15 Nov - FEC filings open
18 Nov - close FEC filings; election lists revealed; primaries outlined; allow 24 hours for primaried players (ONLY) to move to a vacant race (if two players choose to go to the same vacancy, they'll have to primary for it)
19 Nov - primaries (one day, ten events, flat $2MM per candidate)
20 Nov - primary results posted; final election lists publicized
21 Nov - prepolls posted for general elections
22 Nov - general election day 1
23 Nov - general election day 2
24 Nov - general election results posted; break for Thanksgiving
1 Dec - game resumes

Primaries
The admin staff is strongly encouraging all players to take full advantage of external primaries for the upcoming elections to begin the new reset. A new reset brings with it new opportunity and a clean slate for everyone, and we are fully aware of the excitement and enthusiasm present. With 40 elected positions up in the 2010 elections, a revamped 4E system, and plenty of other possibilities, the admin staff hopes that every single member of USG will be able to find something that truly excites them. If you're not having fun, then USG is failing.

Primaries in 2010 will be one day long, with 10 events. Every candidate will be given a flat $2MM to spend only on the primaries. None of your general election cash may be used during the primaries, and any cash left over at the end of the primaries disappears, and cannot be used in your general election. There will be no penalty to running in a primary - everything you say or do will be fair game, but primaries will exist in a bubble, so to speak. Your primary margin of victory will not be factored into your general election prepolls, and the fact that you were even in a primary will not hurt your character. Anything your primary opponent says or does may not be used against you by your opponent in the general election. Consider this a chance only to prove your mettle and to get some real practice and feedback on your event-writing prior to the general elections.

The only disadvantage to a primary is the time spent writing ten events.

That said, ten events should take you well under an hour to write, and if that's the only price to pay for a shot at the seat or position you truly want a chance at, take it. We're trying to truly encourage every player to go after exactly what they want in USG, regardless of party, tenure, or OOC matters.

As always, each Senate seat will be one of three classes, I, II or III. Class I seats will be up for reelection 6 years after the initial elections, II after 4 years and III after 2. Each region has two classes assigned to it. The winning candidate with the higher margin of victory within their region shall be rewarded with the lower of the two classes.

The regional breakdown for classes is as follows-

Note: The election schedule has been released. It is at the top of this thread. It is significantly different from the tentative schedule released on the old boards.


For 2010 only, we are going to allow characters in a primary a choice to "opt out" and move to an uncontested race. When the filings close, we'll release a list of all primaries as well as all races which currently have a vacant seat. Any character who is in a primary will have 24 hours to shift their registration to a vacancy (in the same party). If more than one character moves to the same vacancy, there will be a primary there.

FEC filings have opened here. You have until noon on Tuesday to file.

Expect your platforms to be due by midnight Tuesday, regardless of whether or not you're in a primary.

First, see this rule change concerning LW here.

If you are filing to run for a Senate seat, please remember to list either Seat A or B. That way we will be able to tell who will be facing who.

To address a question I've been asked by a few people:

If you are filing in the FEC for a Governor slot, you cannot leave the Lt. Gov. slot open (by putting "TBA") to save the spot for a character who loses a primary (since the primaries are after FEC registration closes). The Lt. Gov. slot MUST be filled prior to the closing of FEC registration.

Friendly reminder- If you have filed to run for a Senate seat, make sure to include whether you are running for Seat A or Seat B. If you have not done this by the time the FEC Deadline passes, your filing will be considered void.

Threads for elections have been posted. The forum is moderated.

You have until midnight tomorrow to post your platform, regardless of primary status.

I just finished compiling the FEC listings and was dreading coding them all for release, when I saw Cav was nice enough to do it in the Pick 'Em thread. So, shamelessly stolen. Thanks Cav.

2010 Election List

Northeast:

Governor: PRIMARY vs. Mitch Eubanks
Lt. Governor: PRIMARY vs. Hunter Douglas

New England
Senate A: PRIMARY vs. Donald Leung
Senate B: Madison Ballentine vs. Sam Hamilton

New York
Senate A: Carlie Fox vs. Willow Jaynes
Senate B: Archie Sanford vs. Eric Stevenson

Mid-Atlantic:

Governor: Justin Casanova-Davis vs. Jack Pizzuto
Lt. Governor: Pamela Adcock vs. Donovan Moore

Alleghenies
Senate A: PRIMARY vs. PRIMARY
Senate B: Jackson P. Rockefeller vs. Vincent McMahon Kennedy

Atlantic Seaboard
Senate A: PRIMARY vs. Gordon Mitchell
Senate B: Mario Menendez vs. Andrew Moore

Appalachia:

Governor: Ellis Dailey vs. Coleman Blease Courtenne
Lt. Governor: Marshall Wagner vs. Xavier Kempff

Bluegrass
Senate A: Esther Cullen vs. Brian Murphy
Senate B: Nathaniel Jericho vs. Katie Atlas

Shenandoah
Senate A: Jason Richards vs. David Summerville
Senate B: PRIMARY vs. Kyle Baccei

Gulf Coast:

Governor: Daniel Morey vs. Matt Mitchell
Lt. Governor: Thomas Zatzinger vs. Felicity Carmichael

Seminole
Senate A: Dmitri Kowalchuk vs. Lillian Clemantis Wolfe
Senate B: Ryan Santos-Carter vs. Sergei Kerzhakov

Deep South
Senate A: Nicole Annabelle Bradley vs. Oscar Huckleberry Perry
Senate B: Patricia Marie Sorenson vs. Jefferson Pooty

Heartland:

Governor: Andrew Grant Anderson vs. Sammy Winchester
Lt. Governor: David Brolin vs. Davis Jefferson

Texas
Senate A: Bill McCoy vs. Asteria Adeline Abbingdon
Senate B: Cole Herring Brickman vs. Herbert Edward Nielson

Farm Belt
Senate A: PRIMARY vs. Terry Hughes
Senate B: J. K. Edwards vs. Victoria Provost Payne

Midwest:

Governor: Nathaniel Fremont vs. Thomas J. Allum
Lt. Governor: Averell Breckinridge vs. Giselle Hopkins

Wabash Valley
Senate A: George Jameson vs. Wynton Anderson Marsalis
Senate B: Jimmy Kennedy vs. David Vithoulkas

Great Lakes
Senate A: Rogers Dewey vs. Andrew Morrison
Senate B: Ted Babin vs. Orson Pierce

Northwest:

Governor: PRIMARY vs. William Reynard
Lt. Governor: PRIMARY vs. Eric Morrison

Cascadia
Senate A: Julia Sabates vs. Mark Hasegawa
Senate B: Danielle Morgenthau vs. John Forest

Big Sky Country
Senate A: William Rutland vs. Ken MacLeod
Senate B: Emma Adcock vs. James Lightfoot

Southwest:

Governor: Haley Elizabeth Cavalier vs. Andrew Seong
Lt. Governor: Montgomery Hughes vs. John Mandry

California
Senate A: Olude Carter vs. Josef Kowalski
Senate B: PRIMARY vs. Jackson P. Watkiss

Sunbelt
Senate A: Glenn Russell vs. Thomas Michael Caffee
Senate B: Layna Knightley vs. Markus Nathaniel Rasan

PRIMARIES:
NOR Governor: Valerie Francis vs. Francis Patrick Napier vs. Victor Bradshaw
New England A: Natalie Roberts vs. Sheldon Bradley
New England B: Samuel Hamilton vs. Carlos M. Cruz
Alleghenies A: John Kent vs. Zach Frye
Alleghenies A: Archibald Jones vs. Wendell Letterman
Atlantic Seaboard A: Teddy Weinberg vs. Taylor N. Thomas
Shenandoah B: Sebastian Williams vs. J. Martin Pennypot
Farm Belt A: Hector von Krupke vs. Martha Ray Towne
Northwest Governor: Victoria Von Doom vs. Zachary Flint
California B: Rand Hart vs. Alexandra Hughes

Also, note that there are no open slots to be claimed, so all primaries will go forward according to the schedule.

There will now be no GOP Primary for NE-B. Cruz has withdrawn.

Please remember that platforms and budgets are due tonight by midnight. Failure to have a platform posted results in an automatic default.

Yes, we know that everyone's budget will look the same to begin with. They're still required.

"How do I tell if my post has gone through!?"

In the forum (not in the thread), look to the left of the thread title, to the little icon next to the thread. If you have posted in a thread, it will look like this: . If not, it will look like this: .

Well, it seems that at least a handful of people didn't pay mind to the platform deadline. My previous post stated that there would be an automatic default. We are reversing that decision and, instead, simply applying a late penalty. If you have failed to post your platform, post it now. You will receive a late penalty. If you posted your platform even one minute late, expect a late penalty.The grading admin will announce when a default occurs.

EDIT: This is for the general elections.

Nothwesterners- your results will come in tomorrow morning.

By mutual agreement from both parties and with my consent, due to a candidate's family crisis it has been agreed to extend the Day 2 deadline for Big Sky Country B to 9 PM EST tomorrow. This will be a final deadline, with late applications resulting in a DQ.

Cascadian Seats

It's a little unique- Cascadia B wasn't really a default, but there is an ungraded Day 2 due to the fact the grading exercise is a waste of time and de facto a default. We'd determined that defaults get the lower seat and I feel that applies here. Therefore, I'm awarding Sabates Cascadia I (6 years) and Morgenthau Cascadia II (4 years).

Incidentally, if you're thinking of ditching the Northwest and your character there after this election please PM me. Thank you.

Midwest Lieutenant Governor

The Midwest Lieutenant Governor has yet to be decided. I am giving the Democratic LtG Candidate Averell Breckenridge until midnight tomorrow (11/25/08 at midnight) to turn in his 10 events for the Lieutenant Governorship.

The Midwest Lieutenant Governor race actually was closer than I thought it would be. But, coattails really does matter. The Republican candidate Hopkins becomes the Lieutenant Governor.

Tying up loose ends, governor terms are as follows:

1 NOR Valerie Francis (D) - 2yr
2 NW Zachary Flint (D) - 4yr
3 APP Ellis Forrestal (D) - 4yr
4 SW Haley Cavalier (D) - 2yr
5 MW Thomas Allum ® - 2yr
6 MID Jack Pizzuto ® - 4yr
7 HRT Sammy Winchester ® - 2yr
8 GC Matt Mitchell ® - 4yr