Chair Vacancy

[Guest Belinda Prihoda]

The Chair of our faculty governance died in office (she was re-elected to serve for the upcoming school year). The duties of the Vice-Chair are as follows: "It shall be the duty of the Vice-Chair to convene the Faculty Governance in the absence of the Chair."

Question 1: Does the Vice-Chair assume the role of Chair? Or, should an election be held to fill the Chair?

Question 2: If an election should be held to fill the Chair, can the person in the Vice-Chair position (or any other officer position) be on the ballot for the Chair position?

Thanks!

[Tim Wynn]

According to RONR, the vice-president automatically becomes president in the event of a vacancy in the office of the president, unless your bylaws provide specifically for a different vacancy filling procedure in regards to the office of the president in particular. A vacancy would then occur in the office of the vice-president, which can only be filled after notice has been given.

Your offices of Chair and Vice-Chair are probably analogous to president and vice-president in this regard.

[Chris Harrison]

Unless the bylaws specifically provides for a process to fill a vacancy in the office of Chair the Vice Chair would automatically become the Chair and the vacancy in the office of Vice Chair would need to be filled (RONR p. 575 ll. 9-17).

[Guest Mica]

we have a similar situation where the VP has filled the Presidents position after his death. Can this person hold the presidents office for the rest of the term? Our by-laws don't specify that an election must be held.

[Tim Wynn]

we have a similar situation where the VP has filled the Presidents position after his death. Can this person hold the presidents office for the rest of the term? Our by-laws don't specify that an election must be held.

Unless your bylaws specifically say otherwise, "this person" IS the president for the remainder of the term.

[Guest Edgar]

we have a similar situation where the VP has filled the Presidents position after his death. Can this person hold the presidents office for the rest of the term?

That's how it usually works, though your bylaws may say otherwise (e.g. until the next regular elections).

Our by-laws don't specify that an election must be held.

You'll need to fill the now-vacant office of vice-president, either through some mid-term vacancy-filling provision in the bylaws (e.g appointment by the board) or, if the bylaws are silent, by an election (i.e. the way it would usually be filled).