
	Thursday December 4, 2008

NOMINATIONS AND ELECTION OF OFFICERS

The requirements to be fulfilled and the procedures to be observed in the periodical election of an organization's officers, should always be set out in the Constitution, by laws, or such other form of regulations as may govern. It goes without saying that any such provisions should be meticulously observed. Elections affect the tender susceptibilities of people and the only safe way to prevent criticism or hurt feelings is to follow the rules with impersonal rigidity, in spite of any temptations to the contrary. Much difficulty in the conduct of elections can be avoided by adequate forethought. Elective officers usually follow a recognized progression from lower to higher offices, and if the initial election of a member at the lowest rung of this ladder is made with due recognition of his capability and willingness to proceed through the various stages, the subsequent course of events is simple and regular and possesses the considerable advantage of permitting the accumulation of experience by the member in question in the various grades of ascending responsibility.

The regular time of holding elections for officers is determined by the constitution or by laws. Elections to fill vacancies or to select delegates or committees may be held at any regular meeting or at a special meeting called for that purpose, if no contradictory provision is included in the by laws.

Methods of Nominating

A nomination is the formal presentation to the group, local, etc. of a candidate for an office to be filled. It may be made from the floor by a member or it may be proposed in a report of a nominating committee.

If no method of nominating and voting upon candidates is provided for in the constitution or by laws of the organization, any member may present a motion
determining the method.

When a nomination is made "from the floor" at a general meeting, it must be established immediately whether the nominee is prepared to accept the nomination. If the nominee is not present, this is properly a responsibility of the nominator; if he is, he may accept or decline on the spot. Any qualified member may nominate any other member entitled to hold office, and may make as many nominations as he pleases.

Nominations from the floor are in order as soon as the chairperson calls for them. The chairperson may say: "Nominations for the office of president are now in order".

Any member may rise and nominate another member as follows: "I nominate Mr. Y. for president". It is then in order for a member to second the nomination.

As a chairperson hears a name placed in nomination, he repeats it, and the secretary records it while another member may place the name on a blackboard or screen. No member may nominate more than one candidate for each office while other members desire to nominate candidates.

The other method of nominating is by a nominating committee. The duty of a nominating committee is to ensure that there are nominees for all the offices of the organization that are to be filled by election. They should not only select the member who, in their opinion, is best fitted for the post, but they should make certain (a) that he is qualified to stand for election under whatever rules may apply, and (b) that he is willing to stand for election. It is not normally the nominating committee's function to put forward two or more names for a single post and thus precipitate an election, although they may do so if special considerations appear to make such a course desirable.

This committee may be elected as provided in the by laws, or if these contain no provision for the selection of a nominating committee, the organization may choose its own method. It is best that the president have no part in selecting the nominating committee and he should not serve on it, even as a member ex officio. Usually the committee is chosen at the meeting preceding the election or at an earlier meeting in order that ample time may be allowed to select candidates. Nomination for all offices filed with the Nominations Committee should be in writing, signed by a nominator and a seconder, each of whom should be a voting member. The nominating committee submits its report at the time named in its instructions or at the time provided in the by laws. This report to the organization presents the names of one or more members as candidates for each office to be filled.

When the report of the nominating committee is presented, the persons named in the report are considered nominated just as though they had been nominated from the floor. The chairperson asks if there are any further nominations made from the floor, these are added to the list of nominees presented by the committee. The chairperson inquires:"Are there any further nominations for the office of president?" three times. If no further nominations are made, nominations cease after the third call.

If no nominations are presented, the chairperson may call for nominations for the next office.

If a nominating committee submits one name in nomination for each elective office to be filled and there are no other nominations, the committee's report may be simply adopted by majority vote of the members present and their nominees then declared duly elected by acclamation to the respective offices for whatever the term may be or until their successors are elected or appointed. The purpose of the latter alternative is to avoid a period during which there would be no officers in the event of delayed or deferred elections. While somewhat of a technicality, it does establish a safeguard against an organization's having, strictly speaking no officers at all for a month if the former incumbents had been elected for a period of one year at an annual meeting held on, say, April the 1st and the next annual meeting for the purpose of electing officers happened to be deferred until May the 1st of the following year.

The constitution of some organizations , for example the P.S.A.C. Constitution and the Union of Taxation Employees By laws state that the Chairperson of the Nominations Committee will conduct the elections of all officers.

Elections

After the nominations are closed, the members proceed to vote upon the names of candidates by the method laid down in the constitution or by laws or determined by motion. If the constitution or by laws make no provision for voting, it may be done by any of the methods which the assembly may choose.

Irregularities in an election which do not affect the result do not invalidate an election, but substantial violation of the rules does invalidate an election.

Where possible, provision should be made for voting to be by secret ballot to avoid embarrassment. In an election of officers by ballot, scrutineers should be appointed by the candidates, to watch for irregularities and look after the interests of their candidates.

Each office should be called in turn and completed before the next office is called. As the election of each office is called, the candidate Nominator or Seconder only.

The vote necessary to elect is usually fixed in the constitution or by laws. Unless otherwise provided, the following rules govern:

1. When a candidate received a majority of the legal votes cast, he is elected.

2. A candidate who receives a plurality of all the legal votes cast, or more than any other candidate, is not elected in the absence of a provision to that effect in the constitution or by laws or standing rules.

3. When a majority vote is required and no candidate receives a majority, the vote must be retaken.

Some organizations require that when no candidate receives a majority vote, the next vote is taken on only the two candidates who received the highest vote. Others provide that the candidate with the lowest vote be dropped as each successive vote is taken.

The PSAC Constitution and the Union of Taxation Employees by laws provide that in elections during Triennial National Conventions, election to any office shall be declared only on receipt of a clear majority of the ballots cast. The PSAC Constitution further stipulates that where more than two nominees stand for election to any one office, the election procedure shall be by way of elimination. Both the Constitution and the By laws provide that in the event of a tie vote, the Chairperson immediately takes a second ballot without recess or adjournment. If this results in a second tie vote, the Chairperson calls a short recess.

A unanimous vote means all the legal votes cast. One common error is to suppose that a vote can be made unanimous by a motion to that effect. In elections only the candidate receiving the second highest number of votes or one of his friends should propose a motion to make a vote unanimous. This motion has no legal effect. The motion to make a vote unanimous, though intended to show solidarity, does not change the legal vote in any particular, much less make it unanimous.

An election becomes effective immediately. Unless some other time is specified in the by laws, an officer assumes his office as soon as he has been elected. Often the by laws provide for the installation of officers at a future meeting, and for an Oath of Office to be administered immediately before taking office. The practice in the Union of Taxation Employees is that new officers assume office at the end of the meeting.

Summary

The rules to be observed in the periodic election of an organization's officers are usually set out in the constitution or by laws. These rules should be meticulously observed. Nominations may be made from the floor or may be proposed in the report of a nominating committee. When a nomination is made from the floor, it must be established immediately whether the nominee is prepared to accept the nomination. The rules of most organizations require that a nomination be seconded.

The other method of nominating is by a nominating committee which may be elected or selected by some other method. The persons named in the report of a nominating committee are considered nominated just as though they had been nominated from the floor. Nominations from the floor may be added to the list of nominees. No motion to close nominations is necessary, and the election may begin as soon as there are no further nominations. If a committee submits only one name for each elective office, and there are no other nominations, the committee's report may be adopted by majority vote and the nominees declared elected by acclamation. In some organizations the Chairperson of the Nominations Committee conducts the election.

In some cases, the constitution or by laws provide for the method of voting. Where possible, voting should be by secret ballot and scrutineers should be appointed. Irregularities in an election which do not affect the result do not invalidate an election. The vote necessary to elect should be specified in the constitution or by laws. If not, when a candidate receives a majority of the votes cast he is elected. If no candidate receives a majority, the vote must be retaken. Usually this means that the next vote is taken only on the two candidates who received the highest vote, or the candidate with the lowest vote is dropped as each successive vote is taken. A motion to make a vote unanimous does not change the legal vote nor make it unanimous. It is used merely to demonstrate the solidarity of the organization. Unless some other time is specified in the constitution or by laws, election becomes effective immediately or at the end of the meeting. In some organizations an Oath of Office is administered before the successful candidates take office.

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