UMRFA Constitution Provisions Regarding Election of Executive Board Officers

Article IV - ELECTION OF OFFICERS

Section 1: Conduct and Standards

A. Elections shall be conducted in accordance with the AFT Constitution and the standards established pursuant to the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act (LMRDA).

B. Officer Elections may only be conducted electronically if those procedures are consistent with the standards under Title IV of the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act (Landrum-Griffin) as interpreted by the Office of Labor and Management Standards.

Section 2: Terms of Office

A. Officers of the executive board shall be elected in April of each year.

B. Terms shall be 1 year long.

Section 3: Executive Board Officer Positions

A. President

B. Vice President

C. Secretary

D. Treasurer

E. Communications Chair

F. Surgical Specialty Representative

G. Midtown Representative

H. Fellow Representative

I. Representative At-Large (3)

Section 4: Eligibility for Office

Candidates must be members in good standing of the organization for a period of six (6) months prior to the date of the election.

Section 5: Member Voting by Board Position

A. Voting for President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, Communications Chair, and Representative At-Large

a. To be voted on by all union members.

b. To be elected, must receive the plurality of the total eligible cast votes.

B. Voting for Surgical Specialty Representative

a. Only union members of surgical specialties are eligible to vote for the Surgical Specialty Representative.

b. To be elected, the candidate must receive the plurality of the total eligible cast votes.

C. Voting for Midtown Representative

a. Only union members from a residency based in the Midtown Campus are eligible to vote for the Midtown Representative.

b. To be elected, the candidate must receive the plurality of the total eligible cast votes.

D. Voting for Fellow Representative

a. Only union members of a fellowship are eligible to vote for the Fellow Representative.

b. To be elected, the candidate must receive the plurality of the total eligible cast votes.

Section 6: Nomination and Voting Procedures

A. Voting is conducted by the timeline and guidelines set out by the Elections Committee in compliance with the provisions of the constitution.

B. Sixty (60) days prior to the date of the election, the Elections Committee shall notify all members of the opening of nominations for officers, the offices to be filled, the necessary qualifications for nomination and election to such offices, and of the date of the election by first class U.S. Mail to the members' last known home address.

C. To be nominated for all offices other than Surgical Specialty Representative, Midtown Representative, or Fellow Representative, a candidate must submit to the Elections Committee a petition containing the signatures of five percent (5%) of the membership, or ten (10) members, whichever is less. Said petitions must be submitted no later than thirty (30) days following the notice of the opening of nominations.

D. To be nominated as a candidate for the offices of Surgical Specialty Representative, Midtown Representative, or Fellow Representative, a candidate must submit to the Elections Committee a petition containing the signatures of five percent (5%) of the membership of the constituency for the representative office the candidate is seeking, or ten (10) members of the constituency, whichever is less. Said petitions must be submitted no later than thirty (30) days following the notice of the opening of nominations.

E. Members nominated to run for office must affirmatively accept their nomination.

F. The Election Committee shall determine whether the nominations were timely and if each nominee is eligible to run for office.

G. At least fifteen (15) days prior to the election, the Election Committee shall notify all members of the election date and the candidates for the offices. The Elections Committee shall oversee the preparation and transmission of ballots to all members in good standing for the proceeding sixty (60) days, in such a manner as to ensure the secrecy of the ballot, no later than ten (10) days following the close of nominations. The period between the mailing and return date for the ballots shall be no fewer than twenty (20) calendar days.

H. Candidates for the offices of Surgical Specialty Representative, Midtown Representative, or Fellow Representative shall be elected by the membership from the constituency area in which they serve. No member may cast a vote for a Representative candidate for a constituency they are not themselves a part of.

I. Candidates for the office of Representative At-Large shall be elected by the entire membership. In the event that there are more candidates than at-large positions to be filled, the top (3) candidates receiving the most votes will be elected, and there will be no run-off.

J. The ballots shall be tabulated by the Elections Committee, and a majority of the ballots cast shall determine the outcome of the election. In the event of a tie, the Elections Committee shall conduct a run-off election among the candidates in question (except for Representatives At-Large positions). The Elections Committee shall oversee the preparation and transmission of ballots to the last known home address of all members who were eligible to vote in the initial election, in such a manner as to ensure the secrecy of the ballot. The period between the mailing and return date for the ballot shall be no less than twenty (20) calendar days.

K. Challenges and objections to the election must be submitted in writing, with a statement of supporting reasons that includes specific facts as well as any documentation, to the Elections Committee within five (5) days of the count. The Elections Committee shall issue its written opinion regarding the objections no later than ten (10) days after receipt of such objections.

L. The election results will be published and distributed to the membership within thirty (30) days of the count. All election materials, including the ballots, will be kept in a secure location for one (1) year.

M. Successful candidates shall assume office within thirty (30) days of the conclusion of the election.

N. With the exception of the President, or in case of a recall, the Executive Board will have the power to fill vacancies in its membership until the next general election of officers.

O. A petition signed by forty-five percent (45%) of the membership, and alleging constitutional violations, fiduciary breaches, or acts clearly detrimental to the union, shall be sufficient to require the Executive Board to vote on whether to conduct a recall election of the officer identified in the petition. The officer subject to recall and any Executive Board member signing the petition shall not vote on the question of a recall election. If a majority of the Executive Board approves a recall election, the Elections Committee shall supervise the recall election.