Post by Vista Major on May 26, 2015 23:14:56 GMT
THE REBALLOTATION ACT
(An Amendment to enact Instant Runoff Voting & Expand Ballot Options within the Commonwealth of Free Nations)
(An Amendment to enact Instant Runoff Voting & Expand Ballot Options within the Commonwealth of Free Nations)
PREAMBLE
The core of democracy within the Commonwealth of Free Nations is the inherent right of all citizens for vote for their elected officials to conduct government on their behalf. In many elections, several well-qualified (an unqualified) citizens appear on the ballot in campaign for a Cabinet ministry. It will occur that more than one viable candidate is favored by a voter, but the first-past-the-poll system limits the voice of said-voters by forcing them to vote for one candidate or none at all, which can lead to a so-called "spoiler effect". This bill seeks to restructure the voting system to be more inclusive and cooperative to the citizens it serves.
SECTION I: Amendment to the Constitution
The voting system will be a simple first-past-the-post system, in which every registered citizen may vote for each position with one vote. Votes may only be cast once and only once.The core of democracy within the Commonwealth of Free Nations is the inherent right of all citizens for vote for their elected officials to conduct government on their behalf. In many elections, several well-qualified (an unqualified) citizens appear on the ballot in campaign for a Cabinet ministry. It will occur that more than one viable candidate is favored by a voter, but the first-past-the-poll system limits the voice of said-voters by forcing them to vote for one candidate or none at all, which can lead to a so-called "spoiler effect". This bill seeks to restructure the voting system to be more inclusive and cooperative to the citizens it serves.
SECTION I: Amendment to the Constitution
Current "ARTICLE 6: Election Procedure, Article 4":
New "ARTICLE 6: Election Procedure, Article 4", under this Amendment:
The voting system shall be a modified instant-runoff-system, in which every registered citizen may vote for each position with one or more votes--or none at all--as defined in The Reballotation Act. Voters may cast and recast an election ballot as many times as desired over the length of the election. (Recast to be defined as sending in a new ballot, erasing the record of any previous ballots sent in by the citizen)
Current "ARTICLE 6: Election Procedure, Article 2"
2. To ensure that data collection is provided safely, it will be necessary for the Election Committee of the Commonwealth to be established in order to collect votes through telegram. The committee will be comprised solely of the Lord-Chancellor and former Chancellors.
New "ARTICLE 6: Election Procedure, Article 2", under this Amendment:
2. To ensure that data collection is provided safely, it will be necessary for the Election Committee of the Commonwealth to be established in order to collect votes through telegram. The committee will be comprised of the Chief Justice and two Parliament-elected nonpartisan citizens. In the event that the committee is unable to conduct elections on-time, the Minister of Internal Affairs is authorized to conduct elections alongside the oversight of the Minister of Justice.
SECTION II: Definition and Procedure of the Instant-Runoff-System
I: In this modified version of the instant-runoff-system, voters may vote for as many candidates as they choose. For every candidate they wish to vote for, an "X" will be used to mark their choice. For each vote in favor of them, the candidate shall receive one point. At the end of the voting period, all the points are tallied, and the candidate that earns a majority (at least 51%) of votes wins the position.
II: If no candidate wins a majority, voters will cast another ballot, with only the 3 highest-ranking candidates as options (and shall decrease with each runoff). Afterwards, the candidate with a majority of points wins. This process shall be repeated until a candidate is wins the election.
III: A voter may write-in a candidate that is not on the ballot for a government position, provided that said-candidate is a registered resident in the Commonwealth of Free Nations. Votes for a write-in candidate are valid as on-ballot candidate votes are.
IV: Runoff elections for a government position shall last no longer than 5 days and no shorter than 3 days.
