Timed democracy

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Timed democracy was a system of government that originated in the Flying Islands of Jasonia.

Background

At the beginning of Jasonia's history, there was no constitution or code of laws in place, only promises of freedom. When it became clear, however, that the first Jasonians were looking not for a refugee camp but for a new motherland, a debate was ignited concerning the system of government to be adopted. After a month of debate, a vote on the system of government was held, which was won by Tony Au's late but popular entry, which he had named timed democracy.

From the beginning, Jasonia was by and large a democracy; however, as citizenship levels increased and some citizens became inactive, the custom of requiring votes from every citizen on every matter became increasingly impractical. The framers of Jasonia, therefore, decided that bills would pass or fail not upon a certain quota of votes but after a certain period of time.

Procedure

In the weeks following the adoption of timed democracy, the details of its implementation were worked out by the Jasonian citizen body, headed by president Jason Steffke. The initial version allowed any Jasonian citizen in good standing to table, debate, and vote on bills, with voting allowed during debates. Debates would be closed at the first strike of 10 pm Eastern Time after 48 hours had elapsed, and the thresholds for adopting different categories of bills were as such:

Bill type Threshold
Diplomatic recognition 42.86% (3/7)
Law 50%
Constitutional amendment 75%
Any action that would infringe upon Jasonia's sovereignty 100%

Later on, Jasonia implemented several major changes to the system, such as the elimination of the diplomatic recognition threshold, procedures for amendments and deadline extensions, and a set of "haste voting rules" to allow for the quick passage of important matters.

Abuse

Towards the end of Jasonia's life, the timed democracy system was abused by factions wishing to ram their own agendas through the legislative process: bills were proposed during OOC holidays to minimize opposition; large groups campaigned for laws that would affect only a scant few people; and other shady practices were observed. Timed democracy became clearly susceptible to use as a weapon against political enemies, equally representative as it is of every citizen; yet, during Jasonia's early days, when most citizens were concerned only for the fledgling nation's well-being, the system proved satisfying and efficient, and indeed almost seemed as a self-preservation instinct for Jasonia amidst a sea of failing Apollo sector nations.

Outside Jasonia

Timed democracy, and especially the "haste voting rules" seen in its later version, was later adapted for use in the United Republic of Tymaria.