Constitution of Callista

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Preamble
The Constitution of Callista, by the authority of the Tsar, the regional government of Callista, and the people of Callista, is established as the sole and indisputable framework of the regional government and shall be acknowledged by all members of Callista present, and future, and by all members of Nationstates foreign and domestic.

Article 1: The Tsardom

1. The rules laid forth in this dispatch shall lay out the government's structure and contain all of the frameworks of said government.

2. The regional government shall be known as the Tsardom of Callista.

Article 2: Citizenship

1. A citizen is defined as a human being who resides in Callista and has been accepted as a citizen. No citizen is permitted to control more than one nation inside Callista.

2. All citizens are entitled to certain privileges, which take effect immediately 24 hours after their acceptance and shall not be accessible after leaving Callista for 24 hours or renouncing their citizenship. The privileges are as follows:

1. The right to free speech as long as it does not violate Nationstates and Callistan laws.

2. The right to register political parties and freely associate with any Callistan organization.

3. The right to run for office in Callistan elections.

4. The right to vote in Callistan elections.

5. The right to exchange endorsements freely.

6. The right to establish an Independent Roleplay.

7. The right to sue any citizen, resident, foreigner, organization, or the government.

8. The right to a fair trial and lawyer.

3. A foreign member is a human being who has no residency in the region of Callista and resides in regions that may or may not have embassies with Callista.

1. Citizens or Residents who leave Callista for more than 24hrs will be considered foreigners.

2. Foreign members have the right to a fair trial and lawyer and the right to free speech as long as it does not break Callistan and NationStates laws.

4. If a citizen ceases to exist, the nation must submit a new citizenship application before becoming a citizen again. If an honorary citizen ceases to exist but moves to Callista after being refounded, they must submit a new citizenship application before becoming a citizen.

5. A list of all present citizens of Callista shall be created and maintained on Callista dispatches.

6. A list of all warnings and regional bans, both temporary and permanent, shall be created and maintained on Callista dispatches.

7. A resident is defined as a human being who resides in Callista and has not been accepted as a citizen. No resident is permitted to control more than one nation inside Callista.

8. All residents are entitled to certain privileges, which take effect immediately upon their entry into the region and shall not be accessible when they leave Callista. The privileges are as follows:

1. The right to free speech as long as it does not violate Nationstates and Callistan laws.

2. The right to exchange endorsements freely.

3. The right to a fair trial and lawyer.

Article 3: The Monarchy

1. The region shall possess a Governor, known as the "Tsar". The Tsar will serve as the Monarch of Callista.

2. The Tsar may only use their executive powers in times of emergency.

1. Times of emergency are raids, constitutional crises, election denial, or other situations that threaten regional security.

3. The Tsar must remain officially politically neutral and is forbidden from joining political parties, being associated with Callistan organizations, and contesting elections. The Tsar's vote will not count in an election, bill, or amendment polls.

4. If The Tsar is found to have abused their power or violated this article of the constitution, a court case may be presented whereas if found guilty the Head Justice shall determine appropriate punishment at their discretion.

5. The region shall possess a Successor, known as the "Tsarevich." The Tsarevich will serve as the heir apparent of Callista.

1. The Tsarevich can be any citizen of the Tsardom and is appointed by the Tsar.

2. If the Tsar abdicates or ceases to exist, the Tsarevich becomes the new Tsar.

Article 4: The Council of State

1. The region shall possess a Council of State, the executive and legislative body of Callista. The Council of State can write bills and propose amendments to the Constitution. The Council of State contains seven ministers who have different regional duties. Nations may only hold one office in the Council of State at the same time.

2. The region shall possess a Head of Government, known as the "Prime Minister," elected by citizens. The Prime Minister will chair the Council of State, and can accept or deny citizenship forms, guard the region against foreign threats such as quorum raiders, manage the World Factbook Entry, pin/unpin dispatches, hold regional events, enforce regional rules, and ban or eject nations deemed "suspicious."

1. A suspicious nation is a nation that has been deemed to have potential or confirmed links to banned nations, a nation that is impersonating other nations, or a nation that has been deemed beyond reasonable doubt a puppet of another nation that wishes to engage in harm against the region, or a nation which is explicitly a security threat to the region.

3. The region shall possess a Deputy Head of Government, known as the "Lieutenant Prime Minister," elected by citizens alongside the Prime Minister. The Lieutenant Prime Minister will assist the Prime Minister in their duties.

4. The region shall possess a Foreign Minister, known as the "Minister of Foreign Affairs," appointed by the Prime Minister. They are responsible for negotiating with other regions, establishing relationships between Callista and other regions and organizations, and representing the Callistan government in other regions and organizations.

5. The region shall possess a Chief Justice, known as the "Head Justice," elected by citizens. The Head Justice will have the final say in legal disputes between residents and has the power to overturn Amendments, Bills, and Laws if they are deemed unconstitutional.

1. The Overturning of Amendments, Bills, and Laws can be rejected by an absolute majority in the Cabinet and the Tsar.

6. The region shall possess an Interior Minister, known as the "Minister of Domestic Affairs," appointed by the Head Justice. The Minister of Domestic Affairs will be responsible for regulating the regional message board, regulating conflicts between regional members, giving out warnings to members, acting as the border patrol of the region, and investigating suspicious activity.

7. The region shall possess a Roleplay Minister, known as the "Minister of Roleplay," elected by citizens. The Minister of Roleplay can end all roleplay disputes, appoint roleplay moderators and a map cartographer, and facilitate the official Callistan Roleplay.

1. A roleplay dispute is when two or more nations disagree about the legality of a certain mechanic or occurrence. Roleplay moderators can overrule a roleplay dispute decision by the Minister of Roleplay in a unanimous vote.

8. The region shall possess a Press Minister, known as the "Minister of Press." The Minister of Press shall be a puppet nation, controlled by the members of the Council of State, but primarily controlled by a Prime-Minister-appointed citizen. They shall be used for posting official dispatches. They cannot be replaced and will always be the nation Callista dispatches.

9. The World Assembly Delegate is the nation which has the most endorsements, holds WA Authority and is not an appointed position.

Article 5: Legislation

1. Legislation may be submitted by a member of the Council of State or a cooperating citizen to the Council of State. Proposed legislation must include a preamble, defining the contents of said legislation, and at minimum 3 sections detailing how the legislation will be enacted.
1. Legislation is defined as a bill or proposed amendment that has not been passed.

2. A Bill is a proposed law.

3. A law is passed legislation that does not alter the text of the Constitution.

4. An amendment is passed legislation that alters the Constitution.

5. If legislation is proposed by a non-member of the Council of State, the Minister of Domestic Affairs has one week to submit legislation. If the Minister of Domestic Affairs publicly declares they are not able to submit legislation, any other member of the Council of State may do so.

2. After the piece of legislation is submitted, the Head Justice will rule if the legislation is constitutional.

1. Constitutional is defined as an action or legislation that follows the Constitution.

2. If the Head Justice rules the legislation unconstitutional, the legislation will be overturned. It will be sent back to the author explaining why the legislation is unconstitutional.

3. Overturning legislation can be overruled by an absolute majority of the Council of State and the Tsar.

3. After the piece the legislation is ruled constitutional by the Head Justice, it will be debated by the Council of State. The Council of State can add specific edits to proposed legislation. Legislation is passed through the Council of State once an absolute majority votes in favor. Alternatively, the Council of State can reject a piece of legislation for the following reasons:

1. Does not follow Legislation formatting guidelines.

2. Presented in a self-serving manner.

3. Attempting to abolish privileges of Callistan citizens or residents.

4. If the author believes the legislation's proposed edits are unfair or the rejectionon was unlawful, the author is entitled to sue the government. If the government is found guilty, the legislation will move to the next stage, with the rejection being declared null or the proposed edits removed from the text of the legislation.

1. The Head Justice will carry the case unless implicated in the lawsuit. If implicated, the Tsar will judge the case. In case the Tsar is not available to carry the case, the Tsarevich will judge the case

5. After the piece of legislation is accepted, the legislation is given a 24-hour consultation period, where citizens and residents of Callista may voice their opinions on the legislation.

6. Following a 24-hour consultation period, the legislation will be put up for a referendum. If it passes with a simple majority, the legislation will be enacted and implemented into law or the constitution.

Article 6: Elections

1. Citizens may register their candidacy for an election, by sending a telegram to Callista dispatches, 24 hours before the election begins at midnight, Eastern Standard Time, election day. Citizens may only register their candidacy for one office at a time, and if defeated in an election may register their candidacy for the upcoming elections in a general election cycle.
1. Citizens may register their candidacy for an election during or after the 24 hours if no other citizen has registered.

2. Campaigning is banned for the full 24-hour duration of all scheduled elections. Election day campaigning is defined as soliciting votes and sending out campaign telegrams to citizens. Soliciting votes is defined as contacting nations publicly or privately in order to convince them to vote for a certain candidate and advocating for a vote for their candidacy in the RMB or other regional discussion pages.

1. Campaigning on election day results in the candidate being taken off the ballot and all votes for them to be null, along with being unable to run in any other potential contests during the next 3 months. If a non-candidate campaigns for a candidate on election day, they will receive a one-day RMB ban.
2. If more than one candidate remains in the event of a candidate being removed from the ballot, the election will be rescheduled for another full 24 hours at the soonest possible time, and no longer than a day after the removal of the candidate. Election day campaigning is allowed during interim election campaigns, besides incentivizing citizens to vote for a certain candidate.
3. All campaign materials and the candidate’s names are to be linked in a regionwide telegram to all Callistans on election day, along with the election poll. This is to be replicated in a RMB post as well. Campaign materials are the official campaign dispatches of all candidates or an official RMB statement when provided by a candidate who lacks a campaign dispatch.

3. Elections will be held in January, May, and September. *

1. Elections for Prime Minister and Lieutenant Prime Minister will be held on the first of these months.

2. Elections for Head Justice will be held on the eighth of these months.

3. Elections for Minister of Roleplay will be held on the fourteenth of these months.

4. If there is only 1 candidate, that person automatically holds the office. If there are more than two candidates, the election will be decided via a two-round system, whereas the top two candidates advance to a second round if no one wins 51+% of the vote.

5. All Elections will last 24 hours with the second round being held the next day for 24 hours.

4. If a tie occurs, the affected candidates will discuss how they want to resolve the tie.

1. If within 16 hours of the election elapsing the affected candidates have not reached a consensus, then a game of random chance will be held by the Tsar to determine the winner.

2. Random chance games must be best out of 5 or agreed upon by the affected candidates as otherwise.

3. If the Tsar is not present to administer the game live, then the game may be administered to another person agreed upon by the affected candidates; otherwise, the game will be delayed until the Tsar can administer the chance game.

5. After winning an election, citizens who already hold an office must resign from their previous position to accept their new office if their term hasn't expired.

6. If a scheduled election is not held on the date it is meant to be held, the election in question will be held the day in Eastern Standard Time after the error is first highlighted on the regional message board.

7. The Head Justice of Callista can order an investigation into an election if the Head Justice and 2 other residents provide evidence that suggests election manipulation. An absolute majority of the Council of State must confirm the order.

1. Upon the order, the election is frozen and no new votes are counted.

2. If it is proven beyond a reasonable doubt that election manipulation has taken place, the election is to be scrapped with the candidacy of the perpetrating party disqualified.

3. If it is not proven beyond a reasonable doubt that election manipulation has taken place, the election is to commence as normal.

4. Reasonable doubt is defined as evidence that has been presented that is factual and so clearly defined that any rational person would accept it as fact.

8. Bribery is strictly prohibited.

1. Bribery is defined as any offer of a potential appointment in exchange for a vote, telegram stamp, warning clearance, protection from legal prosecution, and other clear and definable instances of bribery that are determined by the HJ and approved by the Council of State.

2. Nations accused of bribery will be subject to a court trial and if found guilty will be given a 3-month political ban. If the accused is a member of the Council of State, then they will be subject to impeachment

Article 7: Vacancies

1. If the office of Prime Minister becomes vacant, the following members of the Council of State shall become Acting Prime Minister, the Lieutenant Prime Minister, the Head Justice, the Minister of Domestic Affairs, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, and the Minister of Roleplay in that order. Should all of these offices be vacant, the Tsar will appoint a citizen as Acting Prime Minister. If the Tsar is not present to make an appointment, the Tsarevich will appoint a new Acting Prime Minister.

2. If the office of Lieutenant Prime Minister becomes vacant, the Prime Minister will appoint a new Lieutenant Prime Minister.

3. If the office of Head Justice becomes vacant, the Minister of Domestic Affairs shall become Acting Head Justice.

1. Should that office be vacant too, the Tsar, the Tsarevich and Council of State will appoint an Acting Head Justice.

4. If the office of the Minister of Domestic Affairs becomes vacant, the Head Justice will appoint a new Minister of Domestic Affairs.

1. Should that office be vacant too, the Tsar, the Tsarevich and Council of State will appoint a new Minister of Domestic Affairs.

5. If the office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs becomes vacant, the Prime Minister will appoint a new Minister of Foreign Affairs.

6. If the office of the Minister of Roleplay becomes vacant, the Tsar, the Tsarevich and the Council of State will appoint an Acting Minister of Roleplay.

7. Two days after the offices of Prime Minister, Head Justice, or Minister of Roleplay are vacated, a special election will be held.

1. Special Elections are defined as elections taking place on non-standard days after an office is vacated. During special elections, rules about campaigning are suspended.

2. Special Elections may be canceled if the office was vacated two weeks before the office's election.

Article 8: Impeachment

1. Any resident may petition the Minister of Domestic Affairs to initiate an investigation against any member of the Council of State. The Minister of Domestic Affairs must cooperate.
1. Should the Minister of Domestic Affairs be accused, the Lieutenant Prime Minister will investigate and carry the case.

2. Should the Minister of Domestic Affairs and the Lieutenant Prime Minister be accused, the Tsarevich or any other member of the Council of State, except for the Head Justice, will investigate and carry the case.

2. Following the investigation, the Head Justice will hold an impeachment trial.

1. Should the Head Justice be accused, the Tsar will hold the trial.

2. Should the Tsar not be present, the Tsarevich will hold the trial.

3. Should the accused be found guilty, the Head Justice, the Tsar, or the Tsarevich will deliver a verdict and punishment.

1. Possible punishments include temporary suspension from office for a maximum of five days, a political ban, removal from office, removal from office while being banned from Callista, or other punishments the Head Justice or the Tsar sees fit.

Article 9: Court Proceedings

1. After a citizen formally sues a resident, institution, the government, or another citizen, the plaintiff may prosecute the defendant themselves or transfer the case to the Minister of Domestic Affairs.
1. If the Minister of Domestic Affairs is unavailable, the Lieutenant Prime Minister may carry the case.

2. The defendant may hire another citizen as their attorney.

3. The prosecution and the defense have a maximum of 24 hours to present evidence before the Head Justice.

1. If the Head Justice is unavailable, a Jury consisting of the Tsarevich and the Council of State will Judge the case.

2. Should a member of the Council of State or the Tsarevich be unavailable or a member of the defense or prosecution, they will be excluded from the Jury.

3. If the 24-hour deadline to present evidence expires without the prosecution presenting any evidence, the defendant will be declared innocent.

4. This deadline may be suspended early by the Head Justice or Jury if all evidence has been presented.


4. After all evidence is presented, the prosecution and the defense are given 24 to 72 hours to present their oral arguments.

1. If the deadline to present oral arguments expires without the prosecution delivering any, the defendant will be declared innocent.

2. This deadline may be suspended early by the Head Justice or Jury if all oral arguments have been given.

5. After the deadline given to the parties to present their oral arguments expires, the Head Justice will give their verdict.

1. The Head Justice will refer to the Constitution, laws, precedent, or their reasoning to justify a verdict.

6. After a verdict is given, the Head Justice or a member of the Council of State will carry out or enforce a verdict.

7. After a verdict is delivered, the defendant may appeal.

1. The Tsar and Head Justice may deny or delay an appeal.

2. During an appeal, the Tsar can nullify the verdict if it's considered unjust.

3. After the verdict is nullified, the Tsar and Head Justice may create a new verdict or declare the defendant innocent.

Article 10: Recall Referendums

1. Any citizen may initiate a “Recall Petition,” which is defined as a factbook or dispatch created for the purpose of calling for the removal of a member of the Government of Callista from their position of authority.
1. A Recall Petition must include the name of the Government member the author of the document wishes to remove, their reasoning behind the initiation of a Recall Petition, and a list of signatories.
2. The Tsar and Tsarevich are exempt from being targeted by a Recall Petition.

2. A Recall Petition must collect an amount of signatures from citizens equivalent to twenty-five (25) percent of the citizen population of Callista at the time of the Petition’s creation, within 5 days of its creation, to initiate a Recall Referendum.

1. If twenty-five percent of the citizen population of Callista at the time of the Petition’s creation is not a whole number, the required amount of signatories shall be rounded up to the nearest whole number.
2. If the Petition fails to collect the required amount of signatures, the Petition is null and void, and the targeted Member of government is immune from a subsequent call for a Recall Petition for one month.
3. A signatory must indicate active intent to sign the Petition, which can be demonstrated through the creation of a dispatch, an RMB or other Callistan message board post, or a telegram stating their intent to sign the Petition, and which which cannot be prompted by any nation through the use of bribery or threat.
4. In the case of a signatory using a telegram to state their intent to sign the Petition, the citizen who initiated the Recall Petition must provide evidence of their telegram through a screenshot, which must be linked in the Petition next to that signatory’s name.
5. If a signatory wishes to remove their signature from the Petition, they must demonstrate active intent through the creation of a dispatch, an RMB or other Callistan message board post, or a telegram stating their intent to remove their signature the Petition, and which which cannot be prompted any nation through the use of bribery or threat.
5. If a signatory wishes to remove their signature from the Petition, they must demonstrate active intent through the creation of a dispatch, an RMB or other Callistan message board post, or a telegram stating their intent to remove their signature the Petition, and which which cannot be prompted any nation through the use of bribery or threat.
6. The author of the Petition must remove all nations from their Petition who demonstrate active intent to remove their name from the Petition, if they do not do so, the Petition is declared null and void, and the target of the Petition is immune from being targeted by a subsequent Petition for one month.
7. Once the threshold of signatures to initiate a Referendum has been reached, signatories can no longer withdraw their signatures.

4. A Recall Referendum poll shall be opened within 48 hours of a Recall Petition reaching the required amount of signatures. The poll will last for 24 hours, and be open to all citizens except the member of Government who is being targeted by the Petition.

1. The Recall Referendum poll shall indicate the member of Government targeted, indicate that the Referendum will Recall said member if successful, list an “Aye” and “Nay” option, and link to the Recall Petition in the poll description.

5. If the Referendum succeeds, the targeted member of Government is to be dismissed from their position at the earliest possible period, and their position is to become Vacant.

1. For the period of time between the successful Referendum and the dismissal of the member of Government, the officer is to be considered “Recalled,” and is barred from engaging in any duties of their position, which will be treated as Vacant while the officer is Recalled.

6. If the Referendum fails, the Petition is declared null and void, and the targeted member of Government is immune from being targeted by a subsequent Recall Petition for one one month from the date of the poll.

7. If the Referendum results in a tie, the poll shall be repeated in the exact same format once. If the Referendum ties again, the Petition is null and void.

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* Changes will be applied in January 2026 (Missing October 2025 elections)