Voting

[monique]

We were a non profit comitttee of 7, until our secretary resigned, as they were moving out of town. The committee comprises 3 men and 3 women. At the last meeting the men voted no and the women voted yes, ending up in a tie vote. Should the chair have abstained from voting to avoid a tie vote.

Until we get a new member, I can see most votes ending up in ties, therefore we will not be able to move forward. This is a very difficult position for us to be in.

Any advice will be appreciated.

[Chris Harrison]

The 6 of you should get together and find someone that both factions (or at last a majority of those who voted) can live with. As for the tie votes it seems that compromise is the order of the day (both sides gotta bend a little).

[Tim Wynn]

We were a non profit comitttee of 7, until our secretary resigned, as they were moving out of town. The committee comprises 3 men and 3 women. At the last meeting the men voted no and the women voted yes, ending up in a tie vote. Should the chair have abstained from voting to avoid a tie vote.

Until we get a new member, I can see most votes ending up in ties, therefore we will not be able to move forward. This is a very difficult position for us to be in.

Any advice will be appreciated.

A tie vote means that the motion is lost. Are you saying that your group needs to adopt every motion to "move forward?"

[Trina]

We were a non profit comitttee of 7, until our secretary resigned, as they were moving out of town. The committee comprises 3 men and 3 women. At the last meeting the men voted no and the women voted yes, ending up in a tie vote. Should the chair have abstained from voting to avoid a tie vote.

Until we get a new member, I can see most votes ending up in ties, therefore we will not be able to move forward. This is a very difficult position for us to be in.

Any advice will be appreciated.

A tie vote simply defeats a normal motion; nothing exotic or strange about it. The outcome is just as clear as if everyone in the room had voted against the motion. The problem of 'not moving forward' has nothing to do with nuances of parliamentary procedure; it has to do with not enough members favoring a particular motion. If you believe this particular group will vote 3-3 on gender lines regardless of the merits of the motion before the assembly, you have bigger problems.

[Guest Edgar]

At the last meeting the men voted no and the women voted yes, ending up in a tie vote. Should the chair have abstained from voting to avoid a tie vote.

Each member should vote (or not) based on his or her own determination as to the merits of the particular question. But any member could have abstained if the goal was simply to avoid a tie.

And the idea that an odd-numbered assembly is a defense against tie votes overlooks the fact that some members may abstain or simply be absent.

As Trina observed, if the male/female split in voting is anything more than coincidental you may have problems beyond the reach of parliamentary procedure.

[David A Foulkes]

If you believe this particular group will vote 3-3 on gender lines regardless of the merits of the motion before the assembly, you have bigger problems.

And count on the secretary pro tem election running well into the night next meeting.