A critique of the recent Vishwamitran election

Disclaimer: This article is based purely on the opinion of the writer

On November 18th, a by-election in the State of Vishwamitra was held for Parliamentary constituency of Dhirenpara. On the ballot were candidates Gheorghe Marius and Isaiah Burdette, as well as a None of the Above (NoTA) option. Both Marius and Burdette both received 5/19 votes (26.3% of the vote), and NoTA received 9/19 (47.4%). In the end, Gheorghe Marius won the election, being declared at 1025 EST on November 19th.

A pie graph displaying the distribution of votes in the November 2020 by-election. (Source: Rashtradhyaksh Dhrubajyoti Roy in a Discord announcement)

My critique of the election largely comes from Marius’ victory and the fact a victor was decided at all. Vishwamitra currently has no concrete system for elections in place, with the Rashtradhyaksh Dhrubajyoti Roy providing no law to refer to, stating that this was a new system being tried out specifically for this election, meaning I had nothing to reference in this case. He also stated that the “The constitution is being compiled”, meaning there is also currently no public support of how Vishwamitran elections work.

When asked if this was a winner-take-all sort of situation, the Rashtradhyaksh said yes, which should mean that the NoTA option should have won the election if we’re simply working with a system where the winner of the most votes decides the outcome of the election. Instead, we had a tie for both candidates, with neither even winning the most votes, and with there being no transparent explanation why Marius won the election.

I asked Connor Stumperth, King of Atovia and the head of elections in Abelden, Atovia, and Pacem, what would happen if an option for none of the candidates won an election, and this is what he said.

Depends on the rules in that specific election. Generally it just means that none of those candidates win. It can either be a redo with different candidates or just no one taking the office until the next election

Connor Stumperth when questioned

Based on the lack of clear or public rules, and the basis that the most votes win, this by-election should have either had a recount or simply have left the seat vacant. However, as you can tell by now, this simply hasn’t happened.

While there is little that can be done, the currently in-progress constitution may bring some hope for Vishwamitran democracy. I personally suggest that there be clear rules detailing the process of situations such as this, where there is either a recount or some sort of new election later on, anything to better represent democracy in the state. While I congratulate Marius on his victory, winning an election while not representing 73.7% of voters is not something I cannot turn a blind eye to.

Vishwamitra is an emerging nation in the Microwiki community, and it’s taking its place quickly. The development of democracy is such a nation with its reputation is important for its outward image and for its own sake.

Currently, it is unknown whether the results of the election can be taken to court in Vishwamitra, so the Quo will not be considering that as an option at this time.

POST-PUBLISHING EDIT: Following this article, the Rashtradhyaksh Dhrubajyoti Roy has called a new by-election with only the two candidates and no NoTA options are being presented in this by-election. Thank you for the Vishwamitran government for hearing out my critiques, and congratulations to the newfound democracy.