An Elections Committee shall be appointed by the Executive Committee according to Chapter
Bylaw 4.4. This committee is charged with coordinating the elections process.
The primary duties and powers of the Elections Committee are to:
ensure fairness and impartiality in the conduct of the election,
promote member awareness and interest in the election,
receive and act on complaints regarding the election process, and
faithfully record and report results of the election.
B. BALLOTS:
Ballots shall be designed, printed and mailed under the supervision of the Elections Committee.
Ballots shall be mailed to all members of the Angeles Chapter in good standing with the election
issue of the Chapter's monthly newsletter, the Southern Sierran.
Voted ballots shall be retained under supervision of the Elections Committee in a secure location
until the date set for counting.
The Elections Committee shall supervise the counting of the ballots and report the election
results immediately to the Secretary, the Executive Committee, and the Chapter Director. The
Elections Committee shall ensure that the candidates are notified immediately of the results
(including vote tallies if requested), and shall also report to the Executive Committee at its next
meeting.
Each candidate or his/her designee is permitted to observe the counting of the ballots.
C. PUBLICATION OF ELECTION MATERIAL IN CHAPTER PUBLICATIONS:
Editorials and paid advertising by or on behalf of candidates for Executive Committee shall not
be permitted in any Chapter publication, newsletter, listserv, or Internet site, nor shall any Sierra
Club resource, including the Club's electronic system, be used in an election campaign, except for
the purposes of publishing official candidate statements and question-and-answer forums as
specified below.
The Elections Committee shall coordinate publication of candidate statements with the Editor of
the Southern Sierran including preparation and distribution of a form and/or guidelines for such
statements. Insofar as possible, candidate statements may also be posted by the Elections
Committee on a website accessible to members of the Angeles Chapter.
The Elections Committee may, in consultation with the Southern Sierran editorial board and
editor, supervise the printing of a written Candidate Forum (questions and answers) in any issue of
the Southern Sierran following the deadline for filing candidate petitions, up through and including
the issue which contains the ballots. The editorial board may propose the questions for review and
acceptance by the Elections Committee. Insofar as possible, the same questions and answers may
also be posted by the Elections Committee on a website accessible to Angeles Chapter members.
Candidates shall submit photos and candidate statements to the Southern Sierran in advance of a
deadline established by the Elections Committee. Submissions received after the deadline shall
only be accepted under extenuating circumstances and with the approval of both the Elections
Committee and the Southern Sierran editor.
D. NOMINATING AND ELECTION CALENDAR:
The Chapter Executive Committee is responsible for approving the calendar for printing of
candidate statements, mailing of ballots as a separate mailing or as an insert in the Southern
Sierran, the closing date of the election, and the date on which ballots are counted.
The Chapter Nominating Committee Report is due by June 1, or as soon thereafter as the
Nominating Committee can assemble a list of candidates, as provided in Chapter Bylaw 4.2.
Candidates seeking nomination to the Chapter Executive Committee by petition shall submit the
requisite number of petition signatures to the Chapter office no later than 5 pm on August 1, or as
soon thereafter as is reasonable, depending on the date the Nominating Committee Report is
completed and reported in the Southern Sierran.
If one or more candidates nominated by the Nominating Committee withdraw, the Nominating
Committee may reconvene to add one or more additional candidates in time for ballot preparation.
The Elections Committee shall notify each candidate as soon as possible of the Election Rules
and requirements, including information about Candidate Forums, and submission of candidate
statements and photographs for publication in the Southern Sierran. Notice of the availability of the
Election Rules shall be published in the Southern Sierran.
The Elections Committee shall encourage Chapter entities (groups, sections, and committees) to
conduct Candidate Forums prior to mailing of ballots, and submit a schedule of these Forums for
publication in the Southern Sierran, and on the Chapter website.
E. CAMPAIGNING:
Chapter entities that sponsor Candidate Forums shall invite all candidates and afford all
candidates an equal opportunity to speak and respond to questions.
Chapter entities may publish candidate statements and written question-and-answer forums in
their newsletters and other publications, provided that all candidates are provided an equal
publication opportunity.
Chapter entities shall not endorse candidates, but Club members, acting as individuals only, may
endorse candidate(s). Members of the Chapter Nominating Committee and of the Chapter Elections
Committee shall not endorse candidates. Newsletters shall not endorse candidates, nor shall any
implication of endorsement be published, excepting individual endorsements which are part of an
equitable publication process as described in Section C above.
Candidates may have access to Chapter and/or Regional Group membership data for the purpose
of making one or more campaign mailings. Mailing labels (or electronic addressee imprinting, if
available) will be made available at cost to an approved mailing house upon ten business days'
written request by the candidate to the Chapter Director. Alternatively, mailing labels will be made
available at cost (currently $10/1000) at the Angeles Chapter Office where the candidate, or a
person designated in writing by the candidate, may directly affix the labels to campaign material
under the supervision of a member of the Elections Committee or a person designated in writing by
the Chair of the Elections Committee. No candidate, or agent of a candidate, shall copy or duplicate
the names and addresses from labels so provided. In order to confirm that the material to be mailed
is bona fide campaign material, a copy of the material to be mailed shall be provided to the
Elections Committee prior to printing and mailing. Candidates shall be responsible for all costs of
campaign mailings, including design and layout, labels (or electronic addressee imprinting), paper,
printing, and postage.
F. COMPLAINTS BY CANDIDATES:
A complaint regarding violation of one or more of these rules may be made at any time before 6
p.m. on the next working day after the counting of ballots. Complaints must be specific and in
writing, and should be made at the earliest opportunity to provide time for the Elections Committee
to adequately consider the complaint and possible remedies.
A complaint should follow the following format, with a numbered paragraph devoted to each
topic:
statement of how a rule was violated, and effect of that violation;
citation of relevant Bylaw, Election Rule, or policy;
statement of remedy or remedies desired to "undo" the perceived harm.
Electronic delivery of a complaint to the Chair of the Elections Committee (Don Bremner at
donbremner@earthlink.net) will ensure distribution to the full committee. If sent by surface mail,
copies of the complaint should also be sent to other Elections Committee members. (See Schedule
of Activities for mailing addresses.) There is no need to send copies of a complaint elsewhere while
it is under review by the Elections Committee.
The Elections Committee shall provide a written report to the Executive Committee regarding
any complaint received. The report shall include a copy of the original complaint, facts considered,
conclusions, and a proposed remedy or sanction, if any.
G. SANCTIONS FOR VIOLATING THESE RULES:
The Elections Committee shall propose appropriate sanctions to be imposed for violation of any
Election Rule.
The Elections Committee shall develop and apply appropriate Rules of Due Process when
considering any complaint and recommending any sanction pursuant to these Rules.
H. APPEALS FROM DECISIONS OF THE ELECTIONS COMMITTEE:
If a candidate is dissatisfied with a decision of the Elections Committee regarding a complaint,
the candidate may appeal the decision to the Chapter Executive Committee. Electronic delivery of
all documents referred to above, plus the written decision of the Elections Committee, to the
Chapter Chair at his current e-mail address, and to the Chapter Coordinator
(george.denny@sierraclub.org) will assure distribution to the full Executive Committee.
If a candidate is dissatisfied with the decision of the Executive Committee, the candidate may
appeal the decision to the national Bylaws and Standing Rules Committee (BSR Com). Distribution
to the full BSR Com is assured by sending (electronic delivery preferred) a copy of the original
complaint and the decision documents of the Chapter Elections and Executive Committees
regarding it to the Chair of the BSR Com (Steven Krieg at steven.d.krieg@bankofamerica.com), or
by letter mail (Steven Krieg, 230 Funston Ave.#2, San Francisco, CA 94118). The BSR Com will
promptly consider the points raised, and may request additional information of the appellant or
other involved or knowledgeable parties. The BSR Com will then rule on each point raised.
Any decision of the BSR Com may be appealed to the national Organizational Effectiveness
Governance Committee. The current chair is Greg Casini (greg.casini@sierraclub.org)
or by letter mail to 800 Pearl St., #702, Denver, CO 80302-3337.
