Ballots marked "NONE"

[Guest Dan Honemann]

I think your secretary was correct, but I can't be totally sure without reading your bylaws."

[Guest J. J.]

>>“A two-thirds affirmative vote of the active members of the Component Chapter who participate in the voting shall be necessary to elect a student or an alumnus to alumni membership.”<<

This rule, which is different than "

[Guest Bill Reynolds]

I'd be troubled by this part of the bylaw: "...who participate in the voting..."

I'd say there's a loose interpretation that the 6 who abstained did "participate", they just chose not to vote for anyone.

"

[Guest J. J.]

I would disagree a bit. The six members could have declined to cast a ballot.

I am wondering if other members did, in fact, decline to case a ballot?

J. J."

[David A Foulkes]

I think the language you wish you had in there was "...of the Component Chapter who are *present and voting* shall be..."

Since an abstention is not a vote, those six wouldn't have counted, and candidates 1, 2 and 3 would be in the club"

[Guest Bill Reynolds]

J.J. - not sure what you're disagreeing with. What the 6 "could have" done has countless possibilities (could have voted for Mickey Mouse, could have had ice cream for lunch, could have...) but what they DID do is turn in ballots with NONE writt"

[Guest Dan Honemann]

Me too. :-)"

[Guest John M.]

>>I think the language you wish you had in there was "...of the Component Chapter who are *present and voting* shall be..."<<

No, I don't think that's the language they want, since absentee ballots are mixed with votes at a "

[David A Foulkes]

Yes, my mistake. I read "absentee ballots" as "abstention ballots", since the number (6) matched up with those that marked NONE. Point is well taken. :)"

[Guest Robert]

There may be members who did not vote for 5 candidates. Members could vote for up to five."

[Guest Robert]

Would voting for "Mickey Mouse" be considered an illegal ballot and thus discarded?"

[Guest Robert]

This is my point. If you are instructed to select up to 5 candidates and you select none is that the same as handing in a blank ballot...thereby abstaining. I have no doubt that the intention was to not vote for any candidate and thereby prevent any elect"

[Guest Dan Honemann]

Robert, as has been noted, it would appear that your secretary got it right."

[Guest J. J.]

Robert, under your bylaws, the only way that the member's vote would not count is not to cast a ballot.

I think your secretary was correct.

J. J."

[Guest John M.]

>>Would voting for "Mickey Mouse" be considered an illegal ballot and thus discarded?<<

It would be considered an illegal vote. But illegal votes are not discarded.

>>If you are instructed to select up to 5 ca"

[David A Foulkes]

<<the only way that the member's vote would not count is not to cast a ballot.>>

Do I understand you to say that the tellers would distribute ballots to all legal voters, and when they collect them, a member could keep the ballot and "

[Guest John M.]

>>Do I understand you to say that the tellers would distribute ballots to all legal voters, and when they collect them, a member could keep the ballot and not turn it in at all?<<

Yes.

>>And thus it would not be counted"

[Guest Robert]

"In the usual case, it wouldn't make a difference as to whether one cast a blank ballot or a ballot marked "NONE" or no ballot at all, but this is an unusual case."

My understanding of Roberts is that a blank ballot is an abst"

[Guest Robert]

Thank you, I believe this answers my question. This has never happened before (it is the opinion of many that there was an orchestrated effort here to blackball the eligible alunmi this year).

We defer to Roberts in all areas that are not covere"

[Guest John M.]

>>My understanding of Roberts is that a blank ballot is an abstention and does not count towards the total number of voters from which the 2/3 affirmative is derived.<<

Your understanding of Robert's is correct but the problem is that"