“First rule of politics, kiddo: never let the truth get in the way of a good story.”
If you wanna be a real big shot, you need to get involved in politics. The added functionality of politics doesn’t really do much at the start of the game, but once you have too much money to know what to spend it on, that’s where it comes into its own.
If you play the New York map (which is included with Shadow Government) you get a mission right at the start to go seek out your local politician, and get some nice money in return. The other maps don’t give you the introductory missions … or the money.
Since the game starts in June 1920, it’s at the start of the nomination cycle for politicians. Unfortunately, since you need money to nominate a politician, and then to give them campaign donations, the first election cycle will have to be ignored because you won’t have the kind of money required. Because you also have no political influence at this point, you can’t change any laws in January 1921, so that will also have to wait.
Election cycles
Election cycles run every two years (1920/22/24/26/28/30/32) – unless you’re playing on Epic where it seems to be every four (1920/24/28/32) – so once the locals go to the polls in November, you’ll have to wait until 1922 (or 1924) for the next opportunity to get involved. By 1924 you will hopefully have some money to spare to get at least one politician in your pocket.
- June – July: Nomination cycle – nominate your politicians
- August – October: Campaign cycle – go around doing campaign tasks
- November (first week): Election Day – find out if you won or not
Electing your personal political pawn
First you need to find yourself a politician on the map. The incumbent politician, the one who won the last election, can be found in the ward office. There are several wards on the map, and several politicians to bribe back. One political ward corresponds to one police precinct.
The ward office is where you go when the nomination cycle begins to see who’s wanting to run for office, and select the one you think will have the best chance of winning, which could be the incumbent one. Sometimes you have to choose whichever politician you can afford to back, because the upfront costs can be steep, and you need to pay to get them on your side.
If the politician you back is a challenger, you will have to go talk to the politician at home, elsewhere on the map – not necessarily in the same precinct as the ward office. (Read: you’re carrying a lot of money, is the cop there bribed?) Their symbol looks like a white chess pawn.
A politician requires donations, and the minimum donation you can do at any time is $1000/$1500 (seems to depend on which map you play?), then $2000/$3000, $5000/$7500, $10000/$15000. This is why politics is something you can only really get into if you have plenty of money to spare! Larger donation amounts might cause some legal issues, the candidate to be investigated and so on, which ain’t great for publicity and voters don’t take kindly to it.
First you back a politician (nominations are in June-July) and donate money to them, and when the campaign cycle starts in August, that’s when you get to spend it. Your politician needs to go out campaigning, and campaigning usually costs money, which comes out of their campaign budget – i.e. the money you’ve donated.
From June to the end of October you can donate more money if and when needed.
You can always see who’s ahead in the polls when you visit the ward office, so you know what campaigning actions they’ve already done and what you might want to try next, as well as seeing how much is left in the budget.
You can’t do campaigning actions every turn, but check back with your candidate at least every other turn and see if there’s something more you can do to ensure your candidate’s victory. Because if you’re going to spend all that money on buying a politician, you should make sure you get your money’s worth!
You can also use Favors to have local businesses help put the word about about the local candidate you’re backing.
Who can you nominate?
If there is only one option available, you normally have to nominate someone else. If there is more than one option, you seem to be able to pick the person who won last time, a.k.a. the incumbent. If you share the same nationality as a candidate, there are some campaigning options available for free.
There is no political spectrum at play here, the colors don’t represent any political leaning. Blue is for the incumbent candidate, red for someone local, yellow for someone of a different nationality than American.
Political style
Every politician has their own little “quirks”, things that make them more or less easy to elect. You need to figure out what kind of person you think the locals would vote for. Look at the current incumbent and see which one you feel would work best for that ward – and your wallet. The way they do politics influences the cost to back them.
Style | Description in game |
---|---|
Abrasive | “Not the most reassuring voice. In fact, it’s downright dissonant. It’s best to keep them away from the campaign podium lest they start talking. But once in office, they have a knack for spreading influence.” |
Candidate of the People | “It’s hard to tell sometimes if this politician really believes all of their rousing speeches and twinkle-eyed idealism, but the crowds love it. Good fundraising, but a weak incumbent with a target on their back during elections.” |
Corrupt | “This politician is willing to do anything to get ahead. Bypassing election laws, dirty tricks, and blatant lies – nothing is beneath this competitor. Easy to elect, but runs the risk of gaffes and legal intervention.” |
Insider1 | “Face it – no one likes the fat-cat politician. In fact, they’re easy targets. So while they’re expensive to elect, they’re great once elected to increase your influence at City Hall.” |
Legalist | “As straight-edge as they come, this politician is extremely effective once in office, but isn’t the most appealing from the outside. Refuses to engage in illegal campaign activities, but very willing to listen to big donors once in power.” |
Naive | “It’s not that they don’t see how the world of politics works – No. Wait. It’s exactly that. They just don’t quite have the killer instinct. Makes them easy to ignore and not very influential. But they’re nice and people seem to take to them, so there’s that.” |
Orator | “Soaring words that speak to the soul flow from this politician. Everyone feels that they’re being addressed directly. They truly enjoy and excel at getting elected. But once in office, you find that they talk more than they do.” |
Public Servant | “This politician is just here to fill a role. No strong opinions one way for another, these run-of-the-mill public servants are easy to mold, but have no huge advantages of their own.” |
Ruthless | “For this politician, winning is everything and there is nothing that they wouldn’t do to win. And then win again. Their drive means that they’re if not respected, then at least feared and that increases their political influence. However, their willingness to try anything makes them a bit tougher for the public to love.” |
Wallflower | “When asked what they do for the city, the most honest answer would be that they cash their checks. And not much else. Every political system depends on a bunch of bodies to keep the seats warm. And their vote counts just as much.” |
- Can start investigations into competitors. If you’re up against an Insider, they can start an investigation into your candidate. ↩︎
Campaigning options
A list of all the actions you can have your pawn perform during the campaigning phase (August-October) leading up to an election, in order of cost. Note that all of them – except an expensive one – have some kind of requirement to be available to you, so you need to plan ahead.
You will be able to do campaign actions four to five times in total. Whenever a campaigning action is taken, you need to wait until a few (three?) turns until you can perform another one. Can’t do everything at once, and you need to spread it out a little to keep reminding the voters who they need to vote for.
Cost | Dialogue option/campaigning action | Requirements |
---|---|---|
1 Favor | “Think you could convince the businesses around here to show some support for my buddy who’s running a campaign right now? I figure you could remind ‘em that whatever’s good for me is good for them too.” | Use the Favor option when speaking to a front. (Seems to count as a campaign action, unless you do an actual campaign action first.) |
-$0 | “How about you join me at our next civic club meeting to address our local countrymen?” | Same ethnicity as you |
-$0 | “Our local civic club is holding a parade to celebrate our heritage. Join me on my float and we can meet a lot of voters.” | Same ethnicity as you |
-$0 | “You know how things work at City Hall. Why don’t you get some friends to support some new laws and subsidies to help out the neighborhood? Voters will be appreciative. | Must be Insider; must be incumbent |
-$0 | “Why don’t you hijack the next session of city council and make a speech? There will be cameras and reporters there.” | Must be incumbent |
-$250 | “I’ve got a connection to print some political buttons. They’re the bees knees. Very modern and will definitely increase interest in the campaign.” | Skill: Political Button Manufacture (You gain the skill when you have 12 influence in your possession.) |
-$1000 | “Got an invite to a charity dinner. So how about you break out the good threads and join me? I’m sure I can arrange for you to speak.” | Must be Candidate of the People, Legalist, or Orator |
-$1200 | “Let’s get a float in the neighborhood’s summer parade. I’m sure there will be a lot of voters lining the streets.” | Same ethnicity as you; must be Naive, Orator or Wallflower. |
-$1500 | “I’m thinking it’s time to run some print ads on behalf of the campaign. I know we only get one shot per campaign, so let’s make it count!” | Law enacted: Newspaper Advertising (The law is enacted for free when you have 10 influence in your possession.) |
-£2000 | “Let’s hire a few private detectives to dig about for some dirt on rivals. Then we can hold a press conference to denounce their bad behavior.” | Must be Ruthless, Corrupt or Insider |
-$2500 | “I know you only get one radio campaign in each election cycle. So how about you make it for my campaign?” | Law enacted: Radio Advertising (The law is enacted for free when you have 50 influence in your possession.) |
-$6000 | “I’ve been thinking, this campaign would really benefit from getting your name out there a little bit more. What do you say we hold a big rally, make sure you’re on everyone’s minds?” | n/a |
-$8000 | “You’re a great speaker. How about we rent a hall, get some good food and invite the press for a stirring bout of oratory to boose the campaign?” | Must be Orator or Candidate of the People |
Political influence
Once it’s time for elections (first week of November), you see the results for the entire city, with the politicians in your pocket at the top. Didn’t win? Better luck next time. They won? Congratulations, you’ve gained yourself some political influence! This is going to be useful come January, when you get to use that influence to change the city’s laws in your favor.
How do you get more influence? By winning elections with more candidates. The more politicians you back, the more influence you can gain.
Different wards are worth different amounts of influence (higher population density = more influence). Outside of election cycles? Only if you have an Operative captain and send them on a scheme with a successful outcome.
“Some day, and that day may never come, I will call upon you to do a service for me.”
Laws
Some laws will already be enacted at the start of the game. If there’s one you particularly dislike and you have enough political influence, you can have it revoked.
If there’s a law that you think would be particularly useful and you have enough influence to enact it? You can do so. It uses up that number of influence, and it will either be temporary (valid until the start of the next election cycle when it automatically expires) or permanent (valid until revoked).
You have all of January to make any changes you want, but once you hit February you have to wait until next January to make any further changes.
You can make changes every January, not just the one following an election year, provided you have any/enough influence. If you don’t want to make any changes that year, you don’t have to.
The majority of the laws that have a negative effect for you are ones you start the game with with, so they’re revoke only, or they were the result of a scheme gone wrong. I got saddled with Safe Street Speed Limits when my Operator failed their scheme, and it took a while before I could manage to revoke it. But on the plus side, I then also had enough influence to enact Advanced Traffic Systems while I was at it.
Abandoned Property Seizures (temporary)
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
16 | Pass a law that allows local politicians to give out deeds to buildings that have been seized by the city for one reason or another. This law is valid until the next election. |
Go to the ward office and claim one free building per ward/politician per election cycle – very nice when you’ve managed to get more than one politician elected!
The ward office needs to be within your territory, or it won’t work. Sometimes there are no buildings available, so it says you get one, but you don’t.
If you enact this law two elections in a row, any politician(s) you got a building from last time won’t give you another one this time.
Advanced Traffic Systems
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
12 | Get the city council to pass a law that enacts some sweeping new rules and increases funding for street maintenance. This will add movement points to each crew member. |
Must not have the law Safe Streets Speed Limits enacted.
Apple Juice Ban
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
12 | Bowing to pressure from dry lobby, the city has passed a law that makes buying apple juice in large quantities illegal. So you’ll have to gain some trust with vendors to buy any in the quantities required to be useful. |
You can get a mission to revoke this law for a $2000 reward.
Ceramics Subsidies
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
12 | This law encourages ceramics production in the city and some businesses will produce more stoneware crocks than usual in response to the law. |
City Repair Initiative (temporary)
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
15 | This city ordinance subsidizes construction materials to make it easier for business and home owners to build or renovate. |
Must not have the law Construction Regulations enacted.
Construction Regulations
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
12 | The city has enacted some strict regulations that require inspecting and quality standards for construction materials. Expect building materials to be more expensive while this law is in force. |
If you have a few buildings that produce building materials (or have a lot of money going spare), enacting this is a waste of points.
Election Fairness Act
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
12 | This law was passed to make it harder for dirty money to play a role in politics. In reality, it just makes politicians more expensive to influence. |
Fruit Subsidies (temporary)
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
15 | Enacting this law makes fruits and products made from fruits cheaper to acquire in the city. |
Must not have the laws Grape Concentrate Ban or Apple Juice Ban enacted.
Get Our Businesses Back Act (temporary)
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
8 | Enacting this law turns some of your influence into a one-time grant for funds from City Council. |
Glass Subsidies
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
16 | This law encourages glass production in the city and some businesses will have more bottles and small bottles available than usual in response to the law. |
Grape Concentrate Ban
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
12 | Bowing to pressure from dry lobby, the city has passed a law that makes buying grape concentrate in large quantities illegal. So you’ll have to gain some trust with vendors to buy any in the quantities required to be useful. |
You can get a mission to revoke this law for a $2000 reward.
Informer Funding
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
14 | This city law gives healthy rewards to stool pigeons with people calling the cops about every little thing. While this law is in force, be extra careful about heat. Cops will be around more. |
Not really a problem if you’ve paid off all the local cops in your territory.
Local Loosening: Beer
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
30 | Have the city pass a law that allows the buying and selling of homemade beer within the city limits. This law makes brick wine legal within the city, so anyone who wants to buy it will openly say so. |
Must have produced: Homemade Beer 600 crocks.
Must not have any of the other Local Loosening laws enacted.
The Cider and Beer requirements are the wrong way around in the Epic version.
Local Loosening: Cider
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
30 | Have the city pass a law that allows the buying and selling of hard cider within the city limits. This law makes brick wine legal within the city, so anyone who wants to buy it will openly say so. |
Must have produced: Hard Cider 450 crocks.
Must not have any of the other Local Loosening laws enacted.
The Cider and Beer requirements are the wrong way around in the Epic version.
Local Loosening: Spirits
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
30 | Have the city pass a law that allows the buying and selling of moonshine within the city limits. This law makes brick wine legal within the city, so anyone who wants to buy it will openly say so. |
Must have produced: Moonshine 400 crocks.
Must not have any of the other Local Loosening laws enacted.
Local Loosening: Wine
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
30 | Have the city pass a law that allows the buying and selling of brick wine within the city limits. This law makes brick wine legal within the city, so anyone who wants to buy it will openly say so. |
Must have produced: Brick Wine 500 crocks.
Must not have any of the other Local Loosening laws enacted.
Neutral Alcohol Deregulation
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
16 | Seeking to cut red tape, industries in the city have convinced politicians to waive all of the complicated rules that once made neutral alcohol hard to get. |
You can get a mission to enact this law for a $2000 reward.
Newspaper Advertising
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
100 | This law lifts the limits on who can place political advertising in the city’s newspapers and allows you to run print ads during political campaigns. |
You can get this law enacted for free through a mission that only requires you to have a certain amount of Influence. Don’t revoke it.
Parking Lot Contract (temporary)
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
20 | Use your influence at City Hall to secure a contract to manage the city’s parking lots. This will give you a nice bit of cash that you will definitely spend on parking lot improvements. Plus you can park some truck in a few lots and increase capacity. |
Must not have the law Vehicle Taxes enacted.
Police Commission Appointment (temporary)
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
18 | Get someone you trust appointed to the police commission. This will decrease the amount of heat generated by your actions. Plus, friendly politicians will be able to use your new powers to convince cops in their wards to leave you alone. |
Must not have the law Police Ethics Board enacted.
If you have this, instead of paying off a cop when it’s time to renew their bribes, go speak to the politician in their precinct and they’ll leave you alone for a whole year instead of 250 days. As a bonus: it also works on cops you can’t bribe!
Police Ethics Board
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
18 | Outrage with crooked cops has led to this law that makes it riskier for cops to take your bribes. So while it’s in force, expect them to be more expensive. |
Police Transportation Contract (temporary)
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
12 | Use your influence at City Hall to secure a contract to transport items for the police force. Your politician friends will be able to advise you about lucrative jobs. |
If you enact this, you will be able to arrange some T3 booze barrels to be diverted to you. Similar to importing booze barrels from a passenger train station, except here you only get 3 each time and you have to wait a few weeks before you can ask the same politician again.
Radio Advertising
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
100 | This law opens the airwaves to all types of political advertising and allows you to run radio ads in campaign season. |
You can get this enacted for free through a mission that only requires you to have a certain amount of Influence.
Real Estate Rebates (temporary)
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
36 | Passing this law makes the purchase of new buildings less expensive with a rebate program that will last until the next election. |
Territory size: 10 corners.
Must not have Real Estate Taxes enacted.
Unless this drastically reduces cost? Not worth it. Look at Abandoned Property Seizures instead.
Real Estate Taxes
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
20 | This tax makes buying property more expensive. This will make property deals more expensive while the law is active. |
Go for Abandoned Property Seizures instead. I don’t know how big a discount you’d get from these, but I’m guessing it’s not going to be enough to make buying buildings affordable.
Replace the Mayor
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
80 | Use your influence in City Council to remove the existing mayor and get your own candidate into power. This is the ultimate statement of political power. Once you’ve done that, you’ll also find the cops are much easier to deal with. |
This is one of the game’s legacy goals. Other than that I haven’t noticed it doing much? Note: You need to have a captain with the Operative role for this option to show up.
Safe Streets Speed Limits
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
10 | City Council has reacted to a few unfortunate accidents involving speed and reduced the speed limit on all city streets. This will cut into your ability to move around unless you can get rid of this law. |
-2 Movement to every character while enacted.
Storage Regulations
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
12 | The city has enacted some strict regulations that require inspecting and quality standards for crocks, barrels and bottles. Expect those materials to be more expensive while this law is in force. |
Translated Election Materials
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
15 | This law requires the city to translate election materials into the many languages spoken by newcomers to our city. This will increase the effect of ethnicity in elections. |
Truck Deregulation
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
16 | Getting this law passed will make small delivery trucks available for purchase in addition to basic pickup trucks. It also opens up some extra parking to increase truck capacity. |
Skill: Truck Repair Bays (if you don’t already have it).
Must not have the law Vehicle Taxes enacted.
You can still buy small delivery trucks even without this law enacted.
Vehicle Taxes
Cost | Description in game |
---|---|
15 | Even though you don’t really get a lot of your vehicles the legal way, the taxes enacted by City Council are even making the black market a bit pricier. |
Through the first Car Deals mission you can get the skill Negotiation Assistant, which considerably lowers vehicle prices from vendors. And if you keep repeating Car Deals you can also get a choice of cars and/or trucks, so this doesn’t seem very useful.
Some laws are only really worth enacting if you have a lot more influence than you could ever hope to spend. Like, it’s 1931, you have 150+ spare and you’ve already replaced the mayor and enacted/repealed literally everything else you actually want? Then why not; go to town! Let’s not forget who really owns this city.