5.1 Annual Association Election.

Each year, the Voting Members shall elect the following, each in accordance with the provisions of Section 3.10.2:

1. 5.1.1 A Vice Chancellor to serve for a term of one-year with an automatic annual succession to the offices of Chancellor-Elect and Chancellor, respectively;
2. 5.1.2 A Treasurer, an Assistant Treasurer, a Secretary and an Assistant Secretary, for a term of one year each;
3. 5.1.3 Five Board Members for a term of three-years each;
4. 5.1.4 In the event of a vacancy of an elected Board Member as provided in Section 3.17.8, a person to fill such vacancy for the balance of the term of that Board Member.

5.2 Terms Of Office.

Unless otherwise provided by Section 3.17, the terms of office of those elected pursuant to Section 5.1 shall begin on the first day of the calendar year immediately following the conclusion of the previous year’s Annual Election.

5.3 Elections Committee; Composition.

1. 5.3.1 There shall be an Elections Committee which shall consist of the Immediate Past Chancellor, who shall serve as chair (in this paragraph, the Immediate Past Chancellor is referred to as the “Elections Chair”), the Judge of Elections, and a minimum of five and a maximum of ten additional committee members, all of whom shall be appointed by the Chancellor in consultation with the Immediate Past Chancellor, with approval of the Board. The membership of the Elections Committee should reflect the diversity of the Association’s membership. The term of members of the Elections Committee shall end on December 31 of the year in which they were appointed.
2. 5.3.2 No member of the Elections Committee may be a candidate for any office of the Association while serving as a member of the Elections Committee; provided, however, that if a member of the Elections Committee commences nominating procedures in accordance with Section 5.5 for any office of the Association, that person must immediately resign from the Elections Committee.
3. 5.3.3 A vacancy in the membership of the Elections Committee shall be filled by the Immediate Past Chancellor.

5.4 Duties And Procedures Of The Elections Committee.

1. 5.4.1 The Elections Committee shall adopt such rules and procedures as it deems appropriate for the conduct of its business to the extent not inconsistent with these Bylaws. The calendars, rules and procedures set forth by the Elections Committee shall govern the Annual Election, including, but not limited to the Sections’ and Divisions’ participation in such election proceedings.
2. 5.4.2 As often as the Elections Committee shall determine, but in no event less than on three separate occasions, the last of which shall be on or before the date which is ninety (90) days from the first date of voting, the Secretary shall cause a notice to be Published listing the offices to be filled and requesting nominations for such offices.
3. 5.4.3 The Elections Committee shall actively seek eligible candidates for the offices and positions of the Association. Committee members shall perform targeted outreach to, among others: (a) Section and Committee Chairs, (b) leadership in affinity bar associations or other similar organizations, (c) current and past Association leaders, (d) leadership of law firms, business and government legal departments, and public interest law firms and (e) the Members of the Association. The Elections Committee shall actively seek and recruit candidates of diverse backgrounds, including those who have been historically underrepresented as Officers and Board Members.
4. 5.4.4 The Elections Committee and its members shall not endorse, evaluate or rank any candidate; provided, however, that members of the Elections Committee may sign nominating petitions to be filed pursuant to Section 5.5.1.

5.5 Nominating Procedure.

A Member may become a candidate for an office of the Association or for the Board, by:

1. 5.5.1 Delivering to the Elections Chair or the Election Chair’s designee, by a date set by the Elections Committee, nominations in writing which, for candidates of the Board, must be signed by at least 25 Members who are entitled to vote; for candidates for Secretary, Treasurer, Assistant Secretary and Assistant Treasurer, shall be signed by at least 35 Members who are entitled to vote; and for candidates for Vice Chancellor, shall be signed by at least 100 Members who are entitled to vote; and,
2. 5.5.2 Submitting a written authorization, in a manner to be set forth by the Elections Committee, for the Disciplinary Board to release any record of discipline on such person; and,
3. 5.5.3 Submitting such biographical information as the Elections Committee may reasonably request.
4. 5.5.4 Only nominations made in accordance with this Section 5.5 shall be considered for a vote of the Members.

5.6 Election Forums.

1. 5.6.1 The Elections Committee shall schedule one or more election forums to allow each candidate for office to make an oral presentation. The forums shall take place after the period for submission of nominating petitions has closed.
2. 5.6.2 The Elections Committee shall set and Publish guidelines and procedures for the election forums; and provide for the wide dissemination to the Members of the candidates’ qualifications and forum presentations.
3. 5.6.3 The Elections Chair or the Elections Chair’s designee will preside over the forum(s), which shall be open to the Members.

5.7 Final Candidates.

1. 5.7.1 The Secretary shall have Published on or before thirty (30) days from the first date of voting of each year a list of the candidates to be voted upon in alphabetical order.
2. 5.7.2 If a vacancy occurs in any of the positions to be elected at any time prior to the time the person to be elected takes office, such vacancy shall be filled as provided for in Section 3.17.

5.8 Voting.

1. 5.8.1 If there is a contest for any office to be filled, the election shall be conducted pursuant to procedures established by the Elections Committee to preserve the confidentiality of Members’ votes and the integrity of the voting process. The position of the nominee on the ballot shall be determined by lot or by random generation by such election procedures established by the Elections Committee. The drawing of lots, if done, shall be conducted by the Judge of Elections on or before fifteen (15) days from the first date of voting of each year in the presence of the nominees and/or their representatives. The form of the ballot shall be prescribed by the Elections Committee.
2. 5.8.2 If any position to be filled in an election is uncontested after the close of nominations, the name of the candidate shall not appear on the ballot and the Secretary shall cast a unanimous ballot in favor of such nominee.
3. 5.8.3 Voting shall commence and conclude on a date and time to be determined by the Elections Committee, so long as such election concludes on or before December 15 of the year the election occurs. Upon the occurrence of an event that makes general voting impossible on one or more days or parts of days, a majority of the Chancellor, Chancellor-Elect and Vice Chancellor may extend the time for voting for a period of time which, a majority of the Chancellor, Chancellor-Elect and Vice Chancellor determine is reasonable under the circumstances.
4. 5.8.4 Although various candidates for elected office may decide to run campaigns as a so-called “slate”, each candidate for office shall be elected individually.

5.9 Appointment Of Election Officials; Report.

The Chancellor shall appoint from among the Members, with the approval of the Board, a Judge of Elections. The Judge of Elections shall have the power to resolve any dispute regarding the validity of any vote cast, the right to vote or a claim of infringement of the right to vote; and the Judge of Election’s decision shall be final and binding on all parties, with no further right of appeal. The Judge of Elections shall close the voting, certify the election results and report the election results to the Chancellor, who shall forthwith cause the names of those elected to be Published. The powers of the Judge of Elections shall be limited to the authority granted to the Judge of Elections pursuant to this Section 5.9 and such other duties as the Board shall prescribe.

5.10 Voting Qualifications.

If a Member is delinquent in the payment of dues for the current year, such Member shall not be entitled to vote in the annual election. A Member who cures such delinquency at least prior to December 1 of such year shall be eligible to vote.