Id like to update the election law process. Using Hiles post here, and the discussions past, I'd like to propose the following amendment to the Code of Laws regarding elections.

 

Quote:Article 1: Elections

1. Elections for all Cabinet positions and Chief Justice
   shall commence on the first
   fifteenth
   of every April, August, and December
   March, July, and November
   .
   
2. Elections for High Court Justices shall commence on the fifteenth of every May, September, and January.
   
3. Cabinet terms shall start on the 1st of April, August, and December.
   Hig
   <span style="color:rgb(0,0,205);">h Court Justice terms shall Start on the first of every June, October, and February.</span>
   
4. All normal and special elections will be comprised of a nomination period lasting five days and a voting period lasting three days.
   
5. Runoff elections will begin within twenty-four hours of the initial vote closing and consist of a voting period lasting three days.
   
6. Candidates for elections may self-declare or be nominated by another Citizen. Candidates must file a Conflict of Interest Disclosure at the time of their acceptance of a nomination or self-declaration.
   
7. Conflict of Interest Disclosures must include current World Assembly Nation, all past and present aliases used, all past and present involvement in other regions and organizations, and all current positions held across NationStates.
   
8. The Delegate and Vice Delegate will run on a joint ticket and be elected by a majority vote. If no ticket receives a majority vote a runoff election with the two tickets receiving the most votes will occur.
   
9. All other elected offices will be voted on separately and be elected by a plurality vote.
   
10. In all elections an option to re-open nominations will be included. If this option receives the most votes the nomination period for that office will be restarted.
    
11. In the event that no candidate runs for an available office, the newly elected Cabinet will appoint a Citizen to fill the vacancy.
    
12. Vacancies in office occur when the office holder resigns, is recalled, or no longer holds citizenship. In the event of a vacancy in office a special election will begin within 72 hours of the office becoming vacant, unless the vacancy occurs in the
    after the 15th of
    month prior to the start of an
    the
    election cycle; in this case the Cabinet will appoint a Citizen to fill the vacated position for the remainder of the term.
    
13. Elections will be run by a member of the forum administration staff or their designee. A designated Election Commissioner may be appointed if all members of the administration staff will be candidates in the given election, or no administers come forward to run the elections
    .
    

The Charter requires, per Article 3.1.5, a 75% vote in favor for this revision to pass. Article 3.1.11 requires a 5-day voting period. Voting will start March 13th, 2014 @ 11:00am EDT, and end March 18th, 2014 @ 11:00am EDT.

Quote: 

4.  "The Delegate is responsible for making sure all nations abide by the endorsement cap as established and enforced by the Committee for State Security."

The Charter requires, per Article 3.1.5, a 75% vote in favor for this revision to pass. Article 3.1.11 requires a 5-day voting period. Voting will start March 13th, 2014 @ 11:00am EDT, and end March 18th, 2014 @ 11:00am EDT.

Quote:Article 9: Amendments

1. This Charter may be amended as needed in accordance with Article 3.
2. All Citizens have the right to request a Great Council for a review of the entire Charter, Bill of Rights, and Code of Laws. A Great Council may only be called once every six months.

The Charter requires, per Article 3.1.5, a 75% vote in favor for this revision to pass. Article 3.1.11 requires a 5-day voting period. Voting will start March 13th, 2014 @ 11:00am EDT, and end March 18th, 2014 @ 11:00am EDT.

Quote:Article 6: The Committee for State Security
Section 1 - Membership and Approval

1. Membership in the Committee for State Security (CSS) requires Citizenship in The South Pacific, a nation with World Assembly membership in the region, and the approval of the Assembly.
   
2. The Vice Delegate will serve as the Chair of the CSS.
   
3. The Delegate shall serve as an observer on the CSS, with no voting rights.
   
4. Citizens wishing to become members of the CSS may submit their application for admittance to the Assembly.
   
5. Citizens may also be nominated for membership of the CSS by the Delegate.
   
6. Applicants for the Committee for State Security require a 75% majority vote in favor of admittance by the Assembly.​
   

Section 2 - Regulations

1. The Committee for State Security is responsible for the internal security of The Coalition.
   
2. The Committee for State Security is responsible for establishing and and enforcing the endorsement cap.
   
3. Council members must never exceed the amount of WA endorsements obtained by the legal Vice Delegate.
   
4. The Vice-Delegate may grant a leave of absence from the CSS for a member on military or intelligence duty for The South Pacific. Members on leave of absence remain voting members of the CSS, but will not be part of the line of succession to the Delegacy.
   
5. The line of succession to the Delegacy is determined according to the WA endorsement levels of CSS members at the time in question, running from highest to lowest.
   

Quote:Article 3: Delegate

1. In accordance with the Charter, if the Delegate resigns or is recalled or otherwise unable to carry out the duties of the Office, the Vice Delegate will assume the Office of the Delegate immediately.
   
2. In the event of Clause 1 of this article, the next in the line of succession will then assume the Office of the Vice Delegate.
   

 

Per the Charter of The Coalition of the South Pacific, Article 3.1.5, a 75%+ vote in favor is needed. Per Article 3.1.11, the voting period is 5 days. Voting will start March 12th, 2014 @ 4:30pm EDT and end March 17th, 2014 @ 4:30pm EDT.

Quote:Section 2 - The Office of the Delegate and Vice Delegate

...

6. With the majority approval of the Committee for State Security taken by a vote
, the Delegate may declare a State of Emergency with reasonable justification that a threat to regional security is imminent, subjected to provisions granted by Article 6, Section 3 of the Charter
.

...

Quote:Section 3- State of Emergency

1. In the event of a State of Emergency,
   the Delegate must confer with the Committee for State Security (CSS) before carrying out any actions
   
   
2. The Delegate may lower or increase the endorsement cap or ask that the region endorse a CSS member as a proxy.
   
   
3. The Delegate may also make statements to the region with regards to the situation, and delegate responsibilities or directives to other Cabinet members to ensure cohesion in the region.
   
   
4. The Bill of Rights cannot be suspended during a State of Emergency, except where the Delegate may
   eject or ban nations from the in-game region and/or forums on reasonable grounds of suspicion that the nation(s) are participating in actions that attempt to subvert the legitimate government of the region without due process of law.
   
   
5. In the event of a Delegate transition, both the outgoing Delegate and incoming Delegate may call for a State of Emergency, with the decision to grant the declaration resting in the Committee for State Security
   
   
6. In the event that a hostile takeover of the region by the sitting Delegate has occurred or is imminent, the Committee for State Security is empowered to grant the Vice-Delegate temporary provisions as Acting Delegate, by a majority vote in favor in the CSS.
   .
   
7. The Assembly, by a conscience vote, may vote to override or end a State of Emergency by a vote of 60% in favor
   .
   
8. Within 48 hours of recovery from a State of Emergency, a report detailing the incident and the particular evidence used to justify it along with an evaluation of measures and recommendations of further actions to be taken by the Assembly, Cabinet and/or Judiciary should be submitted to the Assembly, which includes but is not limited to: recall motions, charges to be filed and grants of amnesty.
   
   
   

Per the Charter of the Coalition of The South Pacific, Article 3:1.4, a 50% + 1 majority is needed for this doctrine. Voting will start March 12th, 2014 @ 4:00pm EDT, and last 3 days, ending March 15th, 2014 @ 4:00pm EDT.

 

Quote:Preamble:

This document hereby establishes the New Southern Army (hereby known as NSA) Code of Conduct. These rules and guidelines shall be written instruction for all members of the NSA to follow.

 
Article 1: Command Structure

1. The NSA will be led by the Minister of the Army and a panel of three Generals, herein referred to as the General Corps.
   
2. Further ranks will be bestowed at the discretion of the General Corps.
   
3. All new NSA members will be designated the rank of Trainee until such time as they have a a complete understanding of the Code of Conduct and NS military gameplay.
   
4. Beyond the MoA and General Corps, the rankings will be as follows from next highest on down; Officer, Solider, Trainee.
   
5. The General Corps is responsible for the planning of and overseeing of all missions of the NSA. Officers can lead operations and give orders on behalf of The General Corps.
   

Article 2: Requirements of Membership

1. WA membership is required.
   
2. NSA members must be Citizens of The South Pacific in full compliance with the Charter and Code of Laws.
   
3. NSA members are required to return to The South Pacific and endorse the delegate, vice delegate, and CSS when not on mission.
   
4. NSA members must treat each other with respect and offer assistance to one-another whenever possible.
   
5. NSA members are expected to sign in during roll call, and respond to mission orders even if unable to participate.
   

Article 3: Disciplinary Regulations, Procedures and Actions
Section 1 - Disciplinary Regulations

1. Aiding the enemy; Giving an enemy region or organization any information or assistance, in particular serving in enemy forces or spreading enemy propaganda.
   
2. Disgraceful conduct; Conduct unbecoming of a member of the NSA.
   
3. Disobeying a lawful command; Intentionally or recklessly disobeying a lawful command.
   
4. ​Espionage; obtaining or attempting to obtain information of a confidential, restricted or private nature with the intent to disclose said information to an individual or individuals not authorized to possess it.
   
5. Ill-Treating Subordinates; Bullying, humiliating, degrading or using unnecessarily harsh behavior against a subordinate.
   
6. Misconduct towards a superior officer; Disrespectful behavior or communication to a superior officer.
   
7. Obstructing an operation; Putting at risk or otherwise delaying, disrupting or discouraging a lawful operation.
   
8. Failure to meet membership requirements; Failing to meet the NSA requirements of membership.
   

Section 2 - Disciplinary Procedures


Discipline is at the discretion of the MoA and The General Corps and is limited to:

1. Demotion.
   
2. Dishonorable Discharge.
   
3. Honorable Discharge.
   
4. Private apology.
   
5. Public apology.
   
6. Suspension.​
   

<div style="font-weight:bold;"><a class="" href="http://www.nationstates.net/nation=afanis">The Liberal Autocracy of Afanis</a>
<a class="" href="http://www.nationstates.net/page=tg/tgid=5807178">3 days ago</a>
 
</div>

<div style="background-color:rgb(255,255,255);">
<div> 
Dear colleague

I'm Afanis, the WA-delegate of <a class="" href="http://www.nationstates.net/region=austritaria">Austritaria</a>. I'm going to keep this short and simple, so as not to waste your precious time. I'd like to request the opening of embassies between our two fine regions. Despite the fact that my region's been around for a good few years now, we haven't really built much of a reputation in the international community. Hence my embassy request. 

I believe that this would be very beneficial for us both indeed, since -even if I dare say it myself- we are not a region one has to be ashamed of having connections with.

Anyways, I promised to keep this short. Please consider my request, it would make me and my region very happy.

Have a nice day

Afanis.

</div>
</div>
 

Simple issue here; at some point the numbering of Articles changed, and produced a typo. Article 2 needs to be renumbered as Article 3.

 

Quote: 

Article 9: Amendments

1. This Charter may be amended as needed in accordance with Article 3.
   
2. All Citizens have the right to request a Great Council for a review of the entire Charter, Bill of Rights, and Code of Laws. A Great Council may only be called once every six months.
   

Welcome to The South Pacific, Swedenheim!

We are glad to have you here. Please tell us a little about yourself.