Politics

Overview
Politics in the corporate-governed world of UbiquiCity are constrained in many ways compared to those of the 20th and 21st centuries, but the advent of AIs, networked systems and data security has allowed for a greater degree of responsiveness and direct participation in local affairs, for those who maintain a high Citizen score. Needless to say, tactics such as strikes and walk-outs have little effect in a world of Universal Basic Income and voluntary employment.

Each district has its own local politics. Some have democratic elections for offices and representatives. Some are more dictatorial. There are no trade barriers between districts. With the highly-regulated exception of the Industrial Zones, no district is owned by a single corporation. Rather, the districts are the results of joint ventures between two or more of the largest corporations in the past. These companies lease or sell land to smaller corporations who house their workers and contribute to the common housing budget as well (in exchange for participation in the City Council), and these entanglements have long-standing repercussions in terms of corporate relations - not unlike marriages between the aristocrats of neighboring countries.

The Sprawls are owned by large numbers of small front corporations (not unlike junk bonds); these are investments that didn't work out as planned, but haven't been wiped out just yet. The Squatter Towns have basically been abandoned; they are failed investments left to rot.

The Union City flag is red and blue.

Indirect Democracy
The city is divided into Districts based largely on economic function, and this in turn reflects the de-facto social stratification of UbiComp society.

Districts in UbiquiCity possess a level of autonomy roughly equivalent to the “Home Owners’ Associations” of the 20th and 21st centuries. Major decisions (those affecting the city as a whole) are under the purview of the city’s corporate board as advised by the District Council, which is made up of representatives from the various Districts, each appointed as per their own District’s terms and provisions.

Proposals to one’s own District Council, or to the City itself, may in theory be brought to vote by any citizen. The actual success of a proposition making it to the ballot, however, depends on a complex series of effectiveness calculations and projections of societal repercussions run by the CitySystem, based on everything from the financial cost of implementation to the Citizen Score and Reputation Points of the propositioner.

More local and pedestrian decisions are decided via Blockchain Voting systems within each District.

Civic Upgrade Provisions
Each year a discretionary funding package called a Civic Upgrade Provision is released to a recipient district. These funds are to be spent on the modernization of additional neighborhoods and incorporated areas, specifically: creating the infrastructure to support an UbiComp network, or enhancing the UbiComp services and systems already present. The recipient district is selected by the city’s corporate board as advised by district representatives, citizens groups, and the CitySystem AI.

The contested annual prize incites zealous competition, lobbying, positioning and politicking – all aided by the latest AI constructs and public relations systems. Most districts possess some sort of techno-progressive citizens group which lobbies for (and in some cases elects) those representatives they consider most likely to argue in favor of their desired upgrades. For a few weeks prior to the grantee being chosen, most districts experience a spike in public service announcements and community activism.