Lex Labiena de ratione comitiorum plebis tributorum (Nova Roma)

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I. The Lex Vedia de Ratione Eligium and Lex Vedia de Ratione Comitiorum Plebis Tributorum are hereby rescinded as they apply to the election of magistrates and the voting of leges by the Comitia Plebis Tributa. This Lex Labiena de Ratione Comitiorum Plebis Tributorum is hereby enacted to define the procedures by which the Comitia Plebis Tributa shall conduct the business of electing magistrates and voting on leges.

II. Calling the Comitia to Order.

A Tribunis Plebis may, as described in the Constitution, call the Comitia to order, to hold a vote on a lex or leges, or to hold an election. The magistrate who calls the Comitia to order shall be referred to herein as the presiding magistrate.

A. This shall be done by making a public announcement announcing the call in those public fora which shall have been designated for such purpose, in which must be included:

• 1. The names of candidates for office and the office for which they are running (when the Comitia is being called for an election),
• 2. The full text of any plebiscita which are being voted on (when the Comitia is being called to legislate),
• 3. The dates when the members of the Comitia shall begin and finish voting,
• 4. Any special instructions that pertain to the mechanics of the vote, if any.

B. The presiding magistrate shall have the responsibility for taking all reasonable precautions to ensure that candidates for a vote hold whatever qualifications are required by law. The Censors shall assist in such efforts as to the best of their ability.

III. Timing of the vote.

A. The announcement containing the call to vote must be issued at least 120 hours (5 days) prior to the start of the vote. This period shall be known as the Contio, and shall be used for formal discussion of the issues and/or candidates before the People for vote.

B. During the Contio, those Constitutionally empowered to do so may exercise their powers of intercessio or nuntiatio.

• 1. The exercise of intercessio shall cancel the vote or election outright, although another call with the same items may be made at a later date.
• 2. The exercise of nuntiatio shall extend the Contio, postponing the start and end dates of the voting period by 24 hours, during which time nuntiatio may again be exercised.
• 3. Should the exercise of nuntatio cause the voting period to move such that it conflicts with calendarical restrictions as defined by the Collegium Pontificum, the presiding magistrate may change or extend the dates of the vote and/or contio at his or her discretion.

C. The period between the start and end of the voting must last no less than 192 hours (8 days).

D. The ability to vote during the voting period may be impacted and/or suspended due to calendrical issues as enacted by decreta of the Collegium Pontificum.

E. The rogatores shall tally the vote and shall deliver the results to the presiding magistrate within 48 hours of the close of the voting period.

F. The presiding magistrate shall announce the results of the vote within 24 hours of receiving the results from the rogatores, in at least the same venues as the original announcement calling the vote was published.

IV. Voting procedures.

A. The censors shall issue to each citizen a unique voter identification code. This code shall be used to maintain anonymity in the voting process, and to minimize the possibility of vote fraud. In a timely fashion prior to the vote, the censors shall make available to the rogatores a list of valid voter identification codes and the tribes with which they are associated. The rogatores shall not have access to the names of the citizens associated with particular voter identification codes.

B. In consultation with the rogatores, the curator araneum shall make available a cista; a secure web-based form to allow citizens to vote directly through the official Nova Roma web site. This form shall record the voter identification number and desired vote(s) of the individual. The information thus collected will either be forwarded to the rogatores as it is gathered, or at the end of the process, at their discretion. Alternative methods of voting may be enacted by other legislation as required.

C. Each Citizen shall have the opportunity to vote for a single candidate for each office for which a vacancy exists, regardless of the number of vacancies within a given magistracy. Citizens may cast a vote for a candidate not listed on the ballot, or may waive their right to cast a vote for a given magistracy. Once cast, no vote may be altered, even with the correct voter identification code. Should multiple votes

be registered with the same voter identification code, only the first one recorded shall be used when tallying the vote.

V. Procedures for counting votes.

A. Votes shall be counted by tribes.

• 1. In the case of a magisterial election, each tribe shall cast a number of votes equal to the number of vacancies for the magistracy in question. Votes shall be assigned to those candidates who received votes by members of the tribe, with those candidates receiving the most valid individual votes receiving the tribe's vote first, then working down in descending order until all the tribe's votes have been assigned.

EXAMPLE: Four candidates are running for Tribunus Plebis. Each tribe casts two votes, because there are two vacant positions. In tribe III, there are 26 votes for candidate A, 32 votes for candidate B, 2 votes for candidate C, and 13 votes for candidate D. The tribe's two votes are cast for candidates A and B, since they received the two highest vote-totals within the tribe.

• 2. In the case of a vote on a plebiscitum, each tribe shall vote in favor of the plebiscitum if a majority of the votes received by members of the tribe are in favor. Otherwise, the tribe shall be considered to have voted against the proposed plebiscitum.
• 3. Should a tie occur within a given tribe, the winner shall be the candidate who is a paterfamilias or materfamilias, or if such shall not decide the issue, the winner shall be decided by lot. The rogatores may decide how such decisions by lot shall be made in a fair manner.

B. A vote or election shall be decided by a majority of the tribes.

• 1. In the case of a magisterial election, candidates must receive votes from at least 18 of the 35 tribes in order to win.

a. Should not enough candidates receive votes from at least 18 of the 35 tribes to fill all vacancies, a new election shall be called within 30 days from the end of the current election. b. Should more candidates receive votes from at least 18 of the 35 tribes than there are vacancies, the winner shall be the candidate who is a paterfamilias or materfamilias, or if such shall not decide the issue, the winner shall be decided by lot. The rogatores may decide how such decisions by lot shall be made in a fair manner.

• 2. In the case of a vote on a plebiscitum, 18 of the 35 tribes must vote in favor for the plebiscitum to be adopted.

C. Votes may be tallied by automated means should the rogatores determine such is preferable to, and at least as accurate as, a manual count.

D. Only the aggregate votes of the tribes shall be delivered to the presiding magistrate; the votes of individual citizens shall be secret.