It has come to our attention that there was some inconsistency with how non-voters were handled in the NSC 216 final. Yaponesia voted 30 minutes after the deadline, Orangualia voted 4 hours 40 minutes after the deadline, and Šilček voted 10 hours after the deadline. Šilček's votes were accepted, but Yaponesia's and Orangualia's were both rejected.
The host's rationale was that they wanted to do something kind for Šilček, who had been thinking of withdrawing. However, regardless of any good intentions, we need to stress that this is not acceptable. The rules allow the host a lot of flexibility with how they handle late voters, and we trust hosts not to misuse this power, applying a consistent standard that treats everyone equally.
In this situation, it is perfectly fine to decide to be kind and accept Šilček's votes, but the same courtesy must be extended to all other nations who voted up to that point. Choosing to accept some votes but not others can have a big impact on the results, so it's important to have the same standard for everyone to make things fair -- not just for the players who voted late, but also for everyone whose scores are affected by their votes.
Because of this, Yaponesia and Orangualia will not be punished for voting late. They are free to enter NSC 217 and will not receive any evil dots. Their votes are shown below. Fortunately, their votes do not affect the winner, and all PQs appear to be the same (albeit in a different order).
Yaponesia's votes
Orangualia's votes
The host's rationale was that they wanted to do something kind for Šilček, who had been thinking of withdrawing. However, regardless of any good intentions, we need to stress that this is not acceptable. The rules allow the host a lot of flexibility with how they handle late voters, and we trust hosts not to misuse this power, applying a consistent standard that treats everyone equally.
In this situation, it is perfectly fine to decide to be kind and accept Šilček's votes, but the same courtesy must be extended to all other nations who voted up to that point. Choosing to accept some votes but not others can have a big impact on the results, so it's important to have the same standard for everyone to make things fair -- not just for the players who voted late, but also for everyone whose scores are affected by their votes.
Because of this, Yaponesia and Orangualia will not be punished for voting late. They are free to enter NSC 217 and will not receive any evil dots. Their votes are shown below. Fortunately, their votes do not affect the winner, and all PQs appear to be the same (albeit in a different order).
Yaponesia's votes
Orangualia's votes
for 
