Guest Carl Queen Posted October 21, 2015 at 10:35 AM Report Share Posted October 21, 2015 at 10:35 AM Sunday, at our general meeting, our club elected officers via secret ballot. Two candidates were on the ballot for the office of president. The club treasurer distributed and collected the ballots which were counted in a separate room by three club members. The results showed that only one vote separated the two candidates and the winner was declared. Since the election of officers was the last business to be conducted at the meeting, a motion to adjourn was made, seconded, and approved. The members started to leave the hall when the treasurer discovered another uncounted ballot which was left on the table where she was seated. A count of the members present and signed in and eligible to vote was 36. The ballots counted was 35 which without the newly discoved ballot. The ballot when counted showed the race to be a tie. The ballots were immediately quarantined since some members had already left the building so a new vote could not be immediately made. What is the proper procedure to handle this unfortunate situation? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Honemann Posted October 21, 2015 at 10:57 AM Report Share Posted October 21, 2015 at 10:57 AM Sunday, at our general meeting, our club elected officers via secret ballot. Two candidates were on the ballot for the office of president. The club treasurer distributed and collected the ballots which were counted in a separate room by three club members. The results showed that only one vote separated the two candidates and the winner was declared. Since the election of officers was the last business to be conducted at the meeting, a motion to adjourn was made, seconded, and approved. The members started to leave the hall when the treasurer discovered another uncounted ballot which was left on the table where she was seated. A count of the members present and signed in and eligible to vote was 36. The ballots counted was 35 which without the newly discoved ballot. The ballot when counted showed the race to be a tie. The ballots were immediately quarantined since some members had already left the building so a new vote could not be immediately made. What is the proper procedure to handle this unfortunate situation? Your club may order a recount of the ballots, by a majority vote, at its next regular meeting if it is held within a quarterly time interval (in other words, prior to the end of January, 2016), or at a special session properly called for that purpose, if held before the end of January, 2016. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
g40 Posted October 24, 2015 at 12:31 AM Report Share Posted October 24, 2015 at 12:31 AM I would closely evaluate, in detail, how the election was carried out and any specific rules or procedures to be followed. If this ballot was not turned in properly, then you could argue that it should not be counted at all. It is possible that the voter may have filled in the ballot - then intentionally decided to not turn it in. Which possibility is most likely may depend on just how the ballots were collected and what instructions were given to members about the ballot collection process. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Novosielski Posted October 25, 2015 at 06:18 PM Report Share Posted October 25, 2015 at 06:18 PM I agree with g40. Finding a ballot on a table does not necessarly make it valid. Was there a ballot box? Were ballots collected by the tellers? Are you certain the person who filled out that ballot was eligible to vote? Are you certain that same person did not turn in a different (corrected) ballot, after making a mistake on the first one? Would your answers be different if you found a ballot crumpled up on the floor? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Honemann Posted October 25, 2015 at 07:43 PM Report Share Posted October 25, 2015 at 07:43 PM I also agree, but the club will need to determine the validity of the ballot found on the treasurer's table. I think the best way to proceed is to reopen the election process by ordering a recount of the ballots cast. The question as to whether or not the ballot found on the treasurer's table should be counted can then be referred to the assembly for its determination. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Carl Queen Posted October 25, 2015 at 07:53 PM Report Share Posted October 25, 2015 at 07:53 PM In response, the questions asked about the ballot being found on the table: The treasurer who distributed the ballots instructed the voting members to turn in their completed ballots to her. The ballot was found on the table in front of where she had been seated. As some of the members completed their ballots she had gotten up and along with another member began walking around the hall collecting the ballots. The ballot appeared to have been put there by a voting member thinking they had turned it into her and may have actually been put there as she was completing her own ballot without her noticing them doing it. This procedure has been done many times in the past without incident. With the found ballot, the number of ballots matched the number of voting members who had signed in and were eligible to vote. When the completed ballots were collected by the club treasurer and another member they were turned over to three member volunteers to take into an adjoning room to be tallied. The treasurer had not returned to her seated station until she announced the results and the meeting was adjourned which immediately followed the announced voting results. When she returned to her seated station to collect her briefcase and personal belongings, that is when she found the ballot. There is no evidence that any impropriety had taken place. The person who placed the ballot there evidently thought they were following instructions and had voted in good faith thinking their vote would be counted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Carl Queen Posted October 25, 2015 at 07:54 PM Report Share Posted October 25, 2015 at 07:54 PM In response, the questions asked about the ballot being found on the table: The treasurer who distributed the ballots instructed the voting members to turn in their completed ballots to her. The ballot was found on the table in front of where she had been seated. As some of the members completed their ballots she had gotten up and along with another member began walking around the hall collecting the ballots. The ballot appeared to have been put there by a voting member thinking they had turned it into her and may have actually been put there as she was completing her own ballot without her noticing them doing it. This procedure has been done many times in the past without incident. With the found ballot, the number of ballots matched the number of voting members who had signed in and were eligible to vote. When the completed ballots were collected by the club treasurer and another member they were turned over to three member volunteers to take into an adjoning room to be tallied. The treasurer had not returned to her seated station until she announced the results and the meeting was adjourned which immediately followed the announced voting results. When she returned to her seated station to collect her briefcase and personal belongings, that is when she found the ballot. There is no evidence that any impropriety had taken place. The person who placed the ballot there evidently thought they were following instructions and had voted in good faith thinking their vote would be counted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weldon Merritt Posted October 25, 2015 at 08:59 PM Report Share Posted October 25, 2015 at 08:59 PM I think the responses you have already gotten are the best you will get for dealing with your current situation. But to avoid similar problems in the future, it would be best to stop the practice of having someone collect the ballots, and start having the voters deposit their ballots directly in a ballot box. Having a member collect the ballots leaves too much possibility of errors, or even deliberate ballot-tampering. Ballot-stuffing can be prevented by having the tellers observe the voters as they place their ballots in the box, to ensure that each voter deposits only one ballot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.