Dear Democrats Abroad AP Leaders,
There are a few things to report about the A/P Regional Vice Chair Election that will occur at the AP Regional Meeting at 7am US EDT on Sat 13 May.
- The Nominations and Elections Committee (NEC) received a nomination from Shaun Barnes of DA Hong Kong nominating himself for AP Regional Vice Chair. Shaun's candidate statement is included below.
- The NEC also received one further nomination that did not comply with the rules published at the launch of the elections process, as it was received after the close of the nominations period.
- The NEC debated the non-complying nomination in the context of the published rules and sought the advice of DA advisors at the global level who understand the RVC election provisions in the DA Charter (which are not highly prescriptive in regards to RVC elections) and the DA Model Election Procedures (which, admittedly, are developed to guide the CCs in the conduct of their national officer elections).
- The NEC has decided to conform to our published rules and not accept the non-complying nomination.
- Our published rules were silent on taking nominations from the floor of the AP Regional Meeting. It is the norm for DA to take nominations from the floor.
- The NEC has decided to amend the rules for this election by adding that we will accept nominations for AP Regional Vice Chair from the floor.
- The NEC is pleased to consider the views of the AP region on this matter and encourages anyone with questions, concerns or comments to reply to the region using the Google Group email address or to message the members of the NEC at the email addresses provided
Democratically yours,
Carmelan Polce (DA Lion City), NEC Chair - [email protected]
Suma Shamanna (DA India) - [email protected]
Umme Sarah Hoque (DA Australia) - [email protected]
RVC Candidate Statement- Shaun Barnes of DA Hong Kong
Since becoming Chair of DA Hong Kong last year, I’ve seen firsthand how the Asia Pacific region has built a special community within DA that fosters leaders, incubates new ideas and maintains a thriving support network for its country committees. I’ve decided to run for Regional Vice Chair because I would like to help preserve and deepen that community so it continues to be a strong vehicle for organizing Democrats in Asia. As RVC, I plan to (1) create a forum for CC leaders, deputies and volunteers to share best practices, (2) seek additional deputy RVCs, including a deputy focused on helping new and out of compliance CCs and (3) maintain regular communications with, and act as a resource for, CCs in the region. If elected, I’ll also act as a voice for APAC on the Executive Committee, bringing our concerns to the global level. Thank you for your consideration.