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The Director of Elections is responsible for overseeing the election process which includes identifying potential candidates for vacant positions, soliciting potential candidates to run for a position, and conducting the elections for the Directors and Chair of the MAS SIG Board. This also includes communicating with Lynn Brown at AMA concerning the issues around ensuring that the election process is conducted according to the AMA SIG rules.

1. Membership of the Nominating Committee: this committee is chaired by the Immediate Past Chair of the SIG and will consist of the Chair, the Chair-elect, and the Immediate Past Chair.
2. Soliciting Nominations: the nominations will be solicited from (a) the general MAS SIG membership and (b) MAS SIG officers. A call for nominations will be included on the MAS SIG website (www.massig.org) and eventually in the MAS SIG Fall Newsletter distributed electronically to all MAS SIG members. Nominations will also be solicited from the MAS SIG Officers during the general discussion at the Winter AMA SIG Officers meeting. Self-nominations are also accepted.
3. Selecting the Line-up of Candidates: the nominating committee will meet (electronically) after the winter officer’s meeting at Winter AMA to consider all the nominees and to select the potential candidates (two for each position and back-ups – if there are enough potential candidates). The nominees will be evaluated on (a) suitability for the particular position (job description), (b) their likely interest and willingness to undertake the responsibility of the respective positions, (c) their demonstrated commitment to public policy issues in marketing, (d) their leadership potential, (e) the quality of their prior contributions to the MAS SIG, and (f) the likelihood of their making significant contributions to the MAS SIG in the future. Nominees must be members in good standing of the MAS SIG.
4. Contacting Nominees: The Chair of the Nominating Committee will contact the potential candidates to explore their interest in running. At that time, the potential candidates will be emailed a detailed description of what is entailed in the particular Board position as well as the length of time for the position, the starting and ending time, and any special requirements (e.g. attendance at Summer AMA, Winter AMA, MPPC, MAS SIG membership).
5. Preparation of the Ballot: When the line-up is finalized, the Chair of the Nominating Committee will notify the AMA SIG coordinator (Rachael Benkert) of the line-up and will send the MAS SIG Ballot form to the candidates. Each candidate will prepare a short bio that provides basic information about the candidate and their background and interest in MAS SIG. The Chair of the Nominating Committee will forward the final copy of the Ballot to the Chair, the Chair-elect, and the AMA SIG coordinator by April 1st.
6. Distribution of Ballots: Ballots will be distributed via email to the MAS SIG mailing list by the Vice-Chair of Communications on or before April 15 with the request for their return within two weeks. The Ballot will contain a request for the voter to indicate their current AMA membership number. Only AMA MAS SIG member votes will be counted for election results.
7. Tabulation of the Ballots: Ballots will be tabulated by the Chair of the Nominating Committee. The Chair of the Nominating Committee will then notify the candidates who have won and will thank the candidates who have lost the election for their participation. The Chair will also notify the current MAS SIG officers and the AMA SIG coordinator of the results.
8. Publication of the Results: The results of the election will be announced to the MAS SIG membership by the Vice-Chair of Communications through a broadcast email as well as posting the news in the electronic Newsletter. The announcement should also be made at MPPC. The AMA SIG coordinator will be responsible for updating the SIG office list for all AMA publications.
9. Orientation of New Officers: The incoming MAS SIG Chair will schedule an orientation meeting for the new MAS SIG officers at the Summer Educators meeting or at the MPPC meeting. This should be done prior to the general AMA SIG Officers’ meeting.
10. Handling of Resignations: If for some reason an office is unable to continue to serve to the end of the his or her term, the position may be filled by appointment by the MAS SIG Chair after consulting with the Board of MAS SIG Officers.
11. Non-Elected Officers: In addition to the elected officers, some individuals are appointed to the Board to provide special services for the MAS SIG (e.g. webmaster). These persons typically are former elected officers who possess special competencies that render them particularly valuable and suitable for the tasks. Such individuals are not elected but are appointed by the MAS SIG Chair after consulting with the Board of MAS SIG. They serve “ex-officio” for an indefinite time period. Non-elected officers may be consulted for opinions in their area of competence but do not have an official vote in MAS SIG policy matters.

Time Line for the Election Process for MAS SIG

Early January	Call for nominations distributed the Past Chair to the current set of Board Officers
Mid-January (Fall/Winter Newsletter)	The Vice-Chair for Communications distributes the Call for Nominations in the Fall/Winter newsletter, through broadcast emails to MAS SIG members, and on the MAS SIG website.
Winter AMA	Nominations solicited at the MAS SIG Officers’ meeting
Winter AMA or soon thereafter	Nominating committee meets (either in person or via email) to review the nominees and to select potential candidates for each position.
April 1st	Chair of Nominating Committee contacts potential candidates to determine interest in running.
April 15th	Nominations finalized and ballots distributed to the MAS SIG membership.
May 1st	Ballots tabulated and results communicated to the nominees and to the MAS SIG officers by Vice-Chair of Communications
Spring/Summer Newsletter	Election results announced to MAS SIG membership through website, newsletter, and broadcast emails to MAS SIG membership.
MPPC	Orientation of New Officers at MPPC
MPPC/Summer AMA	MAS SIG officers meet with new officers either at MPPC or Summer AMA.