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The Delegate Pyramid is a structure of (possibly indirectly) elected recallable delegates. The pinnacle of the Delegate Pyramid is the Delegate board, one of the three legislative chambers.
The Delegate Pyramid does not exist until the group is in Size Regime Large. At that point, there will be up to 5 delegates.
The base of the Delegate Pyramid, "level 0", is composed of voters, who group themselves into "constituencies". A constituency is a group of people. Higher levels of the pyramid are composed of delegates from the next lowest level. These delegates form themselves into constituencies.
Each constituency has a minimum size. Any group of people who number at least the minimum size may form a new constituency. A person may leave constituencies, or switch constituencies, at any time. A person may be a member of only one constituency at a time. People may only join an existing constituency with its permission, according to whatever rules it has set for the acceptance of new members. Each constituency elects a single delegate to represent it in the next higher level of the Delegate Pyramid.
Since members may switch out of a constituency at any time, it is possible that the number of members for a constituency could fall below the minimum number. In this case, the constituency's delegate loses their office as a delegate, unless and until their constituency regains the minimum size.
Members who switch constituencies may not cast a vote in their new constituency for the election of a delegate until at least one half of one electoral cycle duration has elapsed since the last time they cast a vote in any other constituency for the election of a delegate (or, if they have never cast such a vote in any other constituency, then they may vote immediately).
If some voters hold multiple votes, then they may participate in multiple constituencies by pledging some of their votes to one constituency, and others to other constituencies. For voters who have only one vote, that vote is considered "pledged" to the constituency joined by that voter. The "size" of a constituency refers to how many votes are pledged to it.
Although base-level voters may spread out their multiple votes, delegates must pledge all of their votes to a single constituency, however, and must cast all of them at the same time during deliberation within the constituency.
The proceedings of a constituency (aside from the Delegate board) are private and closed, although the adopted resolutions of a constituency, for example the identity of the chosen delegate, are public. The membership roles of each constituency are public.
Any member of the constituency may declare that they are a candidate in the election for a delegate. No other form of nomination besides self-nomination is permitted. Only members of the constituency may be candidates.
In a replacement election, the incumbent is automatically a candidate, without nomination. Similarly, if a person is elected delegate, and then elected delegate in a higher constituency, and then replaced in the lower constituency, they may remain delegate in the higher constituency, and may remain a choice in a replacement election, even though they could not ordinarily be nominated in the higher constituency, no longer being a member.
See the procedure for electing a recallable delegate.
Constituencies are forbidden to bind the way their rep votes, or to pass nonbinding resolutions threatening a loss of support unless their rep votes a certain way (although they can pass nonbinding resolutions advising their rep how to vote, and individual members can informally threaten to (or decide to) vote to replace the rep, and then do so).
The number of votes held by a delegate is called their "strength". A delegate's strength determines how many votes they may pledge to constituencies in the next higher level, and also how many votes they may cast in every vote held in those constituencies.
The strength of a delegate is the same as their support in their election (where ballots are secret) or the same as the size of their constituency (where ballots are public), except that there is a cutoff associated with the level of the constituency that elected them. If the number of votes pledged in the constituency that elected them exceeds the cutoff, then their strength is only the amount of the cutoff.
The strength cutoff for a constituency on Level X shall be (L - X) * (minimum size of a level X constituency), where L is the level of the Delegate Pyramid which is the Delegate board. Note that, since L - (L-1) = 1, the cutoff for boardmembers in the Delegate board is equal to the minimum size of a level (L-1) constituency; so, the maximum and minimum strength of boardmembers in the Delegate board are equal. Therefore, all boardmembers in the Delegate board have equal strength.
The number of layers, including Layer 0 and the top layer which contains the delegate board, is 2 until n>5^(1+1+2), and then 3 until n > 5^(1+1+2+3), and then 4 until n > 5^(1+1+2+3+4), etc.
Note that the level of the delegate board layer is (# of layers) - 1, because the bottom layer is Layer 0.
First, let k = (log(n)/log(5) - 1 - layers + 1)/sum(1:(layers-1)) (this is written in MATLAB notation; in latex notation, sum(1:(layers-1)) would be written (\sum_{i=1}^{layers-1} i) )
where n is the effective group size, and layers is the number of layers in the delegate pyramid, as determined above.
Now, for the layer numbered L, the minimum size of the constituencies on that layer are:
floor(5.^(1+k*(layers - 1 - L)))
(again using matlab notation; using latex, it is floor(5^{1+k*(layers - 1 - L)}))
note: the motivation for using "floor" instead of "ceil" is so that the maximum number of delegates can be elected even if not every eligible citizen chooses to join a delegate constituency (or, on intermediate levels, if not every delegate can agree to join a super-constituency).
No organization, including a faction/party organization, may exert control over a constituency. No organization other than the constituency itself may exercise the power to nominate, to veto, to select, or to recall, the delegate of that constituency.
In particular, Officials may not recommend people to constituencies for the office of delegate. Higher levels of the Delegate Pyramid may not exert any political control over lower levels.
Open debate between members shall not be prohibited within any constituency.
Constituencies are forbidden from spending money or resources on anything except (a) their own operations, (b) advertising to attract new members, (c) coordinating sub-constituencies, and (d) paying a salary to their delegate or his or her staff. Specifically, they may not spend money on advertisments which intend to persuade other people to adopt a point of view, and they may not transfer money to other entities which influence policy.
The organization may allocate money for the allowed purposes to constituencies. An equal amount of money must be given to each constituency on the same level. The sum of the money given to all constituencies on some level X may not be greater than the sum of the money given to all constituencies on the next lowest level.
Constituencies may not raise money themselves; all of the money must come from the organization.
An exception is that goods and services of insignificant expense regarding a constituency's meetings and member communications may be donated. For instance, someone could donate a space to hold meetings in, or someone could create and maintain a website and email list for members to converse.
If a voter has a vote which is pledged to a constituency, and there is currently a delegate who is representing that constituency, then that delegate is said to be the direct representative of the voter, and that voter is said to be a direct constituent of that delegate, and that vote is said to support that delegate.
If a delegate A is a representative of another delegate B, and B is a representative of a person C, then A is said to be an indirect representative of C, and C is said to be an indirect constituent of A, and the votes of C which support B are said to support A.
A person who is either a direct or indirect representative of another person is also said to be their representative, and a person who is either a direct or indirect constituent of another person is also said to be their constituent.
Delegates are responsible only to their direct constituents. Delegates are forbidden from campaigning to attract the votes or loyalties of indirect constituents.
Constituencies are forbidden from formally debating or voting upon any resolution endorsing, censuring, approving of, complimenting, disparaging, or discussing any individual who is not a member of that constituency or of a super-constituency of which their delegate is currently a member or was previously a member, and a constituency's delegate is similarly forbidden from expressing their views on such people to their constituents. For example, a constituency may express favor or disfavor of the delegate of their delegate, because that delegate must be a member of their delegate's immediate super-constituency; however they may not formally express favor or disfavor of the delegate of the delegate of their delegate.
