Editor's Note: Details of the election procedure are spelled out in Article XIII of the SIU constitution, which is printed verbatim on pages 9 and 10 of this issue of the Seafarers LOG.Voting starts Nov. 1 for the election of officers for the Seafarers International Union Atlantic, Gulf, Lakes and Inland Waters District/NMU. SIU members will be able to cast secret ballots at union halls or by mail through Dec. 31, 2004.
Seafarers eligible to vote in this election to determine union officers for the 2005-2008 term are full-book members in good standing. This eligibility criteria is spelled out in the union’s governing document, the constitution.
The ballot will list the names of all qualified candidates as determined by the credentials committee, a group made up of six rank-and-file Seafarers who reviewed the nominating petitions of all SIU members seeking office in this districtwide election. A sample of this ballot appears on page 8.
The credentials committee report, which was prepared Aug. 19, and submitted to the membership at the September monthly meetings, indicated 29 candidates had qualified to run for 27 positions. (The committee’s report was published in the September 2004 Seafarers LOG.)
The 27 posts for which Seafarers will cast their ballots are president, executive vice president, secretary-treasurer, eight vice presidents, six assistant vice presidents and 10 port agents.
21 Polling Places
The election will be conducted by mail ballot as provided by the union’s constitution. Secret ballots, accompanied by envelopes marked “Ballot” and postage-paid envelopes printed with the address of the bank depository where the ballots are kept until submitted to the tallying committee, will be available to full-book members in good standing at 21 union halls around the country. (See list of voting locations on this page.)
Eligible Seafarers may pick up their ballots and envelopes marked “Ballot” and mailing envelopes at these halls between 9:00 a.m. until 12:00 noon, Monday through Saturday, except legal holidays, from Nov. 1 to Dec. 31.
Each member must present his or her book to the port agent or the agent’s designated representative when receiving the ballot, the envelope marked “Ballot” and the mailing envelope. When the Seafarer receives the ballot and envelopes, his or her book will be stamped with the word “Voted” and the date.
If a member does not present his or her book, or if there is a question in regard to his or her eligibility to vote, the Seafarer will receive a mailing envelope of a different color marked with the word “Challenge.” His or her book will be stamped with the words “Voted Challenge” and the date.
For members who believe they will be at sea during this time, the SIU constitution provides for absentee voting procedures. Full- book members in good standing who need to vote by absentee ballot should direct a request for the ballot to the union’s secretary-treasurer at SIU headquarters—5201 Auth Way, Camp Springs, MD 20746.
Secret Ballots
Once the Seafarer has received his or her ballot and envelopes, he or she marks the ballot for the candidates of his or her choice and puts it in the envelope marked “Ballot.” This envelope is sealed by the member and placed in the mailing envelope and then dispatched in the mail. These steps ensure the integrity of the secret ballot process.
The union’s constitution, in Article XIII, details the procedures for voting in union elections.
All ballots will be counted by the rank-and-file tallying committee consisting of two members elected from each of the union’s constitutional ports. These committee members will be elected in December. They will convene as the tallying committee in early Jan. 2005.
Printer Friendly Page