National Association of Air Traffic Specialists

Aviation Safety is Our Business

ARTICLE 7 - ELECTIONS

Section 1. Term of office. The term of elective office shall be three years; however the term for each facility representative shall be determined by each facility.

Section 2. Vacancies in office.

(a) If the office of President should be vacated during the third year of the term, the Board shall appoint a member in good standing to fill the vacant office provided the member would be eligible to be elected to the office. If the office should become vacant during the first or second year of the term, a special election shall be held within 90 days.

(b) If the office of a Regional Director becomes vacant during the third year of the term, the Regional Coordinator shall assume the office, subject to the approval of the Board of Directors, and provided that s/he was elected to that office. If the office of a Regional Director becomes vacant during the first or second year of the term, or the Regional Coordinator does not assume the office, a special election shall be held within 90 days.

(c) If the office of Regional Coordinator becomes vacant, the Regional Director shall appoint a member from that Region to fill the remainder of the term of office provided that member would be eligible to run for that office.

(d) If a Facility Representative position should become vacant during the term of office, the Alternate Facility Representative shall assume the office, provided that s/he was elected to that office; otherwise an election shall be held to fill the vacancy.

Section 3. Eligibility. Candidates for elective office shall:

(a) Have met the requirements of full performance level in the flight service option, or the journeyman level in any other bargaining unit for which the organization is recognized as the exclusive representative;

(b) Have been an regular member in continuous good standing for two consecutive years prior to the time he or she will assume office (except that a candidate for the office of Facility Representative shall have been an regular member in good standing for ninety consecutive days prior to the time he or she will assume office) and shall be employed within the jurisdiction the member would represent as an elected official;

(c) Be free of indebtedness to NAATS;

(d) Only seek or hold one office in any election; provided however, Regional Coordinators may also run for, and simultaneously hold office as, Facility Representatives or Alternates, and vice versa.

(e) Not have been censured, suspended or expelled by the Association, or recalled from elective office within the preceding four years from the date of acceptance of nomination for office.

Section 4. Nominations.

(a) By April 15, 1995, and every three years thereafter, an Election Committee shall be appointed by the Board of Directors. The Committee shall supervise the elections, the counting of the ballots, and report the results to the membership. The Election Committee shall be a standing committee for the three-year term of office.

(b) Immediately following its appointment, the Election Committee shall cause a Notice of Election to be disseminated by May 15th to all Facility Representatives who shall cause it to be posted prominently, and to remain posted, on a union bulletin board for a month. The Notice shall inform all members that the nomination period has opened and that nominations must be received by the National Office no later than June 20th or the first business day thereafter if June 20th should fall on a weekend or holiday. The Notice shall include a nomination form which may be duplicated and shall be used by interested members or candidates. Copies shall also be made available promptly to members requesting them from the National Office.

(c) The Election Committee shall verify the eligibility of all nominees and shall inform them of their nominations by mail postmarked no later than July 1st. Thereafter, candidates shall have until July 15th to accept nomination to run for one office. Candidates for Regional Director and Regional Coordinator may also submit by July 15th camera-ready, black-and-white photos of their head and shoulders only, and/or a 300-word statement to be sent to members together with their ballots.

Section 5. Voting.

(a) Balloting materials shall be mailed to all regular members in good standing no later than August 5th. A double-envelope system shall be used for the return ballots to insure ballot secrecy. Member identification shall be required on the outer envelope, and the inner envelope in which the marked ballot is placed shall be free of any markings that could identify the voter.

(b) The balloting materials shall inform members that their ballots must be received at the Post Office Box appearing on the outer, return envelope, no later than September 10th (or first business day thereafter) to be counted.

(c) The Election Committee shall rent a Post Office Box where marked ballots are to be returned and to make arrangements with the Postmaster to collect and safeguard the returned ballots until their pickup by the Election Committee on September 11 (or first business day thereafter) for counting.

(d) The Election Committee shall make arrangements for eligible voters who do not receive ballots to request and obtain duplicate ballots from the National Office.

(e) At the conclusion of the election, the Election Committee shall account for all ballots printed.

Section 6. Campaigning.

(a) No Association funds shall be expended, directly or indirectly, to promote or oppose any candidate for union office. No union facilities, equipment, stationery, or supplies may be used to further any candidacy. No appointed employee, agent, or elected officer shall be required to support the candidacy of any individual or slate.

(b) Each candidate shall be entitled to inspect the list containing the names and last known addresses of all regular members once within the 30 day period preceding the mailing of the ballots. The right to inspect shall not include the right to copy, but does include the right to compare the list with any personal list of members.

(c) The National Office shall honor the reasonable requests of candidates or slates of candidates to send uncensored campaign mailings at his/her or their expense utilizing any special mailing privileges available to the Association. All candidates shall be treated equally with respect to the expense of such mailings which shall not exceed the actual cost of the mailings incurred by the National Office.

(d) A Special Election Publication, printed at NAATS' expense, shall accompany each ballot mailed to eligible voters. It shall contain factual information concerning election/voting procedures together with any photographs and/or statements not exceeding 300 words that were furnished to the Election Committee at the National Headquarters by the candidates.

Section 7. Ballot Counting.

(a) The Election Committee shall inform all candidates of their right to observe the pickup and counting of mail ballots, or to designate an individual to observe on their behalf.

(b) The Election Committee shall verify the eligibility of all members who cast mail ballots.

(c) The candidates receiving a majority of the votes cast by the members within their Regions shall be declared the victors. In the event no candidate receives a majority of the votes cast, a runoff election shall be conducted promptly between the two candidates that received the most votes.

(d) Write-in votes shall not be counted.

(e) The Election Committee shall promptly submit a written certification of the results of the ballot count.

Section 8. Elections of Facility Representatives.

On-site, secret ballot elections for Facility Representatives and Alternate Facility Representatives shall take place between September 1st and September 15th. They shall be conducted by Election Committees of no more than three persons chosen no later than July 20th by the facility memberships provided that no member of an Election Committee may be a candidate. These Election Committees shall ensure that the elections are fairly conducted. Nominations shall be submitted to the Election Committees by August 1st and they shall promptly determine the eligibility of each nominee. The Committees shall be responsible for giving notice to all members of the time, date, and location of the balloting, and for the preparation, distribution, collection, counting, and safeguarding of ballots. Candidates shall be eligible to observe all phases of the conduct of the election.

Section 9. Installation of Elective Officers.

All victorious candidates shall assume office on October 1st. All victorious candidates involved in runoff elections shall be installed at the conclusion of the ballot count. Upon leaving office, each former elected official shall provide his or her successor with all records and equipment which are the property of the Association, together with a comprehensive written report explaining all current projects and unfinished business. Except in the case of death or incapacity, any official leaving his or her elected position during the term of office shall provide his or her successor with a similar report.

Proposed Change.

Return to Constitution Index or make a Suggestion

Walter W. Pike, President

This page was last updated on 14 March, 2001