Elections

Every 8 years the people of Styx gather to decide about their future.
Every citizen has one vote to cast for a Great Union and one vote to cast for their preferred Chief Electoral Commissar.
Citizens are obligated to vote at threat of punishment.

Votes are cast on thin sheets of metal that the symbol of a Great Union is etched into, these sheets are collected from each citizen by a state-sanctioned Blood Mage who certifies that the sheet was filled out by the respective citizen with best intentions.

Though almost all of the Great Unions represent a group of laboring folk among the masses of Styx not all citizens consistently vote for the Great Union that represents their profession.
In modern times many of the Great Unions have political programs that appeal even to those who aren't part of the Union's populus.