Parliamentary Procedure Q&A

Q: I am a board member of a small town sports association. Elections were recently held and someone was nominated from the floor who was not present at the meeting and did not have prior approval from the board. This person won the election. Following the election, it was discovered by one of the other candidates that our bylaws state "an association member must be present at this meeting in order to be nominated for office except in extreme circustances which have been approved beforehand by the board." This candidate has protested the election based on the bylaws. Is it proper to hold another election? Is it legal to allow the runner-up to fill the position? - Y.C., Dec. 6, 1999

A: This is an interesting question that might cause a debate among parliamentarians. Although arguable, it is my opinion the election should stand. Here is my reasoning.

A member may be elected to office regardless of whether he has been nominated. (See RONR p. 431.) Although the absent member's name shouldn't have been placed in nomination from the floor, that should not invalidate his election. No one's rights were violated, and it's likely your organization elected the officer it prefered.

In any case, because a majority is required to elect, the runner-up cannot fill the office should it later be declared vacant.

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