Councillors of the General Council

Councillors, as the parliament of Tekniania, hold great power over what happens across the Allied States. As there are 713 of them, it’s quite common to see them walking around the streets of Kivoli or on ferries between islands. Here, I will explain who, what, why and where they are.

To become a Councillor, one must be:

a) a Teknianian citizen (double citizenships are allowed)
b) at least 24 years of age at the time of their election
c) a resident of the island they are representing for at least 5 consecutive years
d) having previously worked in either the federal or devolved government, or having served in the State or Allied Guard
e) having not been in any political party for at least 5 years

All these requirements have stayed mostly the same since Tekniania’s inception, with some minor changes to account for a changing society.

Almost all Councillors are elected in a general election, where they must receive a varying percentage of the vote to be elected, depending on the number of Councillors for the island. One can also become a Councillor by replacing someone who has died, is unable to carry out their duties permanently or has been removed from office via impeachment. These rare replacements happen with a by-election.

General Councillors (as they are most often referred to) all stand in general elections independently, not from parties or any other political organisations. This rule ensures that all of them actually serve the interests of their State and don’t just follow a party agenda. Councillors may, once on the General Council, form voting blocks and caucuses, but these all must remain non-binding, not pressuring members to vote in a particular way.

Once on the General Council, Councillors all receive a flat somewhere on Kivoli, allowing them to quickly and easily get to work. In terms of benefits, Councillors don’t receive much more. Their salary is only 10% higher than the average, that is, 70,000 pounds per year. Councillors can be prosecuted and impeached, their bank accounts and cash flow are under immense scrutiny by the Department of Finance, they receive no tax breaks or cuts, etc.

During General Council meetings, when The Speaker calls out who is next, General Councillors are referred to in the following manner: “nth Councillor from xyz”. “n” is replaced with the place they had in the last General Election, and “xyz” is replaced with the state they represent. For example, if a Councillor is from a state that has 3 seats on the General Council and they took 2nd place in the last election, they would be the “2nd Councillor from xyz.” If a Councillor is from a state that has only one seat, they are simply referred to as the “Councillor from xyz.”

During election campaigns, it’s common for several people to band up and run together to pool their resources and increase their chances of winning. This occasionally works, if their state is united behind them. However, historically and statistically speaking, Teknianians have often had incredibly politically diverse Councillors representing the same state.

Once they’ve been elected, General Councillors may, if they so choose, use the initials “GC” before their name and surname, but this is generally frowned upon and is rarely done. If a Councillor is also on the Special Council, they may use the initials “SGC” before their name.