The governor's desk

The governor's desk works like the presidency game's own dashboard, applied to a state rather than the nation. The player runs the state through the same kind of monthly turn a President uses to run the country, with the state legislature standing in for Congress and the state supreme court standing in for the federal court. The desk shows the state's own economy and social figures in place of the nation's. A career reaches the mansion either from the Governor start (see Career starts) or by winning a governor's race in the world around the player, and the desk works the same way either way.

Taking the mansion

Any state can be played except Nebraska and New Hampshire. California, New York and Florida are written out in full detail; every other state's desk is built from its historical record and statistics instead. On taking office, the two legislative chambers are seeded with real party numbers for the year, every seat is given a named member, and the state supreme court is filled. A cabinet is generated for the state, the year and the governor's own party. The state's economy and social figures start at wherever the historical curve says that state stood in the month the governor takes office, including anything a previous governor's term left behind. The dials chosen in the career builder, such as the economy and checks-and-balances switches, Whacko Mode, hard mode, and the Tweeter feed in the 2000s and the modern era, all apply at the scale of the state. A premium account also brings Dirty Tricks and Expanded Congress to the statehouse. California is currently the only state with hand-written events, and the Governor start and the state picker both say so.

The month's event

Every month, the desk presents one card. In California, this card is drawn from a hand-written pool spanning the 1990s to the 2020s, with quiet months coming up more often than serious situations, and serious crises rarer still; a card is not repeated until the rest of its pool has been used. Every other state's card is written to order instead, describing a kind of event suited to that state, such as an infrastructure failure or a controversy touching the state's own laws, taking into account the state's current numbers, the governor's record in office, and the events already played during the term. This written-to-order feature is available only on a premium account. Twice a year, in March and September, an event drawn from the state's own political class can appear instead, such as an inquiry from the state's Attorney General or a feud between the two chamber leaders. A media booking from a running campaign or promotional activity can also take the month's card.

The statehouse

With the checks-and-balances dial on, the state legislature sends bills to the desk in the same way Congress sends bills to a President, and the governor's policies go through the same kind of scrutiny. Both chambers, and the wider state political class, can be opened from the desk with every seat named. Every November of a state election year, the seats of the legislature that are up are contested. In each seat, the voters who know the governor vote according to how they see the governor. The voters who do not know the governor vote according to how they see the President, or, in a presidential election year, the two presidential nominees. Each seat's usual lean also counts; see Races and primaries. The bench of the state supreme court ages by a year every January, and in January and July an older justice may retire, leaving a seat for the governor to fill with the state senate's agreement.

The state's numbers

The desk shows the state's social figures, including population, net migration, crime, poverty, homelessness, home ownership, income, overdose deaths, incarceration, school rank, cost of living and the state's racial makeup, alongside its economic figures for growth, unemployment, inflation, the budget balance and debt. While the governor holds office, these numbers no longer drift with history on their own; instead, they move only as a result of the governor's own choices, in the same way the presidency game's national figures move only as a result of a President's choices. National events, such as the 1990 recession, the 2008 financial collapse and the 2020 pandemic, can still strike a sitting governor's economy, and a large hit is reported in the state's own papers. When a governor leaves office, the gap between the desk's own figures and the historical curve is preserved and gradually fades over the following years; see The historical curve.

The papers

The three items the state's own press writes about the governor's month appear on the state row of the political scene's press page, under the state's own newspaper names. The latest national headlines also appear on the desk. See Papers and NPC events.

Re-election and leaving

California, New York and Florida all use four-year terms. California allows a governor two terms in a lifetime, Florida allows two terms in a row, and New York has no limit; every other state's limit is taken from its own real history. A governor who has served out the term limit cannot run again. Renomination is a race like any other. A governor whose standing with the party has fallen faces a primary challenger. In California, New York and Florida the challenger comes from the state's written bench, and a weaker standing brings a tougher challenger; in every other state the challenger is a newly generated figure from the governor's own party. A governor who loses the primary does not appear on the November ballot.

In November, the governor faces the other party's nominee. In California, New York and Florida this is one of the state's written challengers. In every other state it is the person who really ran for the other party in that year's election, and after the real record ends, or in a Sandbox career, it is a newly generated candidate. During the general-election campaign, some of the governor's months bring campaign business instead of the usual desk card. The November result is counted in the same way as any other race; see Races and primaries and Election nights.

In an election year, the desk offers the choice not to seek re-election, which opens the seat to whichever challenger is already in the primary. A governor who loses an election, is termed out, or steps down returns to ordinary life as a former governor, well known in the state and, to a lesser extent, nationally. A governor who wins the presidency hands the mansion to the Lieutenant Governor without an election; see The presidency from a career.