How Fair Are WEA Elections in Buildings

On Behalf of WEA’s More Conservative Members #13 How to Become Part of Your Local’s Endorsement Process How Fair Are WEA Elections in Buildings 5.4.20 Folks who take part in local association elections often find the learning curve very steep and may sometimes feel the elections are not fair. As a life long Republican, who has been elected to local office many times, I can offer perspective: 1] In normal times, there are often too few candidates to fill the available openings. That often means any member foolish enough to volunteer to represent his/her colleagues will be elected, often by unanimous vote. Also, those who have been a rep for the last couple of years can usually win a contested election by virtue of the work they’ve done and the people they’ve helped. Unseating incumbents can be difficult. It’s no different than legislative and congressional elections. 2] In controversial times, there’s often a line up to become reps. Many more candidates will offer to stand for election than there are openings. I recall one year, when my local association was involved in a contract rollback controversy, a quarter of the staff of my building suddenly wanted to be a building rep. We had to have a series of runoff elections to pare the number down to a final vote. If one candidate was a rookie, who had never served, she/he was knocked out of the race earlier, in favor of more experienced and well known staffers. 3] In strongly contested elections, a winning candidate must have a majority of the votes cast to win a seat. Often, no candidate earns a majority in the first vote. In that case the lowest vote getter is dropped off the list (more than one, if several candidates have the lowest vote or the candidates agree to drop more than one). The election continues until the available seats are all filled with candidates who earned a majority in their last vote. 4] One caveat should be acknowledged. Offering to be someone you are not, winning the election, and then reneging on your offer will usually bring about a loss in the next election, even if you’re standing unopposed. I know that sounds like a no brainer, but I’ve seen it happen. I even saw a rep recalled before the end of his/her term because this happened. Be yourself, help others to get the help they need from the association & the district, and building up your image and name familiarity. ------------ Ken Mortland is a member of WEA-Retired, continuing a long career of activism in WEA/NEA. He is also a lifelong Republican and a member of Mainstream Republicans of WA Board.

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