Join the new world

26 August 2010, Day 1,010 of the New World.

In light of my victory in this month’s Congressional elections, I have been looking for a something that combines rejoicing and Israel. The following is the best I could come up with:

Rejoice, Rejoice
Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel

Applicable or not, let’s move on. I offer a big thank-you to my supporters. Getting to serve in the Knesset is an exciting prospect.


Sweet victory

While this is my eighth time in a national Congress, this election was many firsts for me. First, it is the only [in-game] elected position I’ve had so far outside the eUnited States. I was previously the Brolliance Congressional Exchange Congressman to eCanada, of course, but that appointment happened in the United States. My citizenship stayed United States for almost a year, partially because I spent seven months in Congress there. When ally Croatia fell, I answered the call of service and took up their citizenship to prevent a PTO. Realizing that my time away from Congress and changes in the country’s party structure left me with significantly fewer attachments than I once had, I decided that now was a good time to set out and try something new. That is Israel.

Secondly, this was the first election which I did not take first place in. Of course, that also makes it the first time I’ve been in a race that could have more than one winner. My previous appearances on the ballot have been in seven eUS Congress races and two Party President races, all of which allowed only one. Each region of eIsrael was entitled to seven representatives this month, with another five filling the leftover seats as wildcards. Every wildcard this month came from the Beersheba election, and for some time before polls closed I occupied a wildcard position.

This is the first time I have represented a capital region and a region outside North America. For those of you not yet familiar with me, I previously represented Arizona, Michigan, and Missouri.

This was my first Congressional election with only one political party supporting my candidacy. Of course, I would like to thank the United Israeli Independent Party for letting me on the ballot. My previous record was three parties, set in my first race in September 2009, with America’s Advancement Party (defunct), the Democratic Party (defunct), and the American Liberty Party (defunct) supporting my candidacy. My record for most parties, I believe, is eighteen or nineteen.

Speaking of parties, this is my first month as a Congressman from a party that did not win the most seats. My previous races were with America’s Advancement Party (defunct) and the American Progressive Front (defunct), both of which won the largest number of seats each month I ran (although I previously ran under the Libertarian Party {defunct} and the Federalist Party). Israel First preformed very well this month, especially in Jerusalem and the wildcard spots. I sense some hostility between certain eIsraeli parties, so it could be interesting to see how that dynamic plays out in the Knesset. Or maybe it will be tedious.

It is hard to say how close an election was with wildcard positions and multiple ties going on. I gathered five votes this month and placed fifth in the region. With one more vote, though, I would have been in third place, and with two I would have been in first. With one less, I would have lost (not even been a wildcard Congressman). Eight candidates in total received five votes in Beersheba, but I had the most experience. The least-experienced person in that situation claimed the very last wildcard spot. My previous closest call (or maybe a closer call than this month, depending on how you look at it) is tied between my first election, a 13-9 victory in Arizona in September 2009, and my most recent one after this, a 24-20 victory in Missouri in April 2010.

The Paladin now has a foothold in the Holy Land. It’s the desert, but it will do. Now to get to work.


Beersheba / Be’er sheva