Flotilla 6-12 Standing Rules
Since the standing rules (above) are in a Microsoft Word (docx) formatted document that not everyone can read the following is an excerpt from the standing rules section 5 and section 6 that pertain to the election of Flotilla officers.
ARTICLE V VOTING
5.1 Twenty Five per cent (25 %) of the eligible voting members of the Flotilla shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business at any regular or special meeting of the Flotilla. One of the voting members must be the Flotilla Commander, Vice Flotilla Commander, or Immediate Past Flotilla Commander. If none of these individuals is present, Flotilla business cannot be conducted.
5.2 Unless a greater number than a majority for specific action is required by these Standing Rules or by the Manual, a majority of the votes actually cast by members present and voting can carry a motion, provided a quorum is present. Blank votes and abstentions do not count in the total for determining the number of votes cast.
5.3 Each eligible member of the Flotilla, if present, shall have one vote.
5.4 Proxy voting is not authorized. Absentee voting, as specified by the Manual may be allowed.
5.5 Voting on routine matters shall normally be by voice vote unless a written ballot is requested by a member or as provided in these Standing Rules or by the Manual.
5.6 A written ballot may be requested by any voting member of the Flotilla and the request shall be honored without discussion.
ARTICLE VI ELECTION OF OFFICERS
6.1 The Flotilla shall hold an annual election of Flotilla Officers for the ensuing year, usually at the November meeting, but prior to 15 December and after the Division Elections.
6.2 The Flotilla Commander shall appoint a screening committee comprised of at least three members of the Flotilla not less than ninety (90) days before the date of any Flotilla regular election. Each member selected to serve on this committee shall agree that the member relinquishes any right to be nominated and shall not run for election to any Flotilla office at such regular election. Not less than sixty (60) days before the date of any regular Flotilla election, each individual seeking election to a Flotilla elected office shall submit a letter of their intent to be a candidate to the Flotilla Commander. The Flotilla Commander shall immediately refer the names of all such members to the Flotilla Screening Committee. Not less than thirty (30) days prior to the election, the Screening Committee shall report to the Flotilla the names of the eligible members who have submitted letters of intent and shall state specifically, with reference to the relevant provisions of the Manual, the reason(s) why any member submitting a letter of intent has been deemed ineligible for the intended office. On the day of the election the Screening Committee shall again verify the eligibility for the desired office of all members submitted to them for screening. At the election meeting, the Presiding Officer shall nominate all candidates determined to be eligible by the screening committee and such a candidate need not be present to be elected.
6.3 The Presiding Officer of all Flotilla elections shall be the Flotilla Commander unless the Flotilla Commander is running for office or is unable to so act, in which case the Immediate Past Flotilla Commander will be the Presiding Officer.
6.4 Prior to opening the balloting for election of each Flotilla officer the Presiding Officer shall invite nominations by any voting member from the floor. No second shall be required for a nomination from the floor. The nominator, prior to making the nomination from the floor, is responsible for ascertaining the eligibility and willingness of the nominee to accept the office and fulfill its duties if ultimately elected. Self nomination is not allowed from the floor. Candidates so nominated from the floor must be present for the election and must affirmatively state that they accept the nomination and will serve if elected. The Presiding Officer shall accept all eligible nominations from the floor and the name of each such nominee from the floor shall be added to the balloting for such elected office. For purposes of all election provisions in these Rules, the term "floor" shall include only voting members of the Flotilla.
6.5 Election of Flotilla officers shall be by secret written ballot, even if there is only one candidate for a particular Flotilla office.
6.6 If there is more than one nominee for any Flotilla office(s), the Presiding Officer shall appoint a teller committee of three persons, naming one of them the head teller of such committee. None of the committee persons may be members running as a candidate for the particular Flotilla office(s) for which the election is being held. Written secret ballots shall be collected and counted by the teller committee after each ballot. After counting by the committee, the ballots shall be presented to the Presiding Officer in a sealed envelope. The head teller shall certify in writing the result of the balloting to the Presiding Officer by writing the order of finish in the balloting on the outside of the envelope. If a candidate received a majority of the vote for the Flotilla office, the Presiding Officer will then announce the result of that ballot.
6.7 If a majority of eligible Flotilla members vote for a candidate, that majority vote is sufficient to elect the candidate to the office. If more than two candidates are nominated for any one Flotilla office, and no candidate receives a majority of votes on the first ballot:
6.7.1 The candidate receiving the least number of votes on the first ballot will be dropped out of the voting on the second ballot. Elimination of the "low vote" candidate will continue on the next and subsequent ballots until one candidate receives a majority of the votes cast.
6.7.2 If there is a tie for low votes received on any ballot, the next ballot for that office will be a runoff between the candidates tied for low vote on the preceding ballot. The candidate receiving the highest number of votes on the runoff between the two tied for the low vote will be included in the next succeeding ballot along with all other candidates who received a higher number of votes on the ballot preceding the tie for low ballot.
6.7.3 In the event of three successive tie votes for any Flotilla office, the Presiding Officer shall, in open session, place all of the ballots cast on such third tie vote into a container and blindly select one ballot from the container. The teller committee then shall tally the remaining ballots, present the ballots to the Presiding Officer in a sealed envelope, and certify the result of the balloting to the Presiding Officer by writing the ballot results on the outside of the envelope. The Presiding Officer shall announce the result of that ballot and, if it is the last ballot between two candidates for any office, the final election result.
6.8 There will be no announcement of the number of votes received by any candidate on any ballot. At the conclusion of an election for an office, all of the ballots shall be resealed and shall be held by the head teller for a period of twenty-four (24) hours after the election is over. Any unsuccessful candidate for an office who wishes to examine the ballots for that office shall so notify the Presiding Officer in writing within such twenty-four (24) hours and such candidate shall then be afforded an opportunity, within a reasonable period of time thereafter, to examine the ballots for that office in a meeting with the head teller and the Presiding Officer of the election. If no request for examination is made within such 24 hour period, the head teller shall immediately destroy the ballots and all envelopes in which any ballots were sealed. If a request for examination is made in a timely manner, the head teller shall deliver the ballots and envelopes to the Director immediately after the unsuccessful candidate has examined the ballots and the Director shall examine the ballots, certify the results of the election and destroy the ballots and envelopes.
6.9 In the event any question or controversy concerning any substantive or procedural matter(s) is raised by a flotilla voting member during the course of any election, and such question or controversy is not clearly resolved under provisions of the Manual, these Rules, and Robert’s Rules of Order, the Presiding Officer, after consultation with the Division Commander, and, if necessary, the District Staff Officer-Legal, shall decide and announce the resolution to the question or controversy. Such decision, so long as it is not in conflict with the Manual or these Rules, shall be final and binding and the election(s) then shall continue to a conclusion.
6.10 Before assuming office, the election of any Flotilla officer must be approved and confirmed by the Director.
6.11 If a vacancy occurs in any Flotilla elective office, an interim election shall be held in accordance with the provisions of the Manual, subject to the applicable election procedures of these Rules.
6.12 The results of all Flotilla elections will be provided to the Division Commander within five (5) days after the election.