Election Committee Report to Kekahu Foundation Board of Directors
November 12, 2008
Background
On November 14, 2007 the Kekahu Foundation Board of Directors adopted a proposal to implement, subject to the resolution of several matters, a trial program under which a portion of the Kekahu Foundation Board would be elected by the members of the Kekahu Foundation.
On January 16, 2008, the Board approved moving forward with the trial program. It agreed to seat the candidate who receives the highest vote in a 2008 election process, subject to the condition that at least 15% of the members of the Kekahu Foundation participated in the election. The Board also established an Election Committee, comprising at least three Directors and at least one other person, to implement the trial program.
Update
The first election process was successfully conducted this summer and fall.
• Six candidates submitted the required applications by the September 5 deadline. Of these, three applicants withdrew prior to the start of the election period (early October). One applicant withdrew because he was selected to become the new KKCR station manager, and two applicants withdrew because of other commitments or lack of interest.
• The three candidates on the final ballot were Connie Fairbanks, Steve Thatcher and Jimmy Trujillo.
• 1,071 ballots were sent to members.
• 178 valid ballots were returned by the November 4 deadline (2 additional ballots were deemed invalid because they were received after the deadline). The number of returned ballots equals 17% of the ballots sent to members.
• Ballots were counted on November 5 at the offices of, and with the oversight of, the Kauai Planning and Action Alliance. The greatest number of votes was received by Jimmy Trujillo.
The Election Committee plans to analyze the returned ballots to determine the returns by individual Kauai communities, the other Hawaiian islands, California, and the rest of the mainland. To help in the scheduling of public service announcements for the 2009 election, the Election Committee also plans to analyze the returns to determine when (during the one-month election period) voters mailed in their ballots.
The January 10, 2008 cost estimate for conducting the 2008 election was $455. The actual cost was $453.
Next Steps
1. There are currently 4 vacancies on the Board (3 full-term vacancies and the partial-term vacancy created by Rita Peeters’ resignation earlier this year).
(a) Member participation in the election exceeded the required 15%. Therefore, the Election Committee recommends that the Board seat, for a three-year term, Jimmy Trujillo, the candidate who received the greatest number of votes.
(b) Pursuant to the rules of the agreed-upon election process, the remaining Board vacancies should be filled from the list of the remaining candidates who participated in the election process. At this time there is only one such candidate (Steve Thatcher), as the other candidate (Connie Fairbanks) has withdrawn due to personal commitments. Therefore, the Election Committee recommends that the Board consider seating Steve Thatcher for a three-year term.
(c) Two Board vacancies (for a three-year term and for a one-year term) will still remain after (a) and (b) above. The Election Committee notes that the Board can fill these vacancies at such time, and using such process, that the Board feels is appropriate.
2. The Election Committee requests that the Board include in the 2008-2009 budget $500 to conduct the 2009 election.
3. Pursuant to the January 16, 2008 Board resolution, the Board must establish, at some time prior to the start of the 2009 election process, the member participation criterion that will be used for the 2009 election. After the 2009 election, the Board must decide whether to make the election process permanent and/or how to modify the process. The evaluation criteria proposed by the Governance/Election Committee earlier this year are:
• Member interest (percent of qualified voters who cast ballots)
• Impact of the elections on increased participation, membership or funding
• “Quality” of the election process (number, qualifications and capabilities of candidates, and the focus of the campaign process on issues of true relevance to the selection of directors)
• Impacts (positive and negative) of having elected Directors on the Board
• Resources required to support the election process.
