The Congress of the Commonwealth

The Congress of the Commonwealth was the sole body of government for the Commonwealth of America after Sikorskiii's abdication of the Chief Justice of Chicago position, and then that position's abolition in Proposition 12. The Congress had 5 seats, which each of them having changed hands in an election besides Comanche, which was always held by bonito_pibb. The Congress first met in Tammany Hall in Chicago, before relocating to Congress Hall on the north side of the city. In it's two months of operation, 23 bills had made it to the House floor, with 20 passing. No formal parties were ever formed between Representatives, with most acting solely to represent their state's constituents.

Formation
On March 29th, 2020, the Commonwealth was officially divided in 5 states. Each state would have an election to determine who would represent them in the new Congress. Elections would be held two days later, on the 31st of March, 2020. In addition, it was stated that new elections would be held every month. By the 30th of March, every state except Shoshone had at least 2 candidates running. On the 31st of March, the elections began. The winners for Shoshone, Comanche, and Cherokee were announced later that day. The winners for Winnebago and Penobscot would be announced the next day, along with the official election results (seen below). The senator of Comanche, bonito_pibb, was named Speaker of the House, as he received the most votes out of any senator. However, the position of Speaker of the House was not considered the highest office of the nation at this time. Instead, the leader of the Commonwealth was a hereditary position known as the Chief Justice of the Commonwealth (held by Sikorskiii). The Chief Justice also acted as the Mayor of Chicago. With this in mind, the Speaker of the House really only acted as second in command in case of the Chief Justice being offline, and did not really have much power or responsibility.

First Proposals (April 1st to April 6th)
The first Congress presented its first proposal on April 1st, shortly after its formation. Proposition 1 was the Revere Relief Act/Bill, proposed by bonito_pibb and sikorskiii. The exact text of the bill was as follows:

"Revere Relief Bill

''Things we do need to focus on in my opinion, would be a bill to repair revere, the city is a hub of the north eastern part of our nations and its creeper farm and rail duplicator are critical to commonwealth industry. I don’t know what the other reps think but sending 2 stacks of Oak logs and cobblestone from each state to help them rebuild may be a good idea. We can’t focus abroad before we focus at home. I believe this bill should be passed to show union between the state, with one state being helped by all in a time of need. what we would pay -Each state will supply two stacks of oak, birch or spruce logs to Revere to facilitate rebuilding. -Each state would supply 2 stacks of cobblestone to revere. (States with few trees to spare can send cobblestone in the place of the logs such as Shoshone which is mostly grassland and clay)(edited)"''

Proposition 2 was proposed after Prop 1 passed, also on April 1st. It was known as the Standard Building Act, proposed by bonito_pibb and sikorskiii. The exact text of the bill was as follows:

"Standard Building Act

''To fit with our standard colonial and federal style feel, I propose that we cap buildings at 50 blocks tall. Not only would this make our nations city aesthetically pleasing, but it would aid with defense in the event of a war. As seen in old earth worlds tall building can be used by the enemy to cobble monster, fire down on cities, and be used as elytra launches. For these reasons I say we institute this act."''

Proposition 3 was proposed also on April 1st, after Prop 2 passed. It was known as the Quebec Alliance Act, proposed by the nation of Quebec to the Commonwealth. It was presented to Congress by sikorskiii. The exact text of the bill was as follows:

"Quebec has offered us an alliance, though their leader has said he would like to acquire our part of irl Quebec in the future from us. He is fine with our ownership of Anticosti Island and Newfoundland, though."

Proposition 4 was proposed on April 2nd. It was known as the Heptan Alliance Act, proposed by the Heptan Republic, and presented by sikorskiii. It did not recieve the required votes until the next day, April 3rd. The exact text of the bill was as follows:

"The Heptan Republic in the Far North has asked to be an ally of the Commonwealth"

Proposition 5 was proposed on April 3rd, following the passing of Prop 4. It was known as the Establishment of the Department of Transportation Act, and was proposed by sikorskiii. The exact text of the bill was as follows:

"To create a Department of Transportation that will coordinate the construction and maintenance of all national waterways, roadways, iceways, and railways. The Secretary of the Department will be chosen by the Chief Justice and approved by Congress."

Immediately following the passing of Prop 5, MintyMichael was nominated by sikorskiii to be the Secretary of the Department of Transportation, and then approved by Congress.