Voting on officers and a nonprofit organization.

[Guest Concerned number]

 Our organization vote yes or no for officers that are running unopposed. Our bylaws state a member must receive the majority of the votes  cast however does not say it allows for a yes or no ballot. Is this a proper means of electing that officer that is running unopposed to that specific position?

[Dan Honemann]

No. "In elections, 'for' and 'against' spaces or boxes should not be used. They are applicable only with respect to votes on motions. In an election, a voter can vote against one candidate only by voting for another who has been nominated or by writing in the name of another candidate." (RONR, 11th ed., p. 414)

What do your bylaws say concerning elections? You say your bylaws state that a member must receive the majority of the votes cast, but this does not tell us anything about how the vote is to be taken.

“If the bylaws require the election of officers to be by ballot and there is only one nominee for an office, the ballot must nevertheless be taken for that office unless the bylaws provide for an exception in such a case. In the absence of the latter provision, members still have the right, on the ballot, to cast ‘write-in votes’ for other eligible persons.” (RONR, 11th ed., pp. 441-442)

“If only one person is nominated and the bylaws do not require that a ballot vote be taken, the chair, after ensuring that, in fact, no members present wish to make further nominations, simply declares that the nominee is elected, thus effecting the election by unanimous consent or ‘acclamation.’" (RONR, p. 443)

 

Edited December 11, 2016 at 12:11 PM by Daniel H. Honemann
Added the last two quotations from RONR