There’s a scifi TV series called Severance where memories at work and memories of personal life can be severed, I won’t spoil the story but this news of writing code in their sleep sounds just like that.

If I’m not mistaken, the US does not have direct democracy for presidential elections (https://www.usa.gov/electoral-college) nor the lawmaking process (https://www.usa.gov/how-laws-are-made). Unless you’re referring other forms of direct democracy in the US (https://ballotpedia.org/Forms_of_direct_democracy_in_the_American_states) or elsewhere in the world like Russian presidential elections.

As for how China’s president is elected, these two videos basically sum it up:

• How deputies are elected to people’s congresses https://news.cgtn.com/news/2023-02-24/How-deputies-are-elected-to-China-s-people-s-congresses-1hGaCLluMtW/index.html
• How are Chinese leaders elected? https://news.cgtn.com/news/3267444d7a6b7a6333566d54/index.html