[nabs-l] NABS Leadership Update

Mon Jul 13 00:54:32 UTC 2009

Hi Joseph and all,

	While this was explained at the meeting, I’ll reiterate for those who
weren’t at convention. The voice vote, in which people say “I” if they
support a particular candidate, is used only as a preliminary voting
method. The voice vote determines the election outcome only when one
candidate receives an overwhelming majority of the vote. If the voice
vote sounds at all inconclusive, the election leader will call for a
hand count and the candidate receiving more than half of the votes
wins. Even if the election leader believes the voice vote is
conclusive, a candidate who disagrees can always call for a hand
count. We have these protections in place to prevent races from being
decided by “which group screams the loudest”. Any candidate who
garners a significant amount of support will receive enough “I’s” to
render a hand count necessary, and again, the candidate always has the
right to ask for a hand count regardless of what the election leader
decides. In fact, last weekend, almost every contest was ultimately
decided by a hand count, even though we started off with a voice vote.

	You are right that the NABS constitution says nothing about voice
voting. I need to find out if there is a national policy that
overrides our constitution, making voice voting necessary. There are
definite advantages and disadvantages to starting off with a voice
vote before preceding to a hand count.

Arielle Silverman
President, National Association of Blind Students

On 7/13/09, Jedi <loneblindjedi at samobile.net> wrote:
> Joseph and all:
>
> I was present at the election and even made a go for an office or two.
> In my opinion, the election did have integrity simply because those
> running it tried to make it as fair as they knew how. Elections are
> tough especially if you've never run one before. I rmember trying to
> arrange Washington State's constitution. Arielle was there. Arielle
> well remembers how chaotic that was and how unhappy some folks were.
> Hell, some members even got upset because they said the presence of Dr.
> maurer swayed the vote over whether or not we should vote members into
> our organization or just let them in once they've paid their dues. In
> fact, didn't we have to redo that one twice just to make everyone
> happy? I remember that day and how stressed everyone was. This last
> election at the national level reminds me of that chaos.
>
> I guess the reality is that there will always be those who wished the
> election happened in their favor. Take, for example, all those who
> grumbled when Barack Obama won this last year's U.S. presidency. And
> don't forget the fiasco over Bush vs. Gore in 2001. In other words, our
> craziness last Saturday isn't unique to NABS, the NFB, or to blind
> guys. It's just what happens sometimes. But as Arielle said, there are
> ways we can curb the craziness a bit. I have also given some thought to
> how we might smooth the process for future NABS participants and their
> officers. And like you, joseph, i'm trying to work it out in my own
> mind. Having focus groups is a great idea, and I hope to be informed as
> to when they occur.
>
> Respectfully,
> Jedi
> Original message:
>> Nijat,
>
>> One look at the vote counts—so conveniently all multiples of
>> ten—calls their accuracy into question.  That students in the room
>> report different counts isn't surprising, until you note that their
>> reports indicate higher counts for losers than were reported to us in
>> a few races, including your runoff, actually.
>
>> Personally, I decided not to participate after that point.  We don't
>> have 100% agreement on the counts, but there's enough discrepancy
>> often enough to call the whole thing into question.  I'm not saying I
>> won any of those elections, but I am saying I'm not quite sure in a
>> few cases who should have.  I am honestly not sure how many people
>> were getting involved trying to do something about it, but there was
>> more than three or four.
>
>> There are only two things I am sure of: First, no good is likely to
>> come of any effort that group might make.  Second, a member of the
>> board telling us not to worry our pretty little heads ... just isn't
>> going to make things better.  Both sound disastrous to me.
>
>> This isn't about who did or did not win an election.  It's about the
>> membership of this organization believing a real election actually
>> took place.  If even a significant minority doubt that, then it is
>> bad for NABS, even if you assume every one of them will age-out of
>> NABS in a few years.  We reflect the NFB as a whole, and we should
>> reflect it well.
>
>> I serve the organization, not the board.  I will yet see two boards
>> serve while I remain a student.  It is in the organization's interest
>> to make sure what we saw last Saturday does not happen again.  I have
>> a solution, but it's not a complete solution yet.  It does result in
>> a paper trail, or at least a box full of index cards.  Still working
>> out how to handle runoff elections.
>
>> Joseph
>
>
>> On Sat, Jul 11, 2009 at 04:05:04PM -0600, Nijat Worley wrote:
>>> Greetings Joseph,
>>>   I believe that there is little doubt about the legitimacy of the
>>> current NABS board and the process by which they were elected. Those who
>>> are angry, and those who want to grumble about it, and still those who
>>> want to take action about it, have little ground to do so. Besides, what
>>> kind of action would be appropriate at this point? The former board and
>>> Terri did their best to make sure that the elections were fair. They did
>>> almost every vote by a hand count at your request. I am utterly surprised
>>> that you are still dissatisfied about the outcome of the elections. I
>>> understand there were some mistakes made in the election process, and the
>>> board has made note of them. We will take proper action to make sure that
>>> those mistakes don't happen again. I do agree with you that to try to do
>>> anything  that might divide the organization at this point would only
>>> counter your intentions. NABS is an ever changing and evolving
>>> organization simply because of the fact that many of its members both on
>>> the board and off the board come and go so quickly. Nobody stays in NABS
>>> forever. We are all new to this organization, and we all make mistakes. I
>>> appreciate you expressing your concerns and telling folks to stay united,
>>> because only united, can we make change and strengthen this organization
>>> for the benefit of all. I always tell our members both at the state and
>>> national level that one does not have to be on the board to help out the
>>> organization and to be a leader. I think Arielle intends to get everybody
>>> involved in the development and growth of NABS. I am very pleased to say
>>> that I saw many of you at the Monty Carlo night helping us put it
>>> together and wrap it up at the end. We couldn't have done it without you.
>>> Thanks to B. J. Sexton, Caron Anderson, Willie Black, Jim, Jedi, and many
>>> others for staying and helping with Monty Carlo Night. Let us put behind
>>> us any hard feelings that may be in our chests and move on to bigger and
>>> better things for the sake of NABS if for nothing else.
>>>   At your service,
>>>   Nijat
>
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-- 
Arielle Silverman
President, National Association of Blind Students
Phone:  602-502-2255
Email:
nabs.president at gmail.com
Website:
www.nabslink.org