Norwescon 36 (2013) Election Update

Hello Norwescon ConCom members! Election season for Norwescon 36 (2013) continues!

The next Norwescon meeting (March 17) will be your last chance to nominate candidates for the offices of Chairman (Chair) and Vice-Chairman (Vice-Chair) and for the two slots on the GOH Selection Committee (GOH Committee). And it will be your last opportunity to question them!

(Information on the positions, their requirements and responsibilities are at the end of this post.)

How do I get nominated, or nominate someone?

We require a nomination and a second for all elected positions. Nominations may be made during the appointed time at the meeting, or by email to me at tourdemondo@yahoo.com.

• If you want to nominate someone we suggest (though it isn’t required) that you discuss their level of interest with them beforehand.
• If you would like to run we suggest (though it isn’t required) talking to other ConCom members about your nomination and second.

Nominations close at the end of the March 17 ConCom meeting. Ballots will be mailed by April 6 at the latest.

IN A CHANGE FOR THIS YEAR, voting will take place AT THE CON! You will not be mailing back your ballots, you must bring them to the Convention Office during the convention, or bring them to the Post-Con Meeting. We will be talking about this at the Con Com Meeting.

Voting will continue until the conclusion of the Post-Con Meeting (around 5:00pm) on Saturday, May 12. That evening the votes will be counted and results announced. An email detailing the results and vote counts will be sent out the following week.

How do I ask questions of candidates?

There will be one more session where you can questions our candidates, at the end of the March 17 meeting. There may also be one during the Post-Con meeting.

You can ask questions in any of three ways:

• In person at the Q&A sessions
• By sending the question to me (at tourdemondo at yahoo dot com) to ask anonymously *
• By filling out a form available at the meeting.

* Please let me know which elected position the question is for, if it is for a random candidate, or a specific candidate.

How do I vote?

The deadline for registering to vote has already passed (it was the February meeting). Ballots will be sent to those who wished to have a vote, and will be in the mail by April 6 at the latest.

There will be instructions in the ballot packet on how to cast your vote, but to summarize, here are the three ways you can vote this year.

• Bring your sealed ballot to the Convention Office during regular Office hours.
• Vote in the Office during regular Office hours.
• Bring your sealed ballot or vote during the May 12th Post-Con meeting.

The bylaws require a quorum of 57% of its voting membership in order for the election to be valid.

If you’re not sure if you have a vote or not please contact our convention Secretary, Pearl at secretary@norwescon.org.

Thanks for listening!

-Keith Johnson, Norwescon 36 Elections

What are the elected positions and what do they do?

• CHAIRMAN – Leads Executive (Exec) and Convention Committee (ConCom) meetings and is in charge of the planning and overall execution of the convention. During the convention the Policies say they should meet and greet guests and appear at certain functions like opening and closing ceremonies and PK Dick Awards. (Other things can be found under “Chair’s Responsibilities” in the Policies.)

  If you have further questions about what the Chairman position entails, you may contact the NWC 35 Chair, Shawn Marier at smarier@gmail.com.

• VICE-CHAIRMAN – Acts for the Chair in their absence and is responsible for the Site Selection Committee. (And other duties as assigned by the Chair.) The Policies (under “Chair’s Responsibilities”) say it’s up to agreement between the Chair and Vice-Chair what the Vice-Chair’s duties are during the convention.

  If you have further questions about what the Vice-Chairman position entails, you may contact the NWC 35 Vice-Chair, Peggy Stewart at peggy.stewart1@gmail.com.

• GUEST OF HONOR SELECTION COMMITTEE – Along with the Chair, Vice-Chair and Program Director, these two ConCom-elected representatives are charged with the selection of guests and theme for the convention two years hence. It is each GOH Committee member’s duty to compile and submit a list of potential guests by November 15.

If you have further questions about what the Guest of Honor Selection Committee position entails, you may contact NWC 35 GOH Committee members Pat Booze at patb@nwrain.com or Timothy Ketron at superstrch@aol.com.

What are the minimum qualifications for Chair and Vice-Chair?

• You must have held a position on the ConCom at some time within the last five years. (This also applies to GOH Committee)
• You must be able to legally sign contracts in the state of Washington.
• You cannot have held the position of Chair or Vice-Chair for more than four consecutive years.
• If you want to be one of the two GOH Committee members, you can’t be on the Exec Team.

All candidates will be asked to write a statement that will go out with the ballots. You may choose not to write one, of course, but you must allow your email address and phone number to be published in the election packet. Candidates will also be asked (but not required) to participate in question and answer sessions at the March and Post-Con meetings.