Only Full Members in good standing are permitted to vote, nominate or stand for election to the Executive Board. Candidates, nominators and seconders are responsible for ensuring their Membership is in good standing as of the date of nomination.
Candidates must observe a reasonable standard of courtesy and decorum at all times. Defamatory statements, bullying, and harassment as defined in ACTRA Bylaw No. 7, will not be tolerated and may result in discipline charges pursuant to ACTRA Bylaw No. 7.
All candidates shall be given access to the following means of campaigning for Union office:
a. Election Mail out or electronic distribution: All candidates may submit a photograph, and a brief statement to be included with the distribution of election ballots. Only the first 250 words will be published. The photo and statement must be submitted to the Union office by the deadline for the close of nominations. Any statement that conforms to the length requirements and is both factual and not defamatory must be published verbatim. If a candidate statement fails to comply with these guidelines, and time permits, the candidates may be allowed to revise their statements within a time set by the Election Committee. If a statement is not revised to the satisfaction of the Election Committee, it will not be published.
b. The All Candidates Meeting will be held after the close of nominations and the Union’s subsequent announcement of eligible candidates and before the opening of voting.
Except as in 3(a) above, Candidates, their representatives, and all individuals are prohibited from using any Union funds, Union resources, equipment or facilities, or the services of Union staff for the purposes of campaigning. Candidates in breach of this provision are subject to disciplinary action. Posting in a public forum hosted by the Union (e.g. Social Media) is permitted.
No staff of the Union or Member working as a contractor or OSLO for the Union may work on any candidate’s behalf, express a bias for or against any candidate or provide confidential information to candidates for campaign purposes.
The Union shall retain the services of an auditor to verify the integrity of the election process and report the results to the Election Committee. The auditing firm or voting service provider must not send ballot check-off lists to the Union office during the election period.
Any request for recount must be received in the Union office within seven (7) days after the announcement of the balloting results. There shall be no recount unless the number of spoiled ballots exceeds 2% of the votes cast or if the number of spoiled ballots exceeds the number of votes needed to change the outcome of the election.
UBCP/ACTRA Election Committee 2023
Contact: election@ubcpactra.ca
Karla Laird (Staff)
Kwesi Ameyaw (Chair)
Anna Hagan
Jacqueline Samuda
Alvin Sanders
Dhirendra
Teana-Marie Smith
Darryl Scheelar
The Election Committee is comprised of UBCP/ACTRA Full Members. The committee conducts and oversees the election process that is governed by Article 17 of the UBCP/ACTRA bylaws. Specifics relating to the Election Committee are excepted below:
(i) they declare in writing that they will not run for office; and
(ii) they agree they will not accept or otherwise fill any Executive Board position that becomes vacant during the ensuing three (3) year term.
No Officer or Director of the Executive Board or Member working as a contractor or OSLO for the Union may sit on the Election Committee.
Election Committee members may receive an honorarium as authorized by the Membership in the Union’s annual operating budget and reimbursement of other reasonable expenses as outlined in the Executive Board Compensation and Expense Policy.
The Election Committee must carry out the following duties:
(i) ensure that the election rules are observed;
(ii) establish processes and procedures for the election;
(iii) act at all times with impartiality and discretion, and refrain from any activity that might favour one candidate over another or otherwise influence election results;
(iv) agree not to disclose any confidential matters relating to nominations and elections;
(v) certify that all candidates, nominators and seconders for the Executive Board are Full Members in good standing;
(vi) cause the nominations to be published after they are validated;
(vii) advise candidates and voting Members on the application of election rules;
(viii) approve all election documentation;
(ix) convene and preside over an All Candidates Meeting;
(x) cause the ballots to be distributed to all voting Members; (xi) set the date for the election and all applicable timelines;
(xii) act as sole liaison with the Manager(s)’ delegate and the auditing firm;
(xiii) supervise the scrutineering process;
(xiv) report the complete election results to the Membership including the number of ballots cast, number of spoiled ballots and the number of ballots cast for each candidate;
(xv) report to the Executive Board, Manager(s) and to the Membership any acts or events that may have improperly influenced the outcome of the election, or otherwise abused the democratic rights of the Membership; and
(xvi) advise the Executive Board and Senior Staff regarding the conduct of future elections.
• Candidates, Nominators and Seconders must be at least 19 years old.
• Nominations will be reviewed by the Election Committee and Baker Tilly, the independent auditing firm overseeing the election process.
• The Candidate and Seconder will be contacted to confirm that they are aware of and consent to their information being included on the nomination form.
Each candidate may submit a photo and statement which will be shared with the general membership.
The candidate’s statement and photo will appear on the website in the order in which they were received. Please submit only a final draft as edits may not be accommodated.
The statement must be a maximum of 250 words including any reference to social media handles. Links will not be embedded. The statement will be reproduced verbatim. If your submission exceeds the maximum word count, the statement will be cut after the 250th word. The deadline to submit your statement and photo is Friday, September 29th at 4:00 PM. No late submissions or changes will be accepted.
Statements must be factual and not defamatory. If it is determined that the statement fails to comply with these guidelines, and if time permits, the candidate may be allowed to revise their statements within a time set by the Election Committee. If a statement is not revised to the satisfaction of the Election Committee, it will not be published.
