Elections
The election of officers can be a difficult process for organizations especially if past elections have been cluttered with bias, disorganization or a lack of consistent rules and procedures. Depending on the size of your organization, you may want to create an election committee. In addition, you should have WRITTEN policies and procedures for your election process. These policies/procedures should be re-evaluated on a regular basis — prior to election time — to determine needed changes.
Election committee members must be impartial. They must not endorse any candidate or coalition by attending campaign functions, wearing buttons or campaigning. They cannot publicly denounce any candidate or coalition. They cannot discuss with anyone, especially candidates, the confidential information discussed at committee meetings until that information is made public. It is extremely important that the committee appear unbiased.
It is important that proper notice and due process is given to individuals if an offense or violation of the code is alleged. It should be clear what appeal process is available. You will need to be consistent in your treatment of individuals and complaints.
It is important to develop a process for conducting a new election if tampering of the results has occurred. Reasons for annulment of an election must be serious, as should the penalty for those involved in the tampering.
All rules and regulations must be clear and fair to all involved in the election. Here are some of the areas you might want to include in your election process:
Election committee:
- scope of power
- membership — selection and resignation/removal process
- responsibilities
Election schedule:
- nominations/filing — when
- election — dates/ runoff — dates
Offices available:
- number and kind of positions
Candidates:
- qualifications for office
- nomination/filing procedure
- affiliation — coalition/party vs. independent
- write-in procedures
Ballots:
Polls/voting sites:
- locations and times for voting (at a specified meeting or site)
- eligibility of votes (identification of voters needed to vote)
Campaign activities and materials:
- conform to federal, state, local and university laws/policies
- acceptable/unacceptable locations to campaign
- acceptable/unacceptable materials
Reporting requirements:
- forms to report expenditures (if spending limits)
- forms to report activities
Vote tabulation:
- who counts and how are votes counted
- winner — majority, simple majority, plurality
Certification and authority:
- who certifies election and when
- partial certification — reasons and process for new election
- annulment — reasons and process for new election
- contested election — who can and what procedure
Enforcement of election rules:
- violations/offenses and complaints (last date to submit complaint)
- process for deciding if violation has occurred (hearings)
- penalties
Appeals:
- who to appeal to and by when
Recall/referendum/other special elections:
Replacement of vacant seats:
- process if a seat becomes vacant (through appointment or election)
Methods of Election
Ballot Election: Two options
- Nominations for all offices are taken and one ballot with all offices distributed.
- Separate ballots for each office distributed immediately following the nominations for each office.
Viva Voce Election: Candidates are voted on in order of nomination. When one candidate receives a majority vote, no more votes are taken on the remaining nominees.
Roll Call Election: Members, when called upon, declares vote.
Cumulative Voting: For positions held by more than one individual (i.e., three chairpersons) a voter may choose more than one candidate (in this case, voters may pick one, two or three)
Nomination
Robert's Rules of Order provides the following guidelines for nominations:
A nomination is a motion that proposes that a person is elected to fill a specific position — I nominate Jane Doe for Vice President of the Club Zodiac.
Methods of Nomination:
- By the Chair: More common for chair to nominate to fill committee instead of an office.
- From the Floor: Any member may nominate — often called open nominations.
- By a Committee: Nominating committee (chosen in advance) submits nominations.
- By Ballot: Nominating ballot is conducted in same manner as election ballot; everyone who receives a vote is nominated.
- By Mail: Same as “by ballot” but it is mailed to members.
- By Petition: Member shall become a nominee upon the petition of a specified number of members.
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