Chances are you don’t know this unless you’ve been unusually geeky about the party website over the Christmas period, but some very important elections are taking place and the closing date for nominations is this Friday, 9th January, at 5pm.
The electorate is very small – the 30 or so members of the Federal Executive. However, there are several positions, such as the Chair of the influential Campaigns and Communications Committee, that are open to any party member. Here’s the call for nominations which is hidden away in the members’ section of the party website. In fact, you actually have to download the papers to get it. Here’s the posts available:
All persons elected to these posts will hold office for the calendar years 2015 and 2016.
For the election of:
- Deputy Chair of Federal Executive
- Chair of the Federal Finance & Administration Committee (FFAC)
- Five members of the FFAC
- Party Treasurer
- Chair of the Campaigns & Communications Committee (CCC)
- Two members of the CCC
- Chair of the International Relations Committee (IRC)
- Two Vice-Chairs of the IRC
- Four members of the SAO Review Group
- Two members of the FE Candidates’ sub-group (meets with JSCC)
- Two representatives on the Federal Conference Committee
- One representative on ALDE Council
- Two representatives on ALDE Congress
- Two representatives on the Liberal International Executive
- Two representatives to the LI Congress
- Three members of the Diversity Engagement Group
* Posts marked in bold are only open to members of the 2015/16 Federal Executive.
The Chair of the FFAC is registered as the Party’s Treasurer for the purposes of the PPERA 2000, and as such is responsible for signing the Party’s quarterly donation declaration reports and meeting the accounting requirements laid down by to the Electoral Commission.
The election regulations approved by the Federal Executive in May 2009 are attached for information.
Nominations must be supported by two voting members of the outgoing or incoming Federal Executive, a list of whom is attached, and must be returned, with artwork, no later than 5pm on 9 January 2015 to David Allworthy, [email protected]. Scanned nominations will be accepted, but the originals must reach the Deputy Acting Returning Officer before the start of the Federal Executive meeting on 19 January 2015.
Postal Vote requests by members of the FE entitled to vote at the meeting but unable to attend should be received by close of nominations at 5pm on 9 January 2015. They should be returned by noon or second post on 19 January 2015.
So, if you want to stand for the posts available to any member of the party, you need to find two members of the outgoing or incoming Federal Executive to nominate you. The new directly elected members are here and the outgoing members are here.
Unusually, the party insists on having nominations on actual bits of paper. However, scanned nominations are acceptable as long as they are submitted by 5pm on Friday 9th and the originals are received by the Returning Officer by the FE meeting where the votes will be cast on 19th.
If you think any of these positions are for you, there’s still time to put your name forward, but get to it today.
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10 Comments
FFAC – is probably the committee with the most executive power in the federal party. I had once thought of running for this, but the chance of me getting a nomination in are very slim. It also strikes me that as it is a very important committee that the members should be chosen from those who have the relevant experience, rather than who knows the right people. But we Lib Dems to love our complicated internal democracy.
Thanks for doing the party a democratic service by advertising this, Caron!
Thanks, Caron.
I am happy to nominate colleagues who wish to put their name forward.
The Regulations say “(i) Notice of the elections should be placed (where present) in the Party’s periodical and on the Party’s website at least one month before the close of nominations …………………….. For a proposal to be valid, a candidate will require the written support of two voting members, though nominations may be made by members of either the existing or incoming Executive. Nominations will be accepted by email from a nominators recognizable email address.”.
However, the accompanying letter says, as Caron reports: “Scanned nominations will be accepted, but the originals must reach the Deputy Acting Returning Officer before the start of the Federal Executive meeting on 19 January 2015. ”
I would therefore recommend that anyone who submits a scanned or email nomination also ensures that hard copy is with the Returning Officer by the 19th.
I note Lloyd’s view that the FE is “probably the committee with the most executive power in the federal party”. It would be good to feel that the FE occasionally exercised such power – for instance, by taking decisions about strategy, communications and resource management.
hi
isn’t it campaigns and candidates committee (ccc) or is that wales only? also out of curiosity is IRC the official name as thats the same abbreviation as the liberal youth organisation in wales. also is there any info anywhere on role descriptions?
Caron
Can you tell is what is the ‘Diversity Engagement Group’
Thanks
Ann-Marie
How come I’m getting the blame/credit for this piece?:-).
Seriously, though, @jade, Wales and Scotland have Campaigns and Candidates Committees. The Campaigns and Communications Committees is responsible for overseeing the party’s various campaigns. It keeps an eye on what’s happening re campaign strategy and candidate selection and the like.
The Diversity Engagement Group, Ann-Marie, is pretty much as it says on the tin. Sal Brinton has been its chair of the past few year and has done a lot of work in laying the foundations for improved diversity at all levels of the party. Long way to go, though.
Caron have you seen the Guardian article today, “Liberal Democrats yet to select candidates in more than half of seats” ?
Labour have already selected in nearly all 631 seats for Great Britain.
Tell Party HQ to get a move on!
Marcus, this is off topic for this thread. I’ll start another one where this can be discussed.
– and didn’t we recently elect a new President? What has happened to her, surely there should be a media release to announce her, followed by at least an email to all members?