A History of Joke Campaigns
From Pope Lexus X to Aditya
Written by XIV
In light of the recent Presidential elections; and the blowback there was against Nick Sanguine and his joke candidacy, I decided to take a look at joke candidates from the past, and find out what kind of a history they have in Europeia. With this in mind I strapped on my spelunking gear and began to dig down into the depths of the Oval Room forum and all of its 100 pages, looking at campaign platforms to ferret out the joke campaigns, to see where they all started and how they have evolved.
I hoved through fossils and fragments, unearthing gyros and saunas and economies and what not, until I finally found what I believe to be the absolute starting point of the modern joke campaign. Campaign for Abstain! was posted on September 9, 2008, by a very well known Europeian politician named Pope Lexus X. It was posted as a criticism of Renposa, who was running unopposed for political office. While many arguments can be made for Campaign for Abstain not being a joke campaign, it is important to look at it obectively. It was a Presidential campaign being run without any platform policies, without a candidate, and seemingly without any hope for winning as Europeia's politically powerful had already flocked in droves to support Renposa, a promising Senator at the time. Campaign for Abstain turned the tide, and Abstain won the election.
Campaign for Abstain was, I believe, an important political moment for Europeia, and probably a turning point in the region, putting increased emphasis on the issues and ability of the candidate rather than focusing on their charisma or some intangible potential. While Campaign for Abstain! was definitely a serious effort, it was also an intensely brilliant satire of it's opponent, earning it the dubious priveledge of being Europeia's first joke campaign. Though far from its last.
Though Campaign for Abstain, was the father of all joke campaigns, it is a very distant relative to the perennial joke campaign that Europeia has come to know and, in most cases, hate. It is my belief that the modern joke campaign took a turn from the satirically poigniant to the simply annoying. It is my belief that the turning point came in the form of "I will post a bikini pic if I win", a campaign by Rach for Senate. This campaign started off as a joke, with Rach fielding such serious questions as "What are your thoughts on things?" and "How do Senate", mid way through the election however, competitiveness got the better of Rach, who could not stand not winning, and she posted, as her one and only campaign promise, to post a bikini pic if she won. Rach won a seat in the senate; and perhaps more importantly gave the illusion that nonserious candidacies could win; though most of them seem to have decided to pass on the point where she turned serious. It is my belief that Rach's victory in this campaign is what gave rise to the modern joke campaign, as there has been one in nearly every standing period since the successful conclusion of the Bikini Pic campaign -- similar to how there have been bikini pic promises ever since.
While most joke campaigns are ill received these days, there are definitely some that are actually lauded, like the campaign of Haley and Sopo. Ervald also ran a joke campaign for President, alongside running mate Erin, which was very well recieved. The key to this, it seems, is that it had some legitimate satire involved, and it didn't occupy a place on the ballot, with Ervald withdrawing his standing after posting the platform, which allowed the campaign to be run, without it actually interfereing with the political system of the region. These two facts seem to address the two major complaints with modern joke campaigns, they're not funny and they're detrimental to the system.
There is another kind of joke campaign, though it's not technically a joke campaign. It is the serious campaign that is so bad it becomes a joke in and of itself, the best example of this is a platform launched by Shufordbrian and Prometheus. Which debuted with such amazing typos, like the Ministery of Excommunication, in it caused multiple members to question the legitimacy of the campaign, despite assurances from the candidates that it was indeed a serious run.
The last notable joke campaign to take place in Europeia was Aditya 2016, and it was a cruel joke. The Aditya 2016 campaign was treated in a lighthearted manner by some, and with a kind of jovial glee by others, as it gave them a chance to poke fun at a member whose exuberance and impatience had lead to him being chastised several times for needing to learn patience. Aditya 2016 is notable not because the thread reached eight pages in length, but because it was the first joke campaign that I came across that was perpetrated more at the expense of it's candidate than as a joke by the candidate. Aditya 2016 is without a doubt the cruelest example of a joke campaign within Europeia, as it was perpatrated by older and more established members on a newer member who seemed to believe that support he was recieving was real, it also tricked that same newer member into believing that he had actual support for his candidacy, leading to a string of failed candidacies.
As this article comes to a close; I would like to share some parting thoughts on joke campaigns. In short, I believe that there is a place for them in Europeia. A competently run joke campaign includes actual humor, preferably satire or a particular aspect of the campaign or of a candidate. It does not detract from the political system, both Campaign for Abstain! and Forward with Ervald/Erin worked with the laws, with Campaign for Abstain! taking up the cause of a nonexistent candidate to highlight the weaknesses of its opponent, Abstain was already appearing on the ballot, and with Forward with Ervald/Erin making fun of a traditional campaign in its entirety, but not appearing on the ballot. However, and here's the really important thing: Remember that despite the fact that this is a game, people have poured years of their lives into this, building it up from nothing, against all odds. Whether you're running a joke campaign, or a serious one, try to respect the years of dedication that have been devoted to it, and not to insult the legacy that they have left behind. Or in the words of Common-Sense Politics: "Can you fucking not?"
Campaign for Abstain | I will post a bikini pic if I win | Forward with Ervald/Erin | Shufie/Prometheus Platform | Aditya 2016
Fine, wasn't there a Presidential campaign recently where Rach was on the ticket and the public didn't believe that it *wasn't* a joke ticket?
