There’s an important point about the office of the mayor that I feel needs to be discussed.
The Masters make the laws in London. The mayorship is an executive position with an outrageously short term of office. As such, the candidates’ aren’t going to do much, and will probably be limited to one medium-sized, non-legislative change, that exemplifies the ethos they ran on. Jenny for instance, opened a finishing school to help increase social mobility from the lower to the middle economic classes. She had some influence in the Bazaar’s dealings with Prussia, but that was because her school was so good, nothing to do with being mayor at all. If she did anything else, it didn’t have any discernible effect.
So with these in mind, let’s try to imagine what one thing candidates might actually conceivably be able to do in one year, based on their platforms and professed ethos, not their personal lives (which means no character attacks and no accusations of hypocrisy or incompetence), with Jenny as our example.
I’ll go first! While the Dauntless Temperance Campaigner will probably have trouble dealing with all the societal ills she seeks to correct, as indicated by her card there are a few issues that are highest priority for her. Given what we know about her, and given the emphasis that the investigation placed on prisoner’s honey, honey is probably one of them. Alcohol may be another, and since prosperity and dignity are common themes, perhaps lessening the suffering of the common man, which leads him to the bottle and the honey spoon, is another. Of course, going after honey or alcohol would put her government into direct conflict with the Masters of the Bazaar, who make all of the laws and who have a significant interest in selling those things. While the workhouses and factories and such are under Bazaar control as well, they’ve shown in the past that they’re willing to be more lenient in their treatment of the poor, so perhaps that will be the focus of her project as mayor.
[li]
For the Detective, I imagine we’ll end up with an event based around this Inquisition-like "Prosecution" of hers. Whom that targets is a little unclear, though. Corrupt constables? Known criminals who have bribed their way out of a few stays in New Newgate so far? The Masters? All of the above?
The DTC is ultimately going to try quite a bit, and fail, but in doing so she may actually take the first step in truly opposing the Masters (hopefully without resorting to empowering the Liberation of Night, which is lunacy, but one might argue anything that weakens the Masters will empower them).
Feducci will probably just generate a lot of bedlam and changes in who’s noble and who isn’t, before either losing his own title to someone or traipsing off after a year to let everyone else sort out the chaos. Assuming he doesn’t have some other plan, for good or ill.
Half-serious rhetoric aside, all of them have ominous and potentially troublesome potential.
edited by Isaac Zienfried on 6/30/2017
I’d generally agree with your point on Feducci. Perhaps he could institute some kind of competition for great sums of money and aristocratic titles and such, and make it so that the current aristocracy had to compete. So long as the playing field was level, it would ensure that the movers and shakers of London would be, well, shaken up every so often. The idea of him putting his own title of mayor up for grabs is absolutely HILARIOUS though. I really hope he does it. We could go through ten mayors in a year!
I also agree that the Detective’s Prosecution is likely to be her big project as well. I imagine she would focus it on rooting out the jury-rigging judges, crooked constables, bribe-taking bailiffs, and so on, but that’s just my impression from the way she talks. Taking on cases to find criminals who got off without a sentence seems within her character as well.[li]
I think they could all be wonderful mayors, myself. It just depends on what improvements people prioritize.[/li][li]
edited by Gul al-Ahlaam on 6/30/2017
Is it ever explained or justified anywhere why the office of Mayor is only one year? And why you cannot run for re-election? I understand the meta-reasons of a yearly festival and needing new candidates, it’s more the inworld reasons I don’t follow.
The in-setting reason is probably “the whole thing is a big doughy circus while the Masters try to plot to speed up this whole city-melting thing.”
Okay then, what is the in-setting reason given to the general populace?
“Here, you get to have a mayor. Now spend all your energy screaming at each other while we go and, um, rest. Yes, rest.”
“Oh wait, you’ve already calmed down and stopped trying to undermine the person a little over one-third of you imposed on the rest? Uh, let’s see, time for new mayor! Yup!”
Because of ancient and honourable tradition, that’s why. For the last thousand years, the Lord Mayor has been elected to one year of office, and it’s not considered good form for them to serve multiple consecutive terms.
There’s just been a few modifications, like allowing squid people to vote now.
We Know What Mayors Do:
1: Opportunity card providing favors, making waves, and/or goodies
2: Participates in Holidays (Jenny offered some unique dialogue during her time over at the Islands)
3: Offer FL the opportunity to cultivate a new Fate Locked Storyline
4: Provide the character a chance in the spotlight, all of the above providing little hints into their character.
Learning more about specific characters is a very nice reward, especially if you seek to claim Feducci’s eternal life to ascend the Chain towards Masterhood.