Voting in the Republic of Valia

The time has come for one of the Republic of Valia most awaited moment of the year....ITS ELECTIONS TIME!!.
Every adult male citizen of the Republic can decide how the country should be managed this year (if we are talking about elections for consulship), who will obtain the other offices of the state or, in case of elections for military tribune, select the sons of the noble families to be sent to the legions for gaining military experience.

How elections are called

When September arrives, the mandate or powers of the two consuls expires, so, the Senate, by a decree, called for elections. Once this is done, a panel is installed in front of the Court building in the city of Valia, where the Census of citizens is displayed by alphabetical order. Each citizen has to search his name in the census list, if you appear there, you can vote. Soldiers in active service in the city or in its vicinity can vote if they appear in the census and people convicted of crimes cannot vote.
15 days after the elections are called another panel is also installed this time in front of the Senate House that announces the candidatures for Consulship or other offices.

The Candidates

Every male Senator from age 36 to 70 can be elected as Consul. Senators with military experience or brilliant victories in the past can be elected as military consuls, those who command the armies of the Republic during war while for being elected as a Rector, or Civilian Consul, its preferable to choose candidates that have good public speaking skills, that understand how the bureaucracy works or have diplomatic experience as ambassador to other nations.

The Campaign

The next day after the candidates are announced, they have 1 month for running their campaigns. What a candidate usually does is make public speeches in the main squares of the city, in every district and every island of the capital usually describing its political program ( in case the candidate is running for Civilian consul) or describing how they defend the Republic or win the war against its enemies.
Another valuable resource for gaining the attention and favour of the masses is distributing free food between the poor citizens and also give entertainment to the population of the capital, with horse races, theatrical festivals, street artists or distributing money.
The day before the elections is called " The day of Reflexion" and no speeches or other means of propaganda are allowed. Usually, Valians take elections very seriously as well as the proposals and programs of the candidates, they feel its one of their duties to the Republic (as well as defend it with their lives).

by Silvestre David Mirys

The Election day arrives

If you want to be the first to vote or one of the first you probably would have to wake up early, almost at sunrise, because in a couple of hours the bridge that connects the island of Pumphano with the mainland is going to be very crowded. Access to the forum is restricted to three main entrances or checkpoints, where the citizens go in front of the assistants of the Censor and said their names and district in order to the assistant to check that they are effectively inscribed in the census and are allowed to vote.

by Callyxtus with Midjourney

The place of the old forum is covered in ruins, but in its centre a large wooden platform is placed where the former consuls and the candidates stand. The citizens are distributed in voting blocs separated by wooden fences, each one representing the classes of the citizens of the city. In total there are 193 voting blocs divided between age, class and wealth that are distributed as follows:

• Senatorial Nobility: 6 voting blocs
• Non-Senatorial Nobility: 12 voting blocs
• Wealthy Merchants and Lower Aristocracy: 80 voting blocs
• Middle and lower classes: 95 voting blocks.

The voting

The first voting block to vote is chosen randomly among those of the wealthy merchants and lower aristocracy. Each voting block has to announce the name of the two most voted candidates. Once this voting block that was given the honour of beginning the election process announces its two most voted candidates, half of the blocks of the Wealthy merchants and Lower aristocracy (40 blocks) votes simultaneously, their results are later tabulated and announced.
After this the Senatorial and non-Senatorial nobility and the other remaining 40 blocks from the Wealthy merchants all vote. After this bloc’s finish voting a pause is made while the results are tabulated and announced. At this point, around 50'8% of the votes have been announced and, if there was a consensus and all the candidates received an absolutely majority of the votes (97 votes were needed for an absolute majority) the winners are announced, and voting immediately stops. But this is infrequent, and often, an absolute majority is usually achieved when half of the blocs of the Middle class have voted and announced their candidates.
This process is followed for electing both the consuls and the rest of the offices of the Republic. But a different process is used when electing military tribunes and declaring wars.
The distribution into building blocs is the same, but in this case (either for naming a military tribune or declaring war) the blocks only have to vote "yes" or "no". Same happens when the Senate passes a law to be ratified by the Assembly of the People.

Afer Voting

When the two winners for the consulship or any other office are announced, a public ceremony is performed in Valia's main Square where the Consular Palace, the Great Temple and the Senate house are located, right in the centre of the island of Pumphano were, in the balcony of the Senate House, the new elected magistrates swear upon the holy book of the Prophet and upon their ancestors that they will obey the laws of the Republic and defend it and its people from foreign or internal threats, after this the people acclaim then and 15 days after the elections the Valian Senate meets again.

Elections in Valia by Callyxtus with Midjourney

In case of the consuls, because they're two, if one has military experience and the other hasn't, the first is designated as the military consul while the other remains the civilian consul. If both have military experience then their consulships are designated by lottery.
Of course, the results of the voting are displayed to everyone that wants to see them both in Valia's main Square or in front of the High Court building.

Primary Related Location

Ruins of Old Valia

Related Organizations

• Republic of Valia

Related Ethnicities

• The Blatians

Tips for the elections

• If you don't want to wait to cross the Pumphano bridge or you live in one of the furthest islands of the city, you can also go to the ruins of the old forum by boat, either your own or a transport boat that the Senate orders for this kind of event. its free and it takes around 15-20 minutes to cross from one corner of the city to the other. 
• Take with you your breakfast or your meal because voting can last hours, especially if there is no clear winner.
• No weapons are allowed inside the voting area, even active soldiers cannot access the are armed. If a person is caught with a knife, a sword or any other type of weapon, the penalties can range from a severe fine, imprisonment or even death if violent disturbances are committed within the area. Of course the only personell that can be armed  inside the voting area are the consular guard and the vigiles (the firemen and also policemen) but no ordinary citizens. 
• In the Assemblies of the People that are called for declaring war or pass legislation, you can't express your ideas about the matter you are voting, only say yes or no. 
• Offending the candidates or insulting the magistrates inside the voting area can have you arrested and banned from voting for 5 years

The place were the voting process is held