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ELECTION COMMITTEE REPORT
BY SCOTT DeARMAN, CHAIR
Candidates may come to the Election Committee’s room
at the Convention site in Springfield, Illinois, starting
Tuesday, July 17, at 8:00 a.m. Each candidate must complete
a Declaration of Candidacy & Eligibility, produce a DD-214,
and sign an SF-180. They will be given petitions that need
to be signed by delegates, the minimum number to be determined
by the committee.
Once these signatures are obtained, the
petitions will be returned to the committee, which will verify
that the signatures are those of registered delegates. If
they have gathered the requisite number of signatures, the
candidates will be certified.
Vietnam Veterans of America
will conduct its election of all National Officer and Board
positions during the 13th National Convention. This convention
will be held from July 17-22, 2007, in Springfield, Illinois.
POSITIONS OPEN FOR
ELECTION
VVA National President, VVA National Vice-president, VVA
National Secretary, VVA National Treasurer, VVA National
Board of Directors (At-large) [All Ten Seats], VVA National
Board of Directors (Regional) [All Nine Seats].
TERM OF OFFICE
All National Officer and National Board positions are for
terms of two years, beginning at the close of the 2007 National
Convention, through the close of the 2009 Convention.
ELIGIBILITY
Candidates for all positions open for election must be individual
members of VVA in good standing. Candidates for any of the
National Officer positions must meet the requirements to
hold office, as set down in the VVA National Constitution,
under Article I, Section 5, Paragraph A, as revised August
12, 2005.
To Wit: “To qualify for election . . . to
any of these offices, a candidate must have been an individual
member of the Corporation, in good standing, for a continuous
period of not less than twelve months immediately preceding
the opening of the National Convention at which such candidate
seeks election; . . . and such candidate must have held a
position as an officer or board member at the National level
or as an officer at the State Council or Chapter level, during
any continuous period of twelve months prior to the date
of the opening of the National Convention at which such candidate
seeks election.”
Candidates for At-large and Regional
Board of Directors must meet the requirements to hold office
as set down in the VVA National Constitution, Article I,
Section 4, Paragraph B (1 and 2) for Regional Directors,
and Article I, Section 4, Paragraph B (1 and 3) for At-Large
Directors, as revised August 14, 2005.
To Wit: “To qualify
for election, a candidate must have been a member of the
Corporation, in good standing, for a continuous period of
not less than the twelve months immediately preceding the
opening of the National Convention at which candidate seeks
election . . . . The candidate must have held an elected
position at the national, state, or chapter level, for any
continuous period of twelve months prior to the date of the
opening of the National Convention.”
Candidates for
Regional Board positions must reside within the region they
wish to represent.
IMPORTANT NOTE
Those who plan to run for an elected position from the floor
at the Convention cannot distribute any campaign materials
or announce or campaign on any web site, including their
own, or accept any authorized contributions prior to being
approved as a candidate by the Election Committee at the
Convention. Any violation of the above will result in disqualification.
CANDIDATE’S
PACKETS
The Election Committee will hand Candidate’s Packets
to candidates who have submitted Letters of Intent. These
packets contain information, instructions, and rules regarding
the conduct of the election process that are of vital importance
to every candidate. Included in these packets will be some
forms. Candidates are required to complete the forms and
return them to the Election Committee.
NOTE: The Candidate’s
Packet will include a Cut-off Date Calendar that lists events
and dates that are very important to each candidate’s
campaign for office. Failure to meet any of the deadlines
will be grounds for disqualification.
CONDUCT OF CAMPAIGNS
Candidates may use the National Flag of the United States
of America, the VVA national logo, and the VVA national flag
on their campaign materials. Any other flag or logo of a
State Council or Chapter may not be used in or on candidates’ campaign
materials. Any kind of VVA, State Council, or Chapter letterhead
may not be used. Campaign materials are considered to be
(but are not limited to) buttons, pins, brochures, and the
like. A photograph of a candidate wearing his or her VVA
National, State Council, or Chapter lapel pin is acceptable.
Additionally,
a photograph of a candidate who is wearing a coat, jacket,
shirt, or hat that has a VVA National, State Council, or
Chapter logo on it is also acceptable.
Candidates may not
solicit or accept campaign contributions in any form from
VVA or any VVA State Council or Chapter, or VVA newsletters,
newspapers, web, or electronic mail sites. Campaign contributions
are considered to be (but are not limited to) money, paper,
envelopes, postage, free printing, free phone calls, use
of web sites, or e-mail. Candidates may solicit and accept
campaign contributions and endorsements from any member of
VVA, provided that the contributions or endorsements are
not in violation of rules and that any written endorsements
are on the individual’s personal stationery.
It is strictly prohibited for any person to use VVA National,
State Council, or Chapter letterhead stationery, web, or
electronic mail sites for the purposes of writing letters
of endorsement.
A candidate’s own web site or electronic
mail may be used to campaign, but the restrictions mentioned
above remain in effect.
It is not the wish, nor is it the
intention, of the VVA Election Committee to embroil prospective
candidates in unnecessary red tape in order for them to have
their names on the 2007 VVA National Election Ballot. There
are, however, certain steps that must be followed by all
candidates in order to keep the election process within the
guidelines of the VVA National Constitution and to make the
process fair and even.
The rules, instructions, and requirements
set down in this announcement, as well as those that will
follow in the Candidate’s
Packet, are easy to read, understand, and follow. Therefore,
the failure of a candidate to play by the rules or meet the
requirements of the VVA National Constitution and the Election
Committee will cause that candidate to be disqualified and
his or her name removed from the ballot.
The VVA Election
Committee welcomes those members who are about to step forward
and take part in a most important part of VVA: the election
of Officers and Board Members who will guide VVA for the
next two years.
MEMBERS OF THE 2007 ELECTION COMMITTEE
Scott DeArman, Chair, Prescott Valley, Arizona Sdearman@vva.org 928-710-1068 (cell); Jill Mishkel, Portsmouth, Virginia;
Adolph Gardner, Walkersville, Maryland; Terry L. Nolan, Humboldt,
AZ
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