Tickets?

Flemingovia

Flemingovia

TNPer
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Well, most of the elections are now over, and the quarterly search for deputy ministers has begun.

I just wanted to air a thought. In our system we elect the ministers, the ministers choose the deputies, and the deputies take over from the minister should the minister resign or be booted out.

Given the number of ministers in TNP who have had to resign their position, mainly due to RL events, we are often in the uncomfortable position of having a large proportion of our cabinet who have not been elected to their postition.

Now I want to say in the outset that, almost without exception, these replacements have done a stunning job, and I have no complaints about them at all.

But....

I have long wondered if our elections would be better if instead of electing candidates, we elected "tickets" of minister and deputy. Older residents may remember that some time ago Honeysheep and I ran as a "ticket" and it seemed to go down rather well.

This would give us the benefit of knowing not only what minister we were voting for, but also the name of the prospective deputy, a bit like the President and Vice PResident in the USA.

Any thoughts?
 
We need more people. :lol:

There is nothing preventing a candidate to announce his deputy prior to running for office. A wisely chosen deputy can be an asset to one's campaign.

But I say we need more people for it to be truly effective, as the pool of candidates who lose their race is where the winners often draw their deputies.
 
Great Bights Mum:
We need more people. :lol:

There is nothing preventing a candidate to announce his deputy prior to running for office. A wisely chosen deputy can be an asset to one's campaign.

But I say we need more people for it to be truly effective, as the pool of candidates who lose their race is where the winners often draw their deputies.
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I agree with both Flem and GBM. It would be a really great idea, and it's already happened some. But then we would need (quite) a few more people, and the ones who don't get elected often do end up as deputies. In this election, rather than go to a pointless run-off, Limi and CM came to an agreement that since Limi got more votes, CM would concede the election to him if he got made deputy.

I don't think we really need any legislation about this, but the idea's certainly out there for October.
 
I agree with GBM in thinking that we need more people in order to pull this off effectively. However, what we're really seeking are deputies that are confirmed by TNP one way or another. Why not just have a confirmation vote of nominated deputies. Like, a 3 day vote by the RA or something. It can be akin to the confirmation hearings held in the US Senate for federal judges and statesmen.
 
Monte Ozarka:
I agree with GBM in thinking that we need more people in order to pull this off effectively. However, what we're really seeking are deputies that are confirmed by TNP one way or another. Why not just have a confirmation vote of nominated deputies. Like, a 3 day vote by the RA or something. It can be akin to the confirmation hearings held in the US Senate for federal judges and statesmen.
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Deputy Minister of Defense already has that; the NPA members have to support the appointed deputy by a majority vote.
 
Monte Ozarka:
Why not just have a confirmation vote of nominated deputies. Like, a 3 day vote by the RA or something. It can be akin to the confirmation hearings held in the US Senate for federal judges and statesmen.
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This strikes me as the best solution given our current circumstances.

I'm sure every single nominated deputy will be approved, but that approval will grant them the legitimacy they'll need when half of them inevitably take over.
 
I agree - this would also prevent the possibility of a nation with multiple allegiences from gaining office, naming a successor from the non-TNP allegience, and then abandoning ship.

I'm looking at you, Flem. ;)

Edit - I need a desk lamp when I type.
 
I disagree. Especially considering you might get two stunning candidates, and after the election it is the option of the victor to choose their deputy. They might just pick their opponent, and when it comes down to it, if it's a good, clean race, like ours was, your opponent may just be a strong and viable option for a deputy.

You already know s/he's interested in the job, and between the pair of you, you have a pair of absurdly dedicated people working the ministry. Admittedly this is something that might not happen often, but it should be an option to the victor.
 
I don't think we really need any legislation about this, but the idea's certainly out there for October.
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I agree 100%

EDIT- I say anyone who wants to have a running mate should be encouraged to but every one should still have to go by MO's idea.
 
Cthul Murgos:
I disagree. Especially considering you might get two stunning candidates, and after the election it is the option of the victor to choose their deputy. They might just pick their opponent, and when it comes down to it, if it's a good, clean race, like ours was, your opponent may just be a strong and viable option for a deputy.

You already know s/he's interested in the job, and between the pair of you, you have a pair of absurdly dedicated people working the ministry. Admittedly this is something that might not happen often, but it should be an option to the victor.
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I presume you're disagreeing with Flem's proposal. What do you think of MO's suggestion?
 
I like Flem's idea very much. We also need a means of having a vice-PM, which could be a designated position in the cabinet or a specific position.
 
Romanoffia:
We also need a means of having a vice-PM, which could be a designated position in the cabinet or a specific position.
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In Canada, a government minister is appointed deputy Prime Minister and takes charge in the House of Commons when the PM is travelling, ill or whatever.

Something similar could be adopted here. The PM (or cabinet as a whole) would appoint a deputy PM from the current rank of ministers. If the PM goes AWOL, the deputy PM would step in. Then the Deputy PM's own ministerial deputy would take over their former department.

This would create a clear line of succession and avoid lengthy mid-term elections without the need for finding yet another qualified individual for yet another regional office.
 
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