OTL Election maps resources thread
- Thread starter Thande
- Start date
It seems to me (though I could be wrong), it's more like big mets like Birmingham not having parish councils, while rural areas around them do. In fact, Alvechurch just outside Birmingham would have two more levels of government (Alvechurch, Bromsgrove, Worcestershire and Westminster vs Birmingham and Westminster), an even greater difference.
Of course, it's already weird enough for Brum, and NYC has eight million inhabitants.
Alex Richards
Donor
Comparing Brum and NYC is somewhat flawed- in terms of population it's more like if Manhattan was a separate city still. Really you should look at London, where you have the Boroughs and GLA.
Not to mention that the Metropolitan County councils originally meant that there was an extra layer of government for Birmingham.
Now I'm thinking about a scenario where you've got Yugoslav/Australian style split cities underneath the metropolitan counties.
Thande
Donor
But Birmingham has 120 councillors (and now fewer, iainbhx rants passim) for around 1.1 million people (and that was often considered not enough, see further iainbhx rants), whereas NY City Council has 51 councillors for 8.5 million.
My grandfather was elected for a couple terms as a county coroner.
Which, given that the only reason he ran was that no one else who was running had any previous medical experience (compared to him being a retired doctor who had practiced for over 30 years), is just further anecdotal evidence of how that system might not be the greatest.
I'm reminded of that Louisiana judicial candidate who ran on the platform of having been a volunteer search-and-rescue diver for the past 20 years:80% of American coroners are elected.
Aren't US local authorities noted for having very small numbers of councillors per population generally, though? Compared to Britain, at least.
We have a water board here, too. I don't know the details of local and state legislation for water boards, but in my experience the further West you go, the more likelihood of government structures for water conservation.
As for New York City's system- if I was an observer from an ATL, I would have assumed that at least Brooklyn would have been allowed to retain an elected body after 1898. Was the initiative for centralization just that strong?
I thought it was South Dakota (and/or NW Iowa) that had the large Dutch population.
Speaking of places with large Dutch populations... (I'll show myself out.)
We move on the the general election of 1925, again with some blank municipalities, although fewer than in the previous one. What you can generally spot, though, is the further demise of the Freedom League, something that is actually a trend that continues throughout the interwar period. Liberal support is confined to small pockets throughout the country, within the borders of what used to be liberal safe seats. Another change compared to the previous map is the spread of the social democratic SDAP, partially at the cost of the Peasants' League. However, that does not stop the three main Christian parties from retaining their comfortable majority and forming another government together. It's not going to get much more exciting than this for the interwar period, I'm afraid.
We move on the the general election of 1925, again with some blank municipalities, although fewer than in the previous one. What you can generally spot, though, is the further demise of the Freedom League, something that is actually a trend that continues throughout the interwar period. Liberal support is confined to small pockets throughout the country, within the borders of what used to be liberal safe seats. Another change compared to the previous map is the spread of the social democratic SDAP, partially at the cost of the Peasants' League. However, that does not stop the three main Christian parties from retaining their comfortable majority and forming another government together. It's not going to get much more exciting than this for the interwar period, I'm afraid.
So I know I said I'd stop with Brookhaven, but it turns out that the rest of the towns elect their council members at-large. (Brookhaven is probably different because it's the largest by both area and population.) It seemed like the perfect opportunity to use the Little Mans that @jtheoengel just helpfully posted, so...
Other than Brookhaven, the councils are four-member affairs elected by halves. Compare to the simultaneous county legislative elections to see some ticket splitting. Shelter Island out east is an interesting example of undernomination actually being helpful for a party - the Democrats managed to win a seat in this very conservative township by putting up only one candidate and thus concentrating their vote.
I considered using double-width lines for the town boundaries so that Brookhaven wouldn't be confusing, but it looked ugly and the difference is explained in these notes anyway.
Other than Brookhaven, the councils are four-member affairs elected by halves. Compare to the simultaneous county legislative elections to see some ticket splitting. Shelter Island out east is an interesting example of undernomination actually being helpful for a party - the Democrats managed to win a seat in this very conservative township by putting up only one candidate and thus concentrating their vote.
I considered using double-width lines for the town boundaries so that Brookhaven wouldn't be confusing, but it looked ugly and the difference is explained in these notes anyway.
Ah, yes; thanks for reminding me what they were called. Sure, it's grammatically incorrect, but it just sounds right.