Smokin' Poll: Senate General - Dec '21

Common-Sense Politics

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Deputy Minister
Honoured Citizen
Citizen
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Over the course of the weekend 38 Europeians responded to this poll regarding their preferences germane the upcoming general elections for Senate. Here are the results. Trends from our November poll are shown in parentheses. Analysis may be added later (this took like 3 hours) but will definitely be discussed on EBC Radio tomorrow.

How long have you been active in Europeia?

5+ years - 34.2% (+4.9)
Less than 6 months - 21.2% (+9)
2 to 5 years - 18.4% (-8.4)
1 to 2 years - 15.8% (+3.6)
6 months to 1 year - 10.5% (-9)

Which of these statements best describes you as a player?

I am slightly more interested in political gameplay than social gameplay - 34.2% (+0.1)
I am substantially more interested in political gameplay than social gameplay - 28.9% (-0.4)
My interest in political gameplay and social gameplay is equal - 23.7% (-3.1)
I am slightly more interested in social gameplay than political gameplay - 10.5% (+0.7)
I am substantially more interested in social gameplay than political gameplay - 2.6% (+2.6)


Did you vote in the last Senate general election, held in October of this year?

Yes - 73.7%
No - 21.1%
I can't remember - 5.3%


Did you vote in the last Presidential election (first round or runoff or both), held in November of this year?

Yes - 97.4%
No - 2.6%
I can't remember - 0%


Should Europeia become a stronghold or a frontier region upon the implementation of the impending NationStates technical update?

Definitely frontier - 28.9% (+4.5)
Lean frontier - 26.3% (-5.4)
Lean stronghold - 23.7% (+4.2)
Definitely stronghold - 13.2% (+5.9)
Unsure - 7.9% (-9.2)


Is Europeia doing enough to prepare for the Stronghold/Frontier update?

No - 44.7% (-11.4)
Yes - 28.9% (+9.4)
Unsure - 26.3% (+1.9)


- The Senate has been woefully inactive

- Maybe it's early on, but this doesn't seem like a Government preparing for a Referendum or one willing to prove the veracity of their pro-Stronghold point.

- I would like to see tentative, but concrete, plans presented to the citizenry regardless of which path Europeia takes when the F/S Update comes to pass. The more time we can see and discuss the pros and cons of our approach, I think will only serve us in the long run.

- I think we're going in a good direction, obviously we're not fully prepared to go Frontier at this very moment but we're getting there

- I think it's being approached carefully and with discussion.

- I mostly think we're doing okay with the info we have but I'd like to see more activity on the developing the Frontier act front (pun intended) which I think the Senate is neglecting a bit

- Wish there were more details provided for the update. Right now, the details still look pretty fuzzy.

- We have a strong enough plan with our gameside engagement currently, and a solid strategy focussed on the Frontier path, but with additional security prepared for if we stay Stronghold for the time being, no matter what we decide. I feel confident in our current position.

- electing Darc and UPC was a good start

- People are a little sick of it, but we should get back into it soon

- After I heard the recent statements on this issue I have rethought about this statement.

- I feel like we're moving in a particular direction, but there's still a major lack of consensus about what the right decision is for the region. So we're spinning our wheels a bit.

How satisfied are you with the review of the Europeian Intelligence Agency and the position of its Director performed by the Senate so far?

Very satisfied - 10.5%
Somewhat satisfied - 28.9%
Unsure - 23.7%
Somewhat unsatisfied - 21.1%
Very unsatisfied - 15.8%


- The Senate's been dithering around, doesn't seem to know what it wants. Is it just an empty power play?

- It seems like they're going to let the EIA escape without a satisfactory overview. In my opinion, disband the thing entirely.

- Just leave the EIA alone, oversight for oversights sake is only harmful and will help absolutely no one

- I'm on the opinion that the Senate should have little oversight over the DEIA and that, if anything, the DEIA should be more closely tied in with the Judiciary as any such matters that could result in proceedings have to go thru our Court and/or the Admin team anyhow. The Senate is ultimately the voice of the People, and *people* can act irrationally, have knee-jerk responses, or be so off the mark in the opinions that it borders on ridiculousness.

- Personally, I would make it where the President gets to choose and place his Director without even Senate confirmation bar the following - If concerned, the Senate has the power to force a confirmation hearing, in the situations the DEIA has resigned, or if the DEIA has been expelled from his position by the President - in those circumstances, the Senate would have the power of Committee and/or Confirmation.

- I think the loss is not worth the little bit of oversight gained by giving broader powers to the Senate in this particular situation.

- I'm not really sure if it's a productive discussion. The focus should be more on the President and how they use the information they get, rather than the information itself.

- I'm glad progress is being made with the Senate cooperating with the DEIA

- seems like the DEIA keeps moving the goalposts. senate needs to step up

- It is reaching the point where I'm asking myself whether the Senate is in search of a problem.

- HEM sort of hits the nail on the head - the Senate is in a tough spot where oversight is needed and desired by the citizenry but that there's not much flexibility from the DEIA (perhaps for good reason). I'm curious to see where the discussion goes.

- I don't think this is something that requires the attention and oversight the senate is demanding, and Kazaman is right to push back on the security risks that the senate are potentially exposing our region to.

- the EIA is fine. there's no need for reform

- There could be a bit more public clarity by the Government and Executive on this issue a bit more to fully understand what the situation is about the EIA and DEIA.

- I don't think anything will change, but I appreciate that the Senate is either 1 - thinking aloud about the conflicts and issues they're grappling with or 2 - pointing out that the DEIA is being infinitely difficult to work with while he tries to set the agenda and disregards the valid concerns of our legislative branch

How satisfied are you with the current version of the Frontier Act?

Very satisfied - 10.5%
Somewhat satisfied - 31.6%
Unsure - 28.9%
Somewhat unsatisfied - 21.1%
Very unsatisfied - 7.9%

- Needs lots more polishing

- At least on *this*, the Senate appears to have some sense of momentum. Good bill overall though.

- I am happy with some of the proposed changes specifically to WAD power (Vice Delegate would need to be nominated by the President, and not the WAD; and requires Senate confirmation). Overall I think its moving in the right direction for a possible Frontier future, but I don't have a particularly strong opinion one way or another.

- The proposed changes are nice, but I think it's a good base for further work

- The concept is good but I'd like to see more refinement and specifics

- If the term-by-term flip-flops on gameside policy by different executives has shown us anything, it's that if we want to become a frontier, we need institutional change for our gameside included in legislation. Hoping that the executive will hold itself accountable is wishful thinking.

- Need to keep working through the problems brought up by the president, but headed in the right direction.

- The Frontier Act is alright and I have not much to say about it for right now.

How satisfied are you with the scrutiny the Senate as a whole placed on President Darcness' executive nominees?

Very satisfied - 39.5%
Somewhat satisfied - 36.8%
Unsure - 7.9%
Somewhat unsatisfied - 13.2%
Very unsatisfied - 2.6%


How satisfied are you with the performance of the Senate as a whole?

Very satisfied - 36.8%
Somewhat satisfied - 34.2%
Unsure - 13.2%
Somewhat unsatisfied - 7.9%
Very unsatisfied - 7.9%

- Very inactive, borderline incompetent

- Definitely better than they were last term!

- The senate seems to be creating more problems than it solves currently

- I can't quite put my finger on it, but there's something about how this Senate operates that irks me. I honestly wish I could elaborate, but it's just a... maybe a lack of big picture thinking or thinking beyond the moment? That's not really it, but it's just enough to frustrate me.

- The Senate is active, no denying that, but it doesn't seem too productive.

- Very strong term overall with lots of passed legislation and more proactive accountability

- It seems that things have slowed down a bit in the Senate, though I guess there's no need to rush either.

- A very interesting and dynamic senate.

- I think we've had an incredibly experienced array of senators providing input into any proposed legislation, that have stood up for their opinions and beliefs, and made themselves heard every step of the way. What more could you want?

- The Senate overall performed I think as the best they could under the Lime Administration.

Does Speaker Monkey deserve to be re-elected?

Yes - 50%
No - 28.9%
Unsure - 21.1%


- Monkey was doing well early on, but recently he's dropped off and been way less active.

- Not particularly active as either Speaker or Senator. Passable activity for a Senator, certainly not for Speaker.

- Monkey is fine at keeping the trains on time it seems, but they don't tend to offer much input or insight that I've seen in Senate discussions, nor do they ask much in the way of follow-up questions as looking through the confirmation threads. I haven't seen enough of Monkey to say they're a rubber-stamp, due to my limited time in Euro, but I would like to see if there are situations where they would actively push back against a nominee or a bill.

- Monkey was going for a weird direction there, didn't work really

- You can tell he's a rookie by a lot of the things he's done, but he hasn't been terrible.

- A good but not great speaker.

Does Senator Lloenflys deserve to be re-elected?

Yes - 81.6%
No - 7.9%
Unsure - 10.5%


- Four branches? Probably shouldn't run for the Senate this time.

- Even though our favorite birb lawyer is standing down, yes.

- LLoenflys, from my limited exposure, is my current favorite Senator in that they at least seem to take a broader look at what's in front of them.

- well i mean it's lloen

- He isn’t running

- A good presence to have as an opposite to some of the more impassioned senators. I've enjoyed the level-headedness he brings but also appreciate that people are willing to challenge his status quo views. A good dynamic.

Does Senator HEM deserve to be re-elected?

Yes - 68.4%
No - 13.2%
Unsure - 18.4%

- Has not necessarily shown the leadership of the chamber I expected.

- HEM is the best at pushing at ideas and challenging people, which is refreshing.

- his recent replies in the senate seem off

- I love having HEM in the Senate. He brings so much to the table - a little excitement, a lot of wisdom, and tons of knowledge.

Does Senator Writinglegend deserve to be re-elected?

Yes - 71.1%
No - 7.9%
Unsure - 21.1%

- Quite effective!

- No strong opinion one way or another. A fine Senator, but not a stand out to me.

- Gleg is among our best and it's great to have him back.

Does Senator Sincluda deserve to be re-elected?

Yes - 60.5%
No - 10.5%
Unsure - 28.9%

- I like Sincluda a lot personally, but they've not shown any willingness to lead outside of the Executive, which is no problem. I'm not sure they're a great fit for the Senate as a whole.

- Similar to WL, a fine Senator but no strong opinion from me - I'm happy with a Senate with or without him in it.

- sincluda is eager, maybe too eager

- Has gotten a bit lost amongst the other bigger personalities, but I think he's done well. A great Senate for a newer person to learn in.

- Sincluda has been amazing.

Does Senator Olde Delaware deserve to be re-elected?

Yes - 44.7%
No - 31.6%
Unsure - 23.7%


- Very pleasantly surprised from what I've seen from OD this term.

- Pleasantly surprised to see OD actually doing the duties rather than just voting. Maybe turning over a new leaf?

- he either lacks the general knowledge on some topics or just doesn't express himself properly (like with the AG nomination)

- I'm usually an OD critic but I think he's fit in well this term. Was a bit unreliable when he filled in as speaker and, as always, can be stubborn, but those qualities were mitigated a bit by the rest of the Senate.

Does Senator GraVandius deserve to be re-elected?

Yes - 50%
No - 15.8%
Unsure - 34.2%

- I could go either way on this, but he seems to keep his head down a bit more than I'd like.

- Don't mean to be harsh, but it's hard getting a feel on what he's unique contributing to this senate this term.

- As long as he still makes meme articles, yes.

Which individual(s) would you encourage to run for Senate?







This polling and subsequent analysis does not seek to disqualify any potential candidates, included or not. I used my own personal judgement and included anyone I viewed to be a serious candidate based on a number of factors.
 
Commenter #1 in my spoilers section can rest easy ... as Commenter #4 (a VERY CLOSE SOURCE TO ME *wink*) states, "He isn't running".
 
Thanks for the writeup CSP, unfortunately I missed this poll due to my reduced activity over the last few weeks -- but I did want to chime in briefly and talk a little bit about my own perspective of being in the senate this term.

First of all, I would agree with the comments pointing out that my activity has dropped these last few weeks -- unfortunately with the way that my exam season worked out this semester, I ended up being incredibly busy pretty much from the week before Thanksgiving until just the end of last week. I will say though, I made an effort to follow up on open discussions, and move things through readings during this time. The only thing that was lacking was maybe more of an effort from me to corral the Senate and get some more voices chiming in actively on threads.

I find the idea that I don't offer insight or input into senate discussions a little puzzling -- I feel as though I was the first Senate that brought up the DEIA issue up during Kazaman's confirmation, leading to a region-wide discussion.....

I would say I have been pretty involved in the DEIA issue, as well as the earlier issue with Lime's recall -- obviously, some of those discussions were in Senate areas, or weren't able to be publicly broadcasted on the floor, so I guess I might be able to see that perspective?

Ultimately, the other acts in the Senate, like the Awards Amendment or Committee Protocol Amendment, I think were pretty straightforward amendments that I didn't really have any issues with. I was fine with deferring the drafting of those bills to former multi-term speakers, who would have much more knowledge/experience than me regarding Senate logistics.

Finally, I think the Senate is in a really tough spot in regards to the Frontier Act. I'll be honest here and say that I think the region should take a referendum -- although I'm just not sure which branch that initial push should come from. Coming off of a pro-frontier admin (Lime/Sky) and now going into a leaning-stronghold admin, it's been a bit difficult to get a sense of where we should be with this act, and the only numbers we have on which direction Europeia should take are polls, which aren't necessarily accurate. I'm really glad we were able to get the Committee on F/S passed and it should be ramping up to speed soon, so I'm really looking forward to this Senate setting a good foundation and getting things started, and I'm hopeful that the next Senate can really capitalize and continue the work that we'll start in the next few weeks.
 
I would be sincerely interested in knowing what additional leadership folks would like to see from me, or what comments seemed "off." Maybe "off" just means the respondent disagrees with me, which is fair enough, but not sure where to take that comment. :p

Overall, I am happy with this term and my colleagues. I think we've been a good balance of Senators all offering different things. I think the biggest self-criticism I have is perhaps a shade too much focus on oversight, accountability and brainstorming over the nuts and bolts of law-writing and getting policies across the finish line. But I do think every Senate needs a mix of players offering different things.
 
I think it is no secret I have a hard time expressing myself properly. Trying to do better though commenter! :D
 
I honestly wasn't expecting to be included as a potential senate candidate during polling. And am even more surprised about how many people thought I should run.
 
I have said many times before that I don't enjoy being in the Senate or consider it my strength, but it is tempting to run especially in the Frontier/Stronghold age. So I won't say I'm completely disinterested...
 
I would be sincerely interested in knowing what additional leadership folks would like to see from me, or what comments seemed "off."
I don't know if "off" is the best term here, but I myself was confused by your comments in the DEIA thread. You mentioned that the DEIA has very little real power, and then later went on to say that folding would be a huge concession of power to the executive. Maybe that's just me, but that did seem contradictory, though maybe you meant something else and I just got things mixed up.

Regarding the poll in general, great job CSP, I love the tier list. You really squeeze out the opinions out of people, lookin forward to the show aswell.
 
I would be sincerely interested in knowing what additional leadership folks would like to see from me, or what comments seemed "off."
I don't know if "off" is the best term here, but I myself was confused by your comments in the DEIA thread. You mentioned that the DEIA has very little real power, and then later went on to say that folding would be a huge concession of power to the executive. Maybe that's just me, but that did seem contradictory, though maybe you meant something else and I just got things mixed up.

Regarding the poll in general, great job CSP, I love the tier list. You really squeeze out the opinions out of people, lookin forward to the show aswell.
I think both of those things are true!

The DEIA doesn't have a ton of direct power, but I also think it's a huge turning of the tables for the legislative branch to limit its oversight in a manner subject of approval to the executive. This would be true too if we were considering a bill that would limit the Senate's ability to ask questions about Assistant Ministers. An AM doesn't have a ton of amount of power, but it would be a huge concession institutionally for the Senate to limit any of its oversight in deference to the executive.
 
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