Types of InfluenceThere are 2 types of influence: 'Regional Power' and 'Regional Influence'.
'Regional Power' is found on the region's page under the Factbook entry.
'Regional Influence' is found near the top of a nation's page under the government summery.
Regional Power
This reflects how much Influence that region's residents have in total, compared to other regions. The 'Regional Power' is equal to the sum of the national influence of all its members (updated each UN update), and is displayed as a ranking on a scale ranging from ‘Backwater’ to ‘Extremely High’. It is largely for comparative purposes and does not have an impact on gameplay.
Regional Influence
BasicsWhen a nation moves to a region, it has no influence within that region. Nations accrue influence in a region by remaining in the region, and by receiving endorsements from the region's members. Being a member of the WA has no effect unless the nation gains endorsements, and the influence of the nations endorsing has no effect either.
At each WA update the each nation's influence is increased by a constant factor (to represent its remaining in the region) and a factor proportionate to the number of WA endorsements it has. The precise equivalence between these two factors (for example, whether having n endorsements is equivalent to remaining in a region for n days) is unclear.
Ranks1. Hermit
2. Hegemony
3. Dominator
4. Superpower
5. Power
6. Powerbroker
7. Eminence Grise
8. Enforcer
9. Dealmaker
10. Instigator
11. Contender
12. Negotiator
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13. Auxiliary
14. Ambassador
15. Diplomat
16. Envoy
17. Duckspeaker
18. Handshaker
19. Truckler
20. Vassal
21. Minnow
Effect on GameplayInfluence is of critical importance to the WA Delegate (and founder nation). While updating the Factbook entry is free, the ability of WA Delegates to eject and ban nations from their region, and to password-protect it, is limited by their Influence.
That is, the longer a Delegate has been a resident of the region, and the more endorsements he has held over that time, the more able he is to eject, ban, and password-protect.
Delegates consume some of their Influence to exercise their power, so the more often he ejects, bans, and password-protects, the more difficult it is for him to wield those powers in the future.
In relation to ejecting and banning, the exact amount of Influence consumed depends on the target's Influence. A newcomer to a region may be ejected for very little cost, while ejecting a well-supported, long-time resident is very expensive. Additionally, it costs more to eject and ban than to simply eject the same nation. In order to password-protect a region without displaying the password to the residents, the regional Delegate must have a minimum rank of Auxiliary.
History
Both 'Regional Influence' and 'Regional Power' were introduced in version 1.9. With the introduction of Regional Influence, our rules governing "Invasion Griefing" are abolished.
That means we no longer have complicated rules dictating, for example, how many residents a Delegate can eject before the moderators consider it illegal "griefing." Delegates need not worry about whether they are allowed to eject, ban, or password-protect—instead, if the game lets you do them, they're legal.
This removes a major source of angst and uncertainty for players and moderators alike. In the past, some players didn't even know there were rules about ejecting nations until after they'd broken them. Even experienced players (and moderators!) sometimes found it difficult to separate genuine invasions from region griefing. We're very glad to be able to put this situation behind us.
Note: Largely taken from Safalra’s Guide To Influence.
See Also: Official NS page on Influence 
