HOW TO SENATE
So, you want to start writing your political career in the Galactic Alliance. There's a lot to get through and a lot to get to, but we've honed in on the basics and give an introduction to a new direction we're headed in. This guide will provide you with enough information to get started as quickly as possible. Give it a read, and you'll be ready to represent the Galactic Alliance with unmatched political acumen in no time.
OVERVIEW
Branches and Key Roles
- The Senate
- Senators
- Aides
- Representatives
- The Chamber
- Ministers
- Bureaucrats and Public Servants
- The Office of the Chancellor
- Chancellor
- Vice-Chancellor
- Aide to the Chancellor
The Senate is the legislative branch, concerned with deliberating and voting on new legislation. Thousands of worlds, sectors, systems and members have representation in the Senate. Though there exists hundreds of subcommittees and smaller working groups, the most important legislation is voted on by the entirety of the Senate, and debated in the Senate Building. Given the power of the Alliance on the galactic stage, many foreign diplomats, powerful corporations, and important organizations have representation in the Senate, though without official member-world status, they lack voting power. The Senate also serves as a check on the power of the other two branches, supervising the Chamber of Ministers and Office of the Chancellor for any potential infringements against the Alliance's founding document, the Common Charter.
The Chamber of Ministers
The Chamber of Ministers comprises of the ministries of State, Defense, Justice, Education, Health, Agriculture, Commerce, and Intelligence; each minister is appointed by the Chancellor, with the approval of the Senate. They, along with an army of bureaucrats and public servants, ensure the daily functioning of the Alliance. Most ministers are drawn from the ranks of the Senate; these groups are interwoven with working groups and policy committees, with each Ministry typically having a permanent Senate committee, and often some key subcommittees. The Chamber of Ministers works out of the Executive Building alongside the Office of the Chancellor.
The Office of the Chancellor
The Office of the Chancellor serves as the executive branch. The Chancellor is both the Alliance's Head of State and the Commander-In-Chief of the Defense Forces. They sign bills passed by the Senate into law, and typically preside over major Senate sessions. Within the Office of the Chancellor are those directly in service to the Chancellor, including staff aides and the Vice Chancellor, who also presides over Senate sessions. The Chancellor also has the ability to issue executive orders, and in times of crisis is often given emergency powers to combat threats to the Alliance. Votes for Chancellor are held every few years, and its candidates are drawn from the ranks of the Senate, with each political bloc usually putting forward a candidate to rally behind.
Overview
The Alliance Senate is a great way to shape the flavor and color of the Alliance. You get to bring your own bills onto the floor and have them voted on by the other senators. Diplomats and aides can lobby for votes, horse-trading until the bill of their senator has the support of the majority of the Senate.
There are some limitations however. While ICly the Senate votes on everything, the faction reserves major story turns and progressions to the discretion of GA Staff. This also counts for the election of major leadership roles such as the Chancellor and Vice-Chancellor that require alignment with the faction at large.
Other than this clear limit the Senate has a lot of room to shape the contours of the faction. Some examples of bills that have gone through and still influence the roleplay of the Galactic Alliance: the outlaw of clone armies, the banning of specific weaponry (disruptors), allowing corporations to expand trade and influence into the Southern Systems.
A list of all bills can be found here. These bills are also subjected to the amendment process. Any senator can bring up a new bill with the express purpose of modifying an already passed bill to offer tweaks or changes to the legislation.
Process
Any senator can fill out the template found here and post within this thread. Once the post has been submitted it is put forward for a vote that lasts for three days. After three days have passed, the votes are tallied and posted publicly on the faction forum and on our Discord. Major bills require posting a faction thread to allow vigorous IC discussion, and are often included in our dominions.
New Axes of Tension
With the Alliance’s rise to de-facto galactic superpower, the political landscape has shifted drastically. Though it has outlasted its enemies, allies, and rivals, new issues have rapidly arisen as the Alliance is presented with vast new frontiers for expansion and swathes of potential member-worlds. No longer are parties being organized primarily around their stance towards federal power or oversight. With so many opportunities and dangers, the Senate concerns itself with the future of the Alliance along two axes: Isolation-Expansion and Steward-Shepherd.
The opposition between isolationist and expansionist policies primarily concerns the nature of the Alliance’s growth and its policies around new member worlds. Isolationist policy sees the collapse of the neighbours of the Alliance as a sign of galactic instability – hasty expansion would bring that instability into the Alliance. Brought to the extreme, this may see doors close to all new member world applications, or perhaps even the closing of borders to refugees and expulsion of certain undesirable member worlds. Expansionist policy leans towards the relaxing of the membership process to allow the Alliance to grow further outwards in the galaxy, and generally taking the active interest in encouraging said growth.
Stewardship comes from the belief that, with the Alliance as the most powerful nation on the galactic stage, the responsibility for the safety and stability of the galaxy as a whole falls on the Alliance’s shoulders. To be a steward of the galaxy means intervention of many kinds, whether diplomatic, economic, or military. The chaos surrounding the Alliance must be quelled; the ship must be righted, with the Alliance at the helm. On the other hand, some see the Alliance’s role more as that of a shepherd; leading and being attentive, but not reaching too deep into the affairs of the galaxy, or even perhaps its own member worlds. This more passive approach is more likely to preserve local cultures, and does not presume the Alliance’s power as also a sign of its wisdom and righteousness.
These two axes intersect to create four general areas of the Senate’s political compass. An isolationist steward advocates for the keeping of a tight grasp on the Alliance’s membership, as well as intervention elsewhere in the galaxy to stabilize regions of conflict and chaos, whereas an expansionist shepherd might open up membership while keeping changes to local societies to a minimum. An isolationist shepherd might remind the Alliance to be content with what it has – after all, nations rise and fall quickly on the galactic stage – while an expansionist steward may encourage the sharing of the Alliance’s might throughout the galaxy. Political positions are very much a spectrum; in the chaos of this era, new alliances form and falter every day, and Senators may find themselves in unfamiliar company.
And of course, even with these axes, there are far more intangibles to politics; no one narrative can win, nor can one party. Vote for what you think is good (or what’s good for you).
to the GOATs of editing and collaborating, Annasari , Thaddeus Wyse , and IVI do we owe this post
