Polls are a very clean approach; however, the downside to this is that running each week's nominations only through polls limits exposure to the wider community and some of the inaugural members.

I may be able to solve this by simultaneously crafting a post and a poll. This runs the risk of excessive tagging of community members (an additional 4 times per month). I can also leave tags out so that those who follow or come across my posts would vote.

There's also the issue of relying on my nominators for exceptionally timely nominations; currently, I give them some leeway in timing to submit their choices, and this would reduce it. I may be able to compensate this with slight bumps in pay (just thinking out loud here).

Many people have their votes tied up and with limited VP

I originally set it up so that people could also comment under their choice if they're low on VP; alternatively, they could use a dust vote (1%). Already thought through, and shouldn't be an issue!

Anyway, thanks for the input! I'll see what others say as well.