I think it would really interesting to add economic functionality to the game, Where the government has objectives to achieve like, Economic growth, low unemployment, stable prices, balanced budgets, low state debt etc. These kind of achievements will make elected people more accountable and can work well for building a political environment on the island.
The Governor and any elected representatives could have the power/ability to do things such as;
Setting Budgets
By calculating the government revenue, they can then change spending on current policies or create new policies. An example could be a spending scheme for unemployment benefits, where the governor can propose changes to the spending. This would make political campaigns more interesting I think.
Taxes
Taxes could be introduced or removed by political figures, i.e. Income tax, Corporation tax, Property Tax etc. where the governor can propose changes to these levels and introduce new ones in order to maybe balance the budget.
Interest rates
By maybe having a central bank on the island, where a committee votes every few weeks to change the islands interest rate can make a more dynamic economy as it will change how much money people will save or spend in their bank accounts, making people potentially better off or worse, making in-game loans more expensive or cheaper... just change things up.
Housing Projects
Following the idea of budgeting, I think if the governor can allocate money for new housing projects or for expanding the town square etc. I think it would work for people looking to buy new houses or flats.
These are just a few ideas that I had, wondering what people think or whether you have any additional ideas to this one!
Thanks