[quote=@Chairman Stein]
<Snipped quote by Dinh AaronMk>

That's all true, buuuuttttt the Empire State having a bunch of Amerodeutsch HRE cosplayers in the post-apocalypse sounds more amusing than the realistic melting pot cultures that actually would likely exist.
[/quote]

True, but my two bits on it is less as HRE cosplay and more materially directed politics to explain it. Elective monarchies aren't restricted simply to the Holy Roman Empire and have manifested themselves time and time again in history. As far back as the ancient Kingdom of Rome monarchs were elected by the assemblies. Macedonia too elected kings by way of its army. By technicality the Republic of Venice was an elective monarchy; the difference was where and how the political power derived itself from. And even outside of Europe the position of Great Khan was elective through a warrior assembly, and the caliphs of the Rashidun period were appointed by consensus let alone being elected.

What makes this possible is less that anyone really bothered to read about the HRE and decided that'd be the thing they would do, but it doesn't mean there's too many toes to step on in trying to build an institution to concentrate political power by involving significant or powerful people in that process. The monarchical bit deriving itself from military ruler-ship that became land owning and rent seeking; the remnants of the old army, the police, or private security taking control and using their power to make anything they can get as their property, relegating most to surfs. I used West Point - The Point Castle - as a symbol of that, since West Point is the Army's officer training academy and happens to be just up river from New York City.