Election Night Information

We are still learning about what will happen on election night. Here is what we know as of now

• What: The long posponed elections to decide the leadership of the CPCA for the next eight months
• When: Tuesday September 29, 2009 at 7:00 pm
• Where: Cleveland Park Congrationalist Church at 34th and Lowell
• Candidates: There are two slates of candidates. The Reform Slate (us) and the Unity Team. 
• Procedure: You will be able to get your ballots when you arrive before 8:00 pm. There will be one minute speaches by all the candidates and then you mark your ballots and turn them in.  If there is a tie, there will be a second ballot. You can leave early  by giving your ballots to an official to be cast at the proper time. If there is a tie, you will not be able to vote in the second ballot if you had left.
• Childcare. They are trying to arrange child care during the voting. We have offered to pay the cost of $15 per child. No one has signed up yet. To sign up, you can send an email to Feedback@ReformSlate.org

Details:

1. The meeting will 'start' at 7:00 pm
2. There will be tables by last name to sign in and pick up ballots. The member list will be separated by portions of the alphabet
3. There will be seven to ten ballots (one for each office and some for delegate) on a single sheet of paper. Where there is a candidate who is on a slate, the slate will be identified
4. You can mark your ballots and give them to the designated official to vote for you and leave.  That must be done before the voting starts. Leaving early may mean that you will miss floor nominations and candidates' statements.
5. This is a regular meeting, so there will be the reading of the minutes of the previous meeting  then the reading of minutes of executive committee's meeting (the one that cancelled the elections), and then the election is the first order of business
6. People arriving before 8 are assured of a ballot and being able to cast a vote (it is unlikely that there will be a formal call for the vote before 8).
7. The ballot(s) and candidates statements will be organized by position sought. 
8. Nominations for an office will be allowed from the floor as provided in the bylaws.
9. Each candidate will have one minute to speak
10. After all the speeches for all the offices, there will then be voting on all the offices at once
11. If there is a tie (unlikely) for a particular office there will be another ballot for that office and people who left a ballot will not be able to vote since they did not have a second ballot.
12. This will proceed until all of the offices are filled.

So, how late can you vote? 8:00 pm to be sure. It could be later. Some people have young children at home and it is our understanding is that one can come at 7:00 pm and get ballots, mark them, give them to an official and go home. Then the other person can come (hopefully before 8:00 pm) and get his/her ballots and vote also.