FT 12.12 – Pacific Islands Voting Rights Act (Adopted)

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

AN ACT
to extend the franchise to citizens of the Pacific island territories

Section 1 (Title)
i. The title of this Act shall be, the "Pacific Islands Voting Rights Act." It may be alternatively cited as "PIVRA." Section 2 of this Act may be cited as the "Voting Rights Amendment."

Section 2 (Constitutional amendment)
i. Article V§1 of the Second Constitution of the Commonwealth of Frémont shall be amended as follows:

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 or external territories of this Region, as defined by law, for a period of at least 72 hours prior to the commencement of the election.

Section 3 (Incorporating the Pacific islands)
i. The island territories of Guam, Atlasian Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands are incorporated as external territories of the Commonwealth of Frémont, the residents thereof to enjoy all the rights and privileges associated with citizenship of the same.

Section 4 (Implementation)
i. This Act shall take effect with the ratification of the Amendment to the Constitution of Frémont proposed in Section 2 above.

Sponsor: Harry S Truman, Speaker

The member from North Dakota has the floor.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

As it says on the tin, this bill would extend full voting rights to Atlasians residing in the three island territories which lay off Frémont's Pacific coast, and thereby allow Atlasian citizens to register there without losing the right to vote in regional elections. While Congress took up legislation to admit these territories to the Union in the last session, the neglectful incompetence of practically everyone involved resulted in the bill becoming law with only 24-hours for the territorial authorities to organize the mandated referendums, and chaos predictably ensued (the GM's full report on the fiasco may be read  here). While we wait for Nyman to get its act together, our brothers and sisters in the Pacific are excluded from the communion of the free West—a state of affairs that is both undemocratic and unacceptable.

Therefore, as an interim measure, this bill would allow citizens in Atlasian Samoa, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands to vote in our elections: §2 amends the constitution to allow parliament to extend the franchise to new territories, while §3 designates the territories to be incorporated.

[The world will shine with light in our nightmare]

I support the essence of this bill, however I do have some concerns about its legality.  Due to the botched efforts by Congress in attempting to have these territories admitted into our union, none of the referendums may be considered valid and therefore none of the territories might be considered states with equal voting rights.  Does the Speaker not feel that it would be premature to pass this bill until these territories vote whether to join, or not to join, our union under a fair, thorough and legal process?

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

I support the essence of this bill, however I do have some concerns about its legality.  Due to the botched efforts by Congress in attempting to have these territories admitted into our union, none of the referendums may be considered valid and therefore none of the territories might be considered states with equal voting rights.  Does the Speaker not feel that it would be premature to pass this bill until these territories vote whether to join, or not to join, our union under a fair, thorough and legal process?

That is correct. Indeed, the presumed failure of the statehood referenda is the whole point of this bill. I am proposing we extend voting rights to the inhabitants of the Pacific Islands while they remain territories. As for the legal concerns raised, the right to vote in federal elections is guaranteed by the Constitution to citizens, not states. This is why Atlasians living in the United Kingdom may vote in our elections, per the ABCMA. By my reading of I§4, there is actually no reason why an Atlasian citizen could not relocate to Guam today and continue to vote in elections for president and the House of Representatives; they would, however, be ineligible to participate in elections administered by the regions in lieu of a regional statute extending the franchise to citizens residing in the unincorporated territories. As eligibility to vote in regional elections is defined by the regions themselves, however, there is nothing preventing Frémont from amending its constitution to allow Guamians, Samoans, and Northern Mariana Islanders to vote in our elections—which is what this bill proposes to do.

[The world will shine with light in our nightmare]

I thank the Speaker for his astute explanation.

Comments from other Members?  Bills as important as this ought to have input from more than two MPs.

[Virginiá]

Fully support this measure!

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

I move for a final vote. Members have 24 hours to object.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

Seeing no objection, we will proceed to a vote. Members will vote Aye, Nay, or abstain. Voting will last 48 hours or until all members have voted.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

Aye.

[The world will shine with light in our nightmare]

Aye.

[AustralianSwingVoter]

Aye

[Virginiá]

Aye

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

With four votes in favor and none opposed, the resolution is adopted.

As §2 is a constitutional amendment, it will now proceed to a public referendum.

[The world will shine with light in our nightmare]

AN ACT
to extend the franchise to citizens of the Pacific island territories

Section 1 (Title)
i. The title of this Act shall be, the "Pacific Islands Voting Rights Act." It may be alternatively cited as "PIVRA." Section 2 of this Act may be cited as the "Voting Rights Amendment."

Section 2 (Constitutional amendment)
i. Article V§1 of the Second Constitution of the Commonwealth of Frémont shall be amended as follows:

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 or external territories of this Region, as defined by law, for a period of at least 72 hours prior to the commencement of the election.

Section 3 (Incorporating the Pacific islands)
i. The island territories of Guam, Atlasian Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands are incorporated as external territories of the Commonwealth of Frémont, the residents thereof to enjoy all the rights and privileges associated with citizenship of the same.

Section 4 (Implementation)
i. This Act shall take effect with the ratification of the Amendment to the Constitution of Frémont proposed in Section 2 above.