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Election of Convention Delegates

Sub-Chapters shall elect delegates to Chapter conventions in the manner prescribed for the election of Sub-Chapter officers.

Delegates, however, are not officers, and while they are elected in the same manner as are officers, there are certain differences.

First, the majority vote requirement does not apply to the election of delegates unless the Sub-Chapter constitution specifically provides for a majority requirement. The reason for this is simply that if the majority rule should result in a run-off election, the conference might well be over before a delegate was elected.

It is possible for a Sub-Chapter to elect as its delegate to the Chapter convention someone who is a member of another Sub-Chapter, instead of one of its own members. In order to do this, the Sub-Chapter must first vote on the question: "Shall this Sub-Chapter elect as a convention delegate a person who is not a member of this Sub-Chapter?" If that question is answered "Yes" by a majority vote, the Sub-Chapter may then proceed to elect a delegate who (1) has already been elected a delegate by another Sub-Chapter (as long as that Sub-Chapter is affiliated with the same Chapter) or (2) is a delegate representing the Chapter with which the Sub-Chapter is affiliated (such as a Chapter officer who may automatically be a convention delegate). The limit on this kind of joint representation is that no individual may represent more than five Sub-Chapters.

Finally, the time table for protests on the election of delegates is much shorter than for officer elections. The protest must be filed with and decided by the Sub-Chapter on the date of the meeting at which the report of the Election Committee is acted on. Any appeal from that decision to the International Executive Board must be filed within five days thereafter. (Retiree Elections Code, Section 5, Sub-section A)

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