Pursuant to an agreement between the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) and the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Labor-Management Standards (OLMS), AAUP is conducting a new election for the office of Assembly of State Conferences (ASC) Chair under the supervision of the Secretary of Labor. The U.S. Department of Labor-OLMS is responsible for assuring that the election is conducted in accordance with Title IV of the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959 (LMRDA).
Election Results
The ballot tally in the ASC chair election re-run was completed on Monday, June 28.
Assembly of State Conferences Ballot Tally Results (.pdf)
The results are as follows:
Donna Potts: 960
Judith Johnston: 510
Paul Zarembka: 378
Joel Schwartz: 296
Jeanette Jeneault: 279
A.R. (Raj) Chowdhury: 254
George Pieczenik: 202
Candidate Statements
Election statements from each candidate are posted in .pdf format. The views expressed in the candidate statements are those of the candidates.
A. R. (Raj) Chowdhury
Jeanette Jeneault
Judith L. Johnston
George Pieczenik
Donna Potts
Joel S. Schwartz
Paul Zarembka
Download this document as a .pdf.
Ballots were mailed out to members at their last known home address on June 1, 2010. If you have not received a ballot by June 8, 2010, or if you have spoiled your ballot or need a ballot for any other reason, please provide your full name, university, home address, and telephone number to the US Department of Labor, OLMS at ascelectionsupervisor@dol.gov or call (202) 513-7310. All ballots must be received in US Post Office Box 41029, Bethesda, MD 20897-2420 by 9:00 AM on June 28, 2010 to be counted.
The voting instructions on the Association of State Conferences Chair ballot say to sign your name where indicated on the stub (instruction # 4). This is the portion that you detach and place in the double window business reply envelope. You may sign your name anywhere on the stub. If you do not sign the stub, your ballot will still be counted as long as there is information on the stub to identify you as the voter. Please make sure not to sign your name on the ballot (the part that includes your vote).
Candidate campaign emails are being sent out by a third party vendor, True Ballot. The first two candidate campaign emails were sent out by True Ballot on May 31, 2010 and June 1, 2010 through the email address trueballot@electionadmin.com. Since it was discovered that some were flagged as spam, True Ballot has now begun sending out the candidate campaign emails through the email address election@aaup.org. A candidate campaign email was sent through this email address on June 3, 2010. The fact that the emails are now being sent through this address does not mean that the AAUP agrees with or supports the information in the candidate campaign emails. As noted as a disclaimer at the top of the candidate campaign emails, the views expressed are those of the candidates. If you have not seen any of the three candidate campaign emails, please check your spam to see if you have received any emails from either of these email addresses. Also, please check your spam in the future for possible new candidate campaign emails from these email addresses or change your spam settings.
1. Election Supervisor
Investigator Kathleen Nolan has been appointed Election Supervisor and has the authority and responsibility for implementing all aspects of the supervised election. All questions, correspondence, or protests should be directed to her at the following address:
Election Supervisor Kathleen Nolan
U.S. Department Of Labor, OLMS
Washington District Office
800 North Capitol Street, NW
Suite 120
Washington, DC 20002-4244
Phone: (202) 513-7310
Fax: (202) 513-7301
E-mail: nolan.kathleen@dol.gov or ascelectionsupervisor@dol.gov
The authority of the Election Supervisor was set forth in Brennan v. Local 551 United Auto Workers (486 F.2d 6, 7th Circuit 1973) in which the Court stated:
If the Union, or its incumbent leadership, or any other interested party wishes to object to any action taken by the Secretary in his supervisory capacity, that party assumes a heavy burden of persuasion and proof. If there is procedural irregularity (such as complete lack of any opportunity to object or explain), evidence of bias, or if the Secretary's action is manifestly arbitrary, such an interested party may be able to demonstrate that judicial intervention in advance of the election is necessary.
Otherwise, generally speaking, the Secretary's decision taken in his supervisory capacity must be heeded . . .
2. Election Committee
The AAUP Election Committee is made up of Chairman Stephen Goldberg from Adelphi University, Brian Turner from Randolph Macon College, and Jeff Butts from Appalachian State University.
3. Application of AAUP Constitution/ AAUP Election Bylaws/ ASC Constitution
The election of ASC Chair will be conducted in accordance with the LMRDA and, insofar as lawful and practicable, in accordance with the AAUP Constitution, the AAUP Election Bylaws, and the ASC Constitution.
4. Officer to be Elected
As provided in the agreement, a new election will be conducted for the office of ASC Chair.
5. Term of Office
The officer elected will serve the remainder of the unexpired two-year term which will end in June 2011. Installation of the officer will immediately follow the conclusion of the election process.
6. Nomination Process
A nomination notice will be emailed to all ASC members and posted on the AAUP website. It will also be mailed to any ASC member for whom the AAUP does not have an email address. The nomination notice will be sent on Thursday, April 22, 2010. Nominations will be due back by 4:00 PM on May 6, 2010.
Nominations will be submitted in writing to the Election Supervisor or the Election Committee Chairman. Self nominations are permitted. No seconds are required. Nominations should be submitted to the Election Supervisor or Election Committee Chairman Stephen Goldberg by email or fax at 516-877-4485, or mail to Adelphi University, Chemistry Department, Box 701, Garden City, NY 11530; Attention: ASC Election.
7. Eligibility to Hold Office
Any AAUP member in good standing as of April 30, 2010 from a state with a state conference is eligible to run for ASC Chairman.
The law (29 U.S.C. § 504) also disqualifies individuals convicted of certain crimes from serving as a union official. These crimes include: robbery, bribery, extortion, embezzlement, grand larceny, burglary, arson, violation of narcotics laws, murder, rape, assault with intent to kill, assault which inflicts grievous bodily injury, or a violation of subchapter III or IV of this chapter, any felony involving abuse or misuse of a person’s position or employment in a labor organization or employee benefit plan to seek or obtain illegal gain at the expense of the members of the labor organization or the beneficiaries of the employee benefit plan, etc.
8. Candidate Eligibility Determination
The Election Committee in conjunction with the Election Supervisor will review the nominees to ensure that they are eligible and then notify the nominees that they are eligible.
9. Type of Election
The election will be conducted by mail ballot. The voted ballots will be mailed back to a Post Office box. We are still working on getting the exact date that the ballots will be mailed from the printer and mailing company hired by the union. We are trying to mail the ballots in late May and have the return date in late June. More information on the date that ballots will be mailed and returned will be provided in the future.
10. Eligibility to Vote
Any member in good standing as of April 30, 2010 is eligible to vote in the election. This includes any member who has submitted a membership application by this date. Only AAUP members from a state with an active state conference are permitted to vote in this election. The states with active state conferences are: Alabama, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and Washington.
11. Election Notice
The election notice will be mailed along with the election ballot packages to every member’s last known home address. The notice shall provide information on eligibility to vote and the date, time, location, and procedures for the election.
12. Conference Call with Candidates
The Election Supervisor will have a conference call with the Election Committee and candidates to discuss campaign restrictions, election procedures, inspection/distribution of the union’s membership list, distribution of campaign literature, observers, and other campaign rules. At this time, the Election Committee will determine position on the ballot by drawing lots.
13. Inspection of the Membership List
Each candidate is allowed to inspect the membership list once within 30 days prior to the election. Anyone that would like to review this list should contact the Election Supervisor or the Election Committee Chairman.
14. Mailing of Campaign Literature
Section 401(c) of the LMRDA provides that a union must comply with all reasonable requests by any candidate to distribute campaign literature at the candidate’s expense.
Any candidate may purchase a set of mailing labels at a cost of $350. Partial sets of campaign mailings are also available and will be at a pro-rated cost.
Candidates may also send out campaign emails at a cost of $100 per email. The emails will be sent through a vendor hired by the union. Campaign emails should be submitted to the Election Supervisor, who will in turn submit the email to the vendor, eresources. Eresources will distribute the candidate’s email to the ASC members.
15. Campaign Restrictions
LMRDA Section 401(g) prohibits the use of any union or employer funds or resources to promote the candidacy of any person in a union officer election. This prohibition applies to cash, facilities, equipment (including copiers, computers, printers, and e-mail), vehicles, office supplies, newsletters and other publications, and any other financial or in-kind resources of AAUP and any other union, and of any employers, whether or not they employ AAUP members. Union officers and employees may not campaign on time paid for by the union or by any employer.
Candidates, their supporters, and all other persons must refrain from sending campaign-related e-mail from e-mail addresses provided by any employer. This use of e-mail violates Federal law governing union officer elections. Campaign-related e-mail may be sent from private, non-employer supplied e-mail addresses to private, non-employer supplied e-mail addresses. The same applies to the use of employer telephones to promote a candidacy. Campaign-related phone calls may be made from private, non-employer-supplied phone/phone numbers to private, non-employer-supplied phone/phone numbers.
Federal law also provides that candidates must be treated equally regarding the opportunity to campaign.
- Candidates and their supporters are required to observe all applicable employer regulations when posting campaign notices or placing campaign literature in public locations and to respect materials placed in public locations in support of opposing candidacies.
- Candidates can make campaign calls, provided that they use a personal list to make those calls from a personal cell phone or home phone.
- You must campaign on your own time. If you are in a pay status with your employer or the union, you should not be campaigning.
- If you campaign to members, they should be on their own time. They should not be in a pay status with the employer or the union.
- Candidates must keep all receipts for campaign purchases (including copies of campaign literature) to demonstrate that they paid full market price for all products and services.
- Candidates must keep track of all campaign donations to prove that all funds contributed to their campaigns were from private individuals – as opposed to unions or employers.
- Section 401(e) provides that members may not be subjected to penalty, discipline, or improper interference or reprisal of any kind in the exercise of their right to support the candidate of their choice.
- If you witness any candidate, potential candidate, member, or anyone else engaging in this type of activity IMMEDIATELY contact Kathleen Nolan, Election Supervisor, or the Election Committee and provide a detailed description of what occurred.
16. Observers
Candidates are entitled to have observers present throughout the election process, including the ballot preparation, mailing, and the tally of ballots. Due to the size of the membership, the ballot preparation and mailing will take place over several days. Those that wish to attend the ballot preparation and/or mailing should contact the Election Supervisor.
17. Ballot Preparation
The printing, acquisition, custody, control, and distribution of ballots will be conducted by True Ballot, the balloting company hired by the union, under direct OLMS supervision. The ballots will be printed by True Ballot and mailed by Accumail, a vendor hired to mail the ballots. Ballots will be mailed out June 1, 2010 and will be due back on June 28, 2010.
18. Ballot Tally
The Election Supervisor, along with the Election Committee and True Ballot, will conduct the ballot tally.
The ballots will be retrieved from the Post Office box and transported to the American Inn hotel in Bethesda, MD and counted. More information on the exact date and time of the ballot tally will be provided in the near future.
19. Election Results
Results from the election will be posted on the aaup.org website and an email will be sent out to the ASC listserv after the completion of the election.
20. Installation of Officer
The newly elected ASC Chair will be installed immediately following the conclusion of the election process.
21. Election Records
OLMS will maintain all nomination and election records for one year after the election as required by federal law.
22. Election Protests
Any member may protest the supervised election for valid cause; such protest should be made directly to the Election Supervisor in writing, as soon as possible, but no later than 10 days after the election.
Election protests should be sent to:
Election Supervisor Kathleen Nolan
U.S. Department Of Labor, OLMS
Washington District Office
800 North Capitol Street, NW
Suite 120
Washington, DC 20002-4244
Fax: (202)513-7301
This protest procedure is in lieu of the union’s normal protest procedure.
23. Conclusion
It should be clearly understood that all phases of the election of ASC Chairman are subject to U.S. Department of Labor, OLMS, supervision. No aspect should be conducted without prior consultation with and approval by the OLMS Election Supervisor or her designated representatives.
It should also be noted that the above rules and regulations are not all inclusive. Additional election rules or clarifications may be promulgated by the OLMS Election Supervisor as needed during the election period.
Additional information regarding union elections may be found at the OLMS Website: http://www.dol.gov/olms/.