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Writing:Categories (state legislative profiles)

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Contents

This page is a content-and-style guide about how to handle categories for incumbent state legislators, candidates for state legislature, and retired state legislators. It is recommended that writers use the provided hierarchy of categories where applicable.

Political party

All articles about state legislative incumbents, former members, and candidates should include a political party category. The political party category should look like this:

  • [[Category:Democratic Party]]

A complete list of political party categories can be found.

Third party

In the case that a legislator or candidate doesn't belong to either the Democratic party or Republican party, they should be given a second category in addition to their political party category. That category is:

  • [[Category:Third Party]]

It is important that the article receives both third party category in addition to the political party category:

  • [[Category:Third Party]]
  • [[Category:Libertarian Party]]

State

Following the political party category, all legislator and candidate articles should be given a category dependent on which state they reside. Using Alabama as an example:

  • [[Category:Alabama]]

Incumbency

Current member

There is an established category for state legislative incumbents in every state. Using Alabama as an example, incumbents should be outfitted with the following category:

  • [[Category:Current member, Alabama State Senate]]

or

  • [[Category:Current member, Alabama House of Representatives]]

Many states have alternate names for their legislative chambers, which is reflected in the current member category. To access the exact current member category for the legislative chamber you are working on, see Senate Chambers and House Chambers.

Former member

In the case that a legislator is no longer in office, he or she should be outfitted with the former member category. Using Alabama as an example, former office holders should be outfitted with the following category:

  • [[Category:Former member, Alabama State Senate]]

or

  • [[Category:Former member, Alabama House of Representatives]]

As with the current member category, for the exact names of former member categories, see Senate Chambers and House Chambers.

Year elected template

Incumbents who are currently holding office should be given the {{Senelec}} or {{Houseelec}} templates. This template should be included directly below the current member category.

Usage
{{Senelec|<year>}}
{{Houseelec|<year>}}
Example
{{Senelec|2010}} will automatically apply [[Category:State senators first elected in 2010]] to the incumbent page.
{{Houseelec|2010}} will automatically apply [[Category:State representatives first elected in 2010]] to the incumbent page.

Note that this template should always be removed when the incumbent leaves office. If the legislator is re-elected to the same office at a later date, they should receive the template with the input year as the recent election.

Candidacy

Election categories

In an election year, both incumbents and candidates receive the {{Slpcandidate}} template. This template returns all relevant election-related categories, and looks like this with all parameters: 

{{Slpcandidate|Year=2012|Status=|Chamber=|Primary=|General=|Open=|Redistricting=|2Incs=}}

Individual components of the template (ex. |Redistricting=) will not return a category if left blank. It is recommended, but not necessary that the writer start with the base text which looks like this: 

{{Slpcandidate|Year=|Status=|Chamber=|Primary=}}

Usage

  • Year= Year of the election
  • Status= incumbent or challenger
  • Chamber= State Senate or House of Representatives
  • Primary=
Y to indicate running in a primary.
L to indicate defeated in a primary
W to indicate winner in a primary
  • General=
Y to indicate running in a general election.
L to indicate defeated in a general election
W to indicate winner in a general election
  • Unopposed=Y if facing no major party opposition in a general election
  • Open=Y if incumbent is not running in general election
  • Redistricting=
YS if state senate incumbent is running in a different district because of redistricting.
YH if state house incumbent is running in a different district because of redistricting.
  • 2Incs=Y if there are multiple incumbents facing off in either a district primary or general election

Incumbent specific categories

Retiring

Incumbents who decide to retire rather than seek re-election should receive the {{Incretire}} template. This template has three parameters:

  1. Chamber
  2. Year
  3. Redistricting
  • The redistricting parameter should be applied only when the incumbent cites redistricting as one reason for retiring. To apply, simply type "|Redistricting" after the year.

Usage: 

{{Incretire|State Senate|2012}}

{{Incretire|State House|2012|Redistricting}}

If the incumbent decided to resign prior to the end of the term then there is one more additional parameter to include. After "year" the term "(early)" should be added. Such as: 

{{Incretire|State Senate|2012 (early)}}

Term limits

Incumbents who are forced to retire due to term limits should receive the termed out category:

  • [[Category:Senator termed out, 2012]]
  • [[Category:Representative termed out, 2012]]

New office

Incumbents who are running for a different office than they currently represent should receive the {{Inc new office}} template. This template has three parameters:

  1. Chamber the incumbent currently represents
  2. Chamber the incumbent is running for
  3. Year

Usage: 

{{Inc new office|State Senate|State House|2012}}

{{Inc new office|State House|State Senate|2012}}

A full list of possible usages can be found here.

Complete hierarchy

A theoretical category structure using all basic categories and templates covered in this writing guideline:

[[Category:Third Party]]
[[Category:Libertarian Party]]
[[Category:Alabama]]
[[Category:Current member, Alabama State Senate]]
{{Senelec|2010}}

{{Slpcandidate|Year=2010|Status=Challenger|Chamber=State Senate|Primary=Y|General=Y|Unopposed=N|Open=Y}}
{{Slpcandidate|Year=2012|Status=incumbent|Chamber=State Senate|Primary=Y|General=Y|Unopposed=Y||Redistricting=N|2Incs=Y}}

See also

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