Law:The Senate Elections Reform (Amendment) Act

33RZ1

The Senate Elections Reform (Amendment) Act

WHEREAS, the checks and balances surrounding Senate elections in the Organic Law were vitiated through partisan "reforms" aimed at centralizing power in the hands of the Secretary of State and the PC Party, and

WHEREAS, the resulting system is open to flagrant abuse such as "secret" elections and the partisan manipulation of election schedules, and

WHEREAS, a national consensus exists to restore a system of checks and balances, and to ensure fully democratic, representative elections to the Upper House,

THEREFORE, the Ziu hereby approves this Act and orders its transmittal to the voters for their verdict in the next general election. Be it hereby enacted: Article IV of the Organic Law is hereby repealed. In its place the following text is inserted:

Art.IV:Sec.1. The Senäts, or in English the Senate, is the national legislative council and the upper house of the Ziu, and shall be composed of one Senator elected from each province.

Art.IV:Sec.2. Elections for the filling of places in the Senäts shall be conducted by the Secretary of State in accordance with election law. These elections shall be conducted simultaneously with general elections to the Cosâ.

Art.IV:Sec.3. Each time the Cosâ shall be dissolved, there shall be an election for the Senäts in two provinces. For purposes of elections to the Senäts, the provinces shall be listed in the following fixed order: Mussolini, Vuode, Atatürk, Cézembre, Florencia, Maricopa, Maritiimi- Maxhestic. Following the passage of this Act, the next elections for the Senäts shall be held in the two provinces for whom the greatest amount of time has elapsed since the last regular election for the Senäts.

Art.IV:Sec.4. Any qualified Talossan citizen is free to contest an election for the Senäts in any province. Qualifications for holding a Senatorship include service for six continuous months as Secretary of State or Prime Minister, or Talossan citizenship for two years, or receiving an order of knighthood or other meritorious decoration from the King. Election ballots shall guarantee the right of all citizens in all provinces to vote for an individual Senator for their province.

Art.IV:Sec.5. Political parties may "endorse" individual candidates for the Senate, one candidate per party per province. In the event that a voter does not specify an individual candidate for Senate on his ballot, his vote for a political party shall apply to the candidate endorsed by that party. A voter may always vote for a different Senate candidate than the one endorsed by the party of his choice, by indicating said candidate on the ballot.

Art.IV:Sec.6. The candidate receiving a plurality of the vote shall be declared the winner. In case of a tie between two or more candidates, the executive officer of the province shall select one of those candidates to be the Senator.

Art.IV:Sec.7. Voting is not secret. As soon as one's vote is cast, it becomes public knowledge.

Art.IV:Sec.8. If a voter returns more than one vote, the first one cast is counted and the others are ignored.

Art.IV:Sec.9. When the Election Deadline has passed, a final tally of votes is publicly announced. Any votes arriving after the Deadline, even if they were posted before the Deadline, are null and void.

Art.IV:Sec.10. If a seat becomes vacant during the term of a Senator, the King shall appoint a Senator to fill the remainder of the term. The King must appoint the individual designated to him by the political party with which the outgoing Senator was commonly associated. If this is impossible, the King shall appoint the individual designated to him by the executive officer of the province. If this is impossible, the King shall choose the Senator.

Art.IV:Sec.11. Senators may be removed from office by the Uppermost Cort, for criminal activity or for mis-, mal-, or non-feasance.

Uréu q'estadra så: Robert I, King of Talossa