Procedures

The following procedures will be followed for all Co-op votes, as authorized in Article 3 of the Putney Food Co-op Bylaws.

The Co-op Voting Procedure is used for a variety of matters. On an annual basis, a Co-op Election will be held to elect members to the Board of Directors as provided in Article 4 of the Bylaws. Other types of Co-op Votes may be scheduled to coincide with the election of board members or they may be held at other times.

AUTHORITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY

  • Role of the Secretary: The Secretary will be accountable to the board to assure that the procedures established by this resolution are followed. In the event that the Secretary has a conflict of interest (i.e., is running for re-Election) or is unable to fulfill the duties described in this resolution, the board shall appoint another board member to take the place of the Secretary for this purpose.
  • Nominating Committee: The Nominating Committee, consisting of the Secretary and at least one other board member, will work with the Vote Coordinator to ensure that the vote is secure, accessible to all members and all procedures are followed. Should it be required, the Nominating Committee will assist or assign additional individuals to assist the Vote Coordinator with tallying the votes.
  • Meeting Notice / Duration:
  • Notice of Membership meetings shall be provided to all members at their last known address and posted prominently in the store at least 2 weeks before the close of voting. The notice for any regular or special meetings shall include the proposed agenda for the meeting and a complete description of any issues to be voted upon by the members. The notice will include the date, time and location of the confirmation meeting, the duration of the voting period and instructions for voting. All information provided to members about issues presented in the Co-op Vote shall be factual, fair and balanced. The Vote Coordinator may use additional means of communication at her/his discretion to achieve maximum member awareness and participation.
  • Voting shall last for a duration of 2-5 weeks during which time ballots may be cast as provided in the Bylaws, article 3.5. All meetings shall provide for an assembly of members (of more limited duration) in person to receive the report(s) of the Co-op. The duration of a meeting and the date, time and place of the assembly shall each be determined by the board.
  • Electronic voting and voting by paper ballot shall close at a specified time prior to the Annual Meeting.
  • The Co-op will make voting accessible through a combination of the following:
  • Electronic voting from a remote computer in the Co-op (upon request)
  • Paper ballot, mailed or hand delivered to the Vote Coordinator
  • All ballots must include the member’s name and identifying member number and the Voting Coordinator will take appropriate measures to ensure that each member has only one vote and no votes by proxy are allowed.
  • Ballots: The Vote Coordinator will ensure that the ballot forms are prepared and present the voting options in an impartial manner with clear instructions on how to vote. Reproductions or ballots in an alternative format are acceptable if they clearly indicate the voter’s intentions and otherwise comply with voting requirements.
  • Confidentiality of Ballots: The ballots that have been cast will be held in a secure location. The Vote Coordinator will have custody of the ballots and will assure that the votes on individual ballots are not viewed by unauthorized persons except as provided herein. Those authorized to view the ballots are the Vote Coordinator, the Nominating Committee and any vote tabulators assigned by the Nominating Committee, all of whom will be under an affirmative obligation not to reveal how any individual owner voted except with the explicit permission of the member-voter. If any ballots that have been cast have been determined to be invalid, those ballots will be made available for inspection by members at the meeting held to confirm the vote. All ballots shall be retained in a secure location until the board has certified the vote results and for a period of 30 days thereafter. The board may authorize additional inspection of ballots on a confidential basis after the Secretary presents the vote results if necessary to verify the outcome.
  • Verification of Ballots and Compilation of Results:
  • The Vote Coordinator will verify that the name and member number on each ballot corresponds to a member in good standing and that no more than one ballot is cast by a member. Votes by proxy are not allowed and will be disqualified.
  • Votes may be tallied by the Vote Coordinator and/or other designated vote counters as they come in or periodically during the voting period. Should more than one vote be received for one member, both votes will be considered invalid.
  • The Secretary will oversee the verification and compilation process and may review any or all ballots to assure they have been accurately recorded. Progress reports may be provided by the Vote Coordinator or the Secretary as to the total number of votes cast on individual ballot issues and the total number of ballots received, but the number of votes for or against individual candidates or ballot questions will not be disclosed until the conclusion of voting at the confirmation meeting.
  • Annual Meeting: An annual confirmation meeting open to all members will be held at the time date and location established at the beginning of the Co-op Vote Process. At this meeting, the Secretary will declare the vote to be concluded and present the number of votes cast for each item on the ballot. The Secretary will report on any unusual or noteworthy circumstances that may have been observed in the voting process and will answer any questions members may have. If the results are challenged or for any other reason the Secretary is unable to confirm the election results at that time, the confirmation meeting may be adjourned until such time as the Secretary is prepared to report conclusive results to the board.
  • Certification of Co-op Vote Results: The Secretary will report the results to the board of directors at the next board meeting following the conclusion of the vote, and acceptance of the Secretary’s report by the board will constitute certification of the results of the Co-op Vote.

ELECTION OF DIRECTORS

  • Candidate Eligibility: Candidates must be active member owners of the Co-op in good standing and meet the criteria set forth in Article 4.2 of the bylaws.
  • Candidate Endorsement: Prospective board candidates should email the board at board@putneyfood.coop. The Board asks that prospective board members attend a board meeting to familiarize themselves with how the board works and submit a statement of interest in order to be endorsed by the board.
  • Candidate Profiles: Information provided by the candidates about their qualifications will be made available to the members.
  • Campaigning: All candidates will be provided an equal opportunity to present their candidacy to the members.
  • Campaigning is defined as promotion or other discussion of any candidate, measure or recall petition; distribution of any material regarding a candidate or measure or recall. each candidate or sponsor(s) of a petition is responsible for the conduct of her/his campaign.
  • Election related materials may be posted on store premises only by the nominating Committee and designated staff. Owners are free to produce and distribute other campaign literature within the restraints of this policy. PFC will not supply owner contact information to any individual for the purposes of campaigning.
  • The newsletter or annual report may include candidate statements and the arguments and rebuttals in respect to any issue, but must print them as accepted by the Nominating Committee.
  • Campaigning must not interfere with the conduct of meetings or the operation of the store. As such, campaigning may not be conducted within the store or during any PFC function, unless the function or a portion of the function is designed to specifically allow member discussion of candidates or measures. Specific restrictions are spelled out in the PFC guidelines on tabling.
  • Determining Results: The results of the vote shall be determined as follows:
  • Directors elected to full terms shall be those candidates receiving the highest number of votes consistent with the number of full term Directors to be elected.
  • In the event of a tie vote between candidates, the outcome will be decided by coin toss by the Secretary or his/her designee. The candidate whose last name comes earlier in the alphabet will be heads, and the latter tails.
  • In the event of a tie on a ballot measure that is not an advisory survey, the ballot measure does not pass

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