The 'Shroom talk:Issue 171/Poll Chairperson Election

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Election Process
This page is where members of the community may make nominations and vote for candidates to oversee the Poll Committee for the next year. The rules for the election process may be viewed on the election rules article.

Voting starts on Saturday, June 26th, 2021 at 00:01 GMT.

Candidates and Voting
Candidates post their campaigns and receive votes here!

The Shadow Prince (TasteTheFiresOfHelp)
I have been on the Super Mario Boards for a while (eight years, one month, and 23 days as of posting this). Lately since last August I have been posting many more threads in the elimination area, covering never measured before things like months of the year, numbers, and animated movies, so I consider that my qualification as I could come up with original and interesting ideas for polls.

Here are my goals. I think that they would have a positive impact and change.
 * I would poll everyone on all different things, not just one or two. Things like ideas for upcoming games, date-based questions (an example of date-based being was Nintendo’s best year in the 2010s, or whether they did better in 2020 or 2021) or what idea for level design suggested by other users would be the best would appear. There would be a vast variety of polls, and on vastly different things.
 * Options I would or wouldn’t want people to pick would still be worded neutrally and free of bias, even if I really wanted or didn’t want you to pick them.
 * I would allow whoever wanted to be my Vice Chairperson that I felt had the best credibility and credentials after carefully looking everything over.
 * Poll Committee eligibility would be determined predominantly by your character. In other words, how hardworking, reliable, trustworthy, but also likable your attitude is. Your record of not constantly having warnings and last warnings would also matter as well.

I will lead the poll committee in:
 * Never coming up with unoriginal polls, or polls without options people might select that just seem less obvious
 * Planning meetings, but which can be held on the forum and are sometimes friendly for people who don’t want chat rooms, or Discord, although those are options too
 * Making sure everyone’s ideas for a new poll are heard, regardless of whether they are or aren’t implemented.

I think my positive, unbiased attitude and capacity to make interesting opinion measurings would make me a good poll committee member, but any objections to me getting this position would be great to be heard.

SMB / Waluigi Time
Hello! I'm SMB, and I'm excited to be exploring this run for Poll Committee Chairperson. Back in 2010, I was one of the wiki staff members who advocated for the creation of the committee. After that, I was elected as the Chairperson of the First, Second, and Fourth Poll Committees. I'm happy with the work my teams did, but I'm also proud of the progress that subsequent teams achieved. Things like opening membership via applications, collaborating with other projects in the community, holding meetings with clear and measurable objectives, and rotating leadership responsibilities have helped the project to blossom to where it is now.
 * SMB

Expecting someone else as SMB's Vice-Chairperson? TOO BAD. WALUIGI TIME. So first things first, I have to admit I've never actually had any experience with the Poll Committee before so this would be my first time working on it. It would definitely be a learning experience, but I'm confident that with SMB at the helm things would work out well. As for what I do have experience with, I've been a Patroller here on the wiki since November, and I'm very engaged in the community including being an active writer for The 'Shroom, as well as a joke campaign in this election that I'm sure many of you noticed in an attempt to stir up activity. I feel like this probably goes without saying, but I do intend to take this position seriously and I promise that I will do the best job I can if we are elected.
 * Waluigi Time

Oh, and by the way... It is, in fact, Waluigi Time. WAHAHA!

After talking with some folks in the community, though, I realize that the Poll Committee still has immense growth potential. There are many avenues that, if explored, will take the project to the next level in terms of reach and creativity. There are several key ideas which motivate this campaign:
 * Goals


 * Accessibility. In addition to the aforementioned procedural changes that have opened things up, we can provide more ways for everybody to shape our output.
 * Engagement. We should continue directly promoting the project and posting announcements on the wiki, forum, and Discord when new polls are out, but we should also think outside of the box to grab people's attention.
 * Fun! If people see that what we do is fun, then they will want to support us in numerous ways.

So how do we accomplish these goals? Here's the plan:


 * Open a Suggestions Box. This will be different from the "Poll Submission" form in that it will focus more on the conceptual level. What types of polls do people want to see? What things interest our voters?
 * Hold periodic staff meetings. Nothing too crazy, though. Three to four staff meetings for the term should suffice unless the committee specifically requests more.
 * Run a new community survey. It's one thing to poll people about interesting things on our Main Page, but the Feedback Survey is an outstanding way to show people that they can participate in shaping the website itself.
 * Broaden the scope of the polls. Of course, we will still ask plenty of Mario-based questions, but we should be willing to stray sometimes if an interesting idea comes up and we can justify displaying the topic to our target audience.
 * Continue collaborating with the Awards Committee. The Awards Committee was one of our earliest partners, and we will continue to enjoy a strong bond through the Main Page Awards poll rotation and the Awards Analysis section.
 * Strengthen our collaboration with The 'Shroom. Perhaps one of our most underutilized partnerships is that with the newsletter. Sure, we have the Poll Committee Discussion, but so much more is possible.
 * Run creative ads. Even something simple and silly like the sign-up banner for The 'Shroom will make for a good start. Promoting the Poll Committee through graphic ads will open a space for our artists to contribute.
 * Make a voter-designed crossword! We would run polls in which voters select options for a crossword puzzle to be designed and published the following month.
 * ...Or Mad Libs! We would create a narrative in which words are missing. Readers can suggest options to fill in the blanks, and the Poll Committee would subsequently poll voters on which ones to select.
 * ...Or a "Choose Your Own Adventure! We would create a narrative and voters would choose their own adventure by voting!
 * And this is just a start. These are sample ideas that can all be discussed and tried at different times, and many other options can be considered.
 * Above all, prioritize creativity and inventiveness in the polls. Waluigi Time's recent campaign made me think: why couldn't we have polls about Waluigi cereal or other lighthearted topics? We can come up with some really fun ideas that will grab voters' attention.

The Poll Committee is a staple of our community and should continue to enjoy the positive trends it has seen over the years. As the Chairperson, I will act as a facilitator and mentor to the members of the committee, and I will provide the guidance, support, and appreciation that they need to serve our community. Furthermore, I will see to it that newer members are made aware of our project and how they can participate. Should the community entrust me with this position, I promise to do everything in my capacity to make this one of the strongest years for the Poll Committee's creative output.

Votes

 * 1) - [I feel like having a diverse range of polls is a good thing, and it's good to have creativity when making these sorts of things, and as long as they don't become the main focus, I feel like adding a game element to some polls, like a choose your own adventure where the popular action wins, is a good idea. I also feel like having a veteran as chairperson and Waluigi Time as his assistiant is a good idea, allowing us to see how well Wauigi Time deals with certiant situations without having him be completly in charge, and having SMB, who's been in the position of chairperson before, be able to help if things go awry.]
 * 2) - I've had the pleasure of working with SMB in numerous projects and he is someone who always delivers in terms of quality, leadership and innovation. His ideas I know can be really beneficial for the Poll Committee and I am proud to support his and Waluigi Time's candidacy.

BabyLuigiOnFire / Luigi 64DD
Well here we go.

Hello. My name's BabyLuigiOnFire, otherwise known as Baby Luigi or named after one of my OCs, the Protectors (currently called Ray Trace on the wiki). I've been on MarioWiki since September 2009 and I have been very active since then, especially on the wiki where I have contributed a huge share to various articles. Currently, I'm part of the Wiki Staff, I'm a patroller, though prior to my promotion in November 2020, I still contributed to various other facets of the wiki including being a 'Shroom writer, being a local moderator of Marioboards's RP board, and I was even a poll committee member, from the Fourth Committee through the Seventh Committee, and during my time there, I was active and I had a lot of input in discussion of quality control of the polls. I take feedback from what polls we have on the main page seriously, especially thinking about the one time chuggaconroy criticized the quality of our polls on the main page on Twitter.
 * BabyLuigiOnFire's part

One of the reasons I'm interested in leading the committee is that I haven't had a chance to be in a leading position, collaborating with a group of people in this community before, and I'm extremely interested in gaining some experience myself. I'm an excellent team contributor if my time spent as a wiki staff member and former poll committee member status was anything to go by, and I only run if I know for sure I can keep up with the duties and responsibilities that are presented to me.

Luigi 64DD is my running mate because I need someone to blame when something goes awry ; we agreed to run this thing together and it would spread responsibilities between us to lessen potential workload, on top of myself attaining other responsibilities in this community. I'll let him talk about himself in his allocated section.

Hey guys, I'm Luigi 64DD. I joined the Mario Wiki in September 2016 and since then, I've greatly enjoyed participating in the active, thriving community that we have here. Over my time here, I've been a wiki editor, a writer for the 'Shroom, and a member of the Eleventh Poll Committee. During my time in the committee, I've gained lots of experience on how to craft relevant and interesting polls that encompass all of the voters' opinions on any given topic. I've also enjoyed collaborating with other users as a team in revising and perfecting polls as well as planning and working on big projects such as Awards Analysis. Over my time in the committee, I've received lots of positive feedback from former chairpersons on the quality of my contributions, and so I've decided to take my contributions to the Poll Committee to a deeper level by pursuing a position as vice-chairperson. I'm excited to work with BabyLuigiOnFire to lead and coordinate the future Twelfth Poll Committee in creating meaningful and fresh polls should we be elected. I'm looking forward to taking my first step into a leadership position in the community at BabyLuigiOnFire's side, and I believe the experience I have gained from my time on the committee and in other areas of the community have prepared me well to help run a fantastic term for the Twelfth Poll Committee.
 * Luigi 64DD's part

Enough about ourselves. What do we plan on doing?


 * I'm going to maintain the rotational leader system. Therefore, the poll committee after this will have the opportunity to maintain a fresh face.
 * I'm an artist so I can draw a new sexy banner myself. The Pyro Guy has been responsible for all banners before this one, so I think having a new artist interpret the committee members in a new artstyle be a refreshing take.
 * Submitted polls by the poll committee will ultimately be decided upon myself and Luigi 64DD. We encourage feedback from other members looking at their polls to be open and honest. I will also occasionally submit polls myself and I encourage straight and honest criticism of them.
 * We're going to be very flexible; only if you like, didn't post once in the subforum ever since you became a poll member will we start asking questions about you but this should not happen because I hope my standards of qualification will apply.
 * I might explore new potential new ideas for polls with members but I'm mostly content with maintaining the status quo of making the polls mainly Mario-centric.
 * Also, I'm going to continue the process of letting poll members write the Poll Committee Discussion stuff for The 'Shroom, in which members will write and analyze the month's polls. It's a great idea and it gives members the chance to throw in a bone for their writing talent and provides content for the Shroom!

Votes

 * 1) - I am confident that both of these users can do a great job at leading the Poll Committee for a year. I also want to support new blood such as Luigi 64DD into leading a community project, which will complement well with Blof's past experiences with the PC.
 * 2) - Let me say, first, that I'm ecstatic to see all of the interest in the election this year! My hope for the 11th Poll Committee was that I would walk away from it and see someone who had never held the position of PC Chair take a stab at the job, and we have three candidates, so far, in the election who have never run the PC before (and the very respectable SMB, who would do a great job). For now, I'm going to tip my hat towards BLOF and Luigi 64DD, as I feel they've proven themselves capable of handling the position and I want to see new faces get a chance at running the PC. However, much like The Pyro Guy did here, I would like to make this vote conditional upon BLOF and Luigi 64DD offering The Shadow Prince an invitation to join the 12th Poll Committee. I admire The Shadow Prince's enthusiasm, and believe they should have a chance to get some experience as a member of the incoming Poll Committee.
 * 3) - I think this is a good way forward. Both candidates are active and involved in the community, focused, and I can see this working out great.
 * 4) - I was conflicted between SMB's major expansion and the new faces of BLOF (well, new to the leadership role) and 64DD, but I've finally decided to settle on the double team. I always like to see more new things, and while SMB had that going for him, two people entirely new to the leadership role is a lot more enticing to me. I look forward to what they have to offer!
 * 5) - I'm already impressed at their commitment as well as their plans for the position. I think they would fit in to the committee excellently.
 * 6) - Having worked with 64DD on the Eleventh Poll Committee, I can say that his dedication will definitely benefit us if his ticket wins. Combined with BabyRayTraceOnFire's previous experience, I'm sure the two of them will go far.
 * 7) - Although I had a hard time picking my vote, I think BLoF and Luigi 64DD's dedication to the community make them the best candidates for the position, especially due to 64DD's activity in the Committee this past year and BLoF's previous experience with it.
 * 8) Go Mario.png I'm always going to root for my sister. She's a hard worker, she'll listen to critique, she's thoughtful, she's open-minded. She didn't even choose me as a partner because she knows I'm not active enough and, hence why she opted for the goose man. I know this is going to turn out well and I hope I'll be able to support these two along the way. The other pair is an excellent choice, don't get me wrong, but I like to see my sister and goose man get a chance too!
 * 9) &mdash; BLOF and Luigi 64DD have shown themselves to be dedicated members of the Super Mario Wiki community and will be excellent leaders of the Poll Committee. I wish them both the best for this upcoming year!
 * 10) I'm confident that these two will do a great job leading the Poll Committee and I'm excited to see them at the helm!

Comments
I'm going to allow Waluigi Time's campaign to remain here for the moment, and see how things pan out. He and I have discussed the realities of running a campaign like this and he understands a joke campaign cannot win and is willing to respect that and work with us. Get up and put your own, real campaign in, folks! Hooded Pitohui (talk) 12:38, June 25, 2021 (EDT)

Because we have, for the first time in quite some time, actually, a contested Poll Committee Chairperson election, I will put this notice up. For the moment, users can leave their questions for candidates here, in the comments section of this page. However, if any candidate requests it at any time, I will create a forum thread for Q & A and debates between the candidates. If a forum thread is open, all candidates in the election will be made aware of the thread. Hooded Pitohui (talk) 17:55, June 25, 2021 (EDT)

I find Waluigi Time's campaign refreshingly honest and direct. Can I vote for him? - 18:48, June 25, 2021 (EDT)
 * Honest, direct, and charming... Waluigi 2021 Nintendo Minute Artwork.png ...Unfortunately, it seems as though he was ahead of his time. In other words, it just wasn't Waluigi Time. WAA!! 19:27, June 25, 2021 (EDT)
 * I know it seems like, ha ha, I'm making some kind of hilarious joke. But I'm dead-serious. I think he has what it takes to shake up and inject some energy into this position, and I want to vote for him. - 18:48, June 25, 2021 (EDT)
 * I fully agree that Waluigi Time would be a great fit for the position. He's expressed reluctance to make a serious, non-joking run, but if he changes his mind and decides he actually wants to go for the position, he's of course welcome to post a campaign and jump in. Hooded Pitohui (talk) 20:06, June 25, 2021 (EDT)
 * I'm happy (and honestly surprised) to see some people think I'd do a good job in the position, but I don't really feel qualified since I've never done anything with the Poll Committee before. I'm open to being on the next one if whoever wins is interested, but until then I don't feel comfortable going straight to chairperson with no experience whatsoever. -- 20:38, June 25, 2021 (EDT)

No votes for either of us? Well, if I'm elected chairperson, I will maintain charge of keeping polls good quality and effective, so you should vote for me as I will help keep things running well and help work with others to make unbiased, interesting, and exciting polls. , 20:09, June 26, 2021 EST
 * Hello, TasteTheFiresOfHelp! I'd like to start by extending my best wishes in this contest! :) Voting just opened a short while ago and will run for three weeks; additionally, the nomination period is still open for two weeks, which means other users have the opportunity to join in the election. I imagine folks are taking their time to see if others hop in, read through the campaigns and any discussions that are held among candidates, and consider whom they will vote for. This will take time, as it should. 21:17, June 26, 2021 (EDT)

Firstly, I'd like to extend my best wishes to and, who have a solid, well thought-out campaign. I would like to request that a forum Q&A thread be opened so that all three campaigns can have a better venue to field questions and discuss plans for next year. 15:26, June 28, 2021 (EDT)
 * As requested, a thread for Q&A and debate has now been opened. I will reach out to all candidates to ensure they're aware of the thread. Best of luck to all of the candidates in this year's election. For candidates, don't hesitate to contact myself or Roserade if you have any questions or issues related to the election. Hooded Pitohui (talk) 16:03, June 28, 2021 (EDT)

Man I like Hooded's suggestion to give The Shadow Prince a chance to become a poll committee member himself if he doesn't win the nomination, that'll give him firsthand experience on the job. 16:06, June 28, 2021 (EDT)
 * I accept any offer to join the Poll Committee even if I don’t win the position as it’s chairperson. I hope I might be able to win because of my enthusiastic attitude and ability to keep perservering at covering the details, like the amount of detail I put into fairness shown in my elimination threads where I was able to save items that would have been unfairly lost forever. However, the poll committee would still be a very good position that I will accept., 18:28, June 28, 2021 (EST)

After considering where things stand, Waluigi Time and I have decided that it is best for us to stop actively campaigning. Out of respect for those who supported us, we are opting to leave our section up. We would like to thank Hooded Pitohui for his stewardship of the election as well as BabyLuigiOnFire, Luigi 64DD, and TasteTheFiresOfHelp for contributing excellent ideas throughout the process. As indicated by my vote, I endorse BLOF and L64DD for leadership of the Poll Committee since they not only have plans that resonate with the community, but they also have what is needed to keep the project running strongly. I would also like to personally thank Waluigi Time for agreeing to be my running mate; as I have mentioned during the past month, I hope that he will have an opportunity to join the upcoming committee so that he can bring his energy and creativity to the table. Thank you all for your time and for participating! 17:24, July 11, 2021 (EDT)