Dawn: Oh well, I understand the confusion. Zootopia's government structure isn't exactly like our neighbors in the North Mammalian Union. While some of our differences just have to do with the choice of names, others are structurally different despite...being a little similar.
Vernon: Y'all mean like how the role of Mayor in Zoot is equivalent to the 'President' in the NMU?
Dawn: *Nods.* Precisely Puppy. Essentially our Mayor and Assistant Mayor are the equivalents of the President and Vice President of the NMU. Although we don't get the...sheer volume of secret service protection that our relatives in the NMU get.
Vernon: I imagine it'd be the same if there hadn't been that attempted assassination of Caniddey's life back in the sixties.
Dawn: True. Zootopia is a city-state...but despite our population, it's still...rather small? I guess everyone here feels more like they have a say in the process than in a nation as massive as the NMU, not to say there haven't been plots...not counting my own of course...I suppose Lyon B. Johnson and me have that in common.
Vernon: Aw, now don't go comparin' yerself to that snake. Y'all at least weren't planin' to kill Lionheart...as much as you hated him.
Dawn: Still...*sighs*. Well, I suppose that's neither here nor there in terms of this question. Right., so...you may think that the Mayor and Assistant Mayor sort of get carte blanche control over the city, but it's really not the case. The Mayor's role is primarily to oversee that decisions and laws decided on by the district representatives are put in motion, and to be able to take emergency action when a quick decision is to be made. The mayor can use executive orders to put things into effect on their own accord, but it's meant to be used rarely, and even so, it's frowned upon. When it comes to allocation of projects, funds, etcetera for specific Districts, the Mayor plays the arbiter in helping narrow down the options to one out of the multiple that are pitched to him...and that was where my role as the Assistant Mayor came into play. I would go over and prepare all the information for a proposed project, including offers from building firms, or outside suppliers and funding allocation, and make it presentable to the Mayor. Although Lionheart never really read most of what I would put together...he either picked the first thing on his desk, or went with the last company or organization that stuffed his pockets.
Vernon: If it weren't fer the Night Howler fiasco, that fella would just seen his way outta office a lame duck at most.
Dawn: The Mayor is elected in a general election, as is the Assistant Mayor. But the District representatives are elected in local elections. These representatives and their assistants are the ones who actually field the wants and desires of their local population, and begin crafting it into local law. Of course, there are some proposals that may lean on another district's own, or may affect Zootopia as a whole, which is why the representatives meet in a council to iron out such things.
Vernon: Below that y'all got folks like my Pa, who get elected to positions like Sheriff and other very local positions o' prominence. Oh, and that ain't countnin' like...agency positions...I ferget how that works.
Dawn: Positions in organizations like the Zootopian Reserve Military, or the Zootopian Intelligence agency are chosen by the representative council, although decisions like that need to be agreed on by a majority of the council and mayor.
Vernon: Right, shows how much I know about my own local government. *Chuckles.* I weren't ever very interested in civics...
Dawn: I suppose that's another upside to not working in politics anymore, as telling you about my day at work would probably utterly confuse you. *Giggles.*
Vernon: Probably. *Chuckles.* It's much easier to digest “I helped the pups on the bus, met with my publisher, wrote for an hour and then demolished a whole can of Preyngles before nappin' on the sofa.”
Dawn: Puppy! Don't make that sound normal! I was pregnant at the time! Or did you forget that those preyngles were smothered in chocolate sauce?
Vernon: Ah...yer right. How could I forget comin' home to y'all snorin' on the couch with chocolate syrup still smeared on yer muzzle...not to mention the bottle o' syrup was empty too...
Dawn: *Blushes.* I-I ran out of chips and was still hungry...
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