlastia and yet you want only a handful of reps in the commons? I speak for the people when I say that this is a bad idea. It hurts democracy.  

[YE]

Fremont deserves more representation, not less.

Fremont is nearly half of Atlastia and yet you want only a handful of reps in the commons? I speak for the people when I say that this is a bad idea. It hurts democracy.  

Fremont has by far the fewest Atlasians with something like 48 registered voters.

[Goldwater]

Fremont deserves more representation, not less.

Fremont is nearly half of Atlastia and yet you want only a handful of reps in the commons? I speak for the people when I say that this is a bad idea. It hurts democracy.  

Fremont has by far the fewest Atlasians with something like 48 registered voters.

Not to mention the fact that we also need people in the federal government.

[The world will shine with light in our nightmare]

A final vote will open in 24 hours if there is no objection.

[The world will shine with light in our nightmare]

Hearing no objection, a final vote is now open.

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[The world will shine with light in our nightmare]

Aye.