AFA Elections | FAQ

The 2024 Board of Directors Election will be executed in a virtual capacity outside of the annual AFA Convention. The election timing will overlap with one day of the in-person Convention, but it is not an official function of the 2024 National Convention as it has been in past years.

In January 2024, the AFA Board of Directors approved a motion by recommendation from the Nominating and Governance Committee that “it is the intent of the Board of Directors to execute a fully hybrid Convention by the 2025 National Convention, and, in support of this intent, to authorize electronic voting for officer/director elections with balloting dates and procedure approved by the Executive Committee in conformance with Article VII of the AFA Bylaws.” 

Following the direction of the Board, the AFA Executive Committee approved these Election Processes for the 2024 Elections which will serve as a transitional year to execute virtual elections this year on the path to a fully hybrid Convention in 2025.

AFA wants as many individual authorized voters as possible to have a chance to cast a ballot and have their voice heard.  Did you know – in the last 10 years, only 30% of the authorized delegates attended the National Convention? That means 70% of the votes cast for AFA Board Members were part of a block vote equal to the remaining authorized number of a state’s delegation. In the past, this process has created some discrepancies in the paper ballot voting process which the Inspectors of Elections had to adjudicate.

With the passing of the new AFA Bylaws, electronic voting enables all authorized voters for a state’s delegation (last year’s total number of votes that could be cast was 425) to be able to vote without being present at the National Convention. Plus, this process will improve accuracy and efficiency when tallying votes.

Per the new Bylaws, individuals will not be permitted to run from the floor of the National Convention. However, after the Nominating and Governance Committee’s Slate of Candidates has been publicly announced by the May 31 deadline, self-nominations can be received during the window of June 1 – 15. Those wishing to self-nominate should email Field@afa.org by the June 15 deadline with their intent to run for an open national officer position. Further instructions will be sent out with the next steps at that time. Please note, it will be up to the Nominating and Governance Committee whether to add your name to the ballot for 2024.

No. The 2024 elections are a separate governance function from the National Convention. However, both will be executed on a delegation basis. State Presidents will identify voters to participate in the election virtually. They will also select their Convention delegates. These names may overlap but they do not need to as the two functions are separate.

The election window strategically overlaps with the first day of the National Convention. This is an opportunity for caucusing and in-person discussion while many are together at the National Convention. However, this is an optional engagement, and voters may cast their ballot at any time during the voting period. The election results will be confirmed by the Elections Subcommittee and announced on Sunday to the live Convention audience first.

Your vote is 100% confidential. You will submit your ballot through the digital electronic platform using the link provided in your email and submitting your unique access key and password. The Elections Committee will validate those submitted votes; however, your identity will not be disclosed. The Elections Subcommittee will be able to see that you voted but not how you voted.

The Elections Committee comprised of members selected by the Chair of the Elections Committee will review and validate the election results and will present those results to the AFA Chair of the Board. Results will be announced to those in attendance at the 2024 National Convention as well as being posted on AFA’s Election Page no later than 48 hours after the announcement of results.

If a run-off ballot is necessary for one or more contested positions, electronic voting will happen between September 17 – 24. Each credentialled voter will receive an email, once again, with a link. The same process from the Elections Committee would apply and results will be communicated to all credentialled voters.

You are submitting rosters for two different functions – one for your voters and one for your delegates at the National Convention. If a member is serving in both roles, they will be on both rosters. It is possible that your two rosters are identical. However, we hope all states can fill the full voter roster since there is no in-person requirement. Additionally, there may be individuals who register late for the National Convention who were not on your voter roster which must be submitted by the August 9 deadline. 

No. As the State President, you can appoint one of your credentialled delegates as the Head of Delegation for your state.

Your State President will receive a 2024 Voting Strength Report in mid-July. This follows the Bylaws formula taking into account member totals, chapters in your state, etc. and a final number of a state’s authorized delegation will be identified in that report. Knowing that planning must begin much sooner than mid-July, we will share a Preliminary Voting Strength as of March 31 numbers. Except for extreme situations, the state voting strength typically does not change more than 1 in a short period.

If a credentialled voter does not cast a ballot by the identified deadline, sadly he/she forfeits the opportunity to cast a vote.

Please access your State’s Field Portal. From the Field Portal you can access your membership roster and search the name of your voter. You’ll find his/her membership number in that list. If you need assistance in accessing the Field Portal, please contact Field@afa.org. 

Article VII, Section 2 of the AFA Bylaws states, “An electronic voter may only be substituted if the Association receives notice from the designating authority, provided that there is adequate time to make the substitution in the voting system.”  Changes can be made after the State Roster due date if you communicate with your State President so the state roster can be updated, but all credentialling criteria applies to the new voter.  Our digital election platform will void the existing ballot and will send the new voter an email with a unique access key to vote. Please keep in mind if a voter is changed on a roster late (i.e. 11:00pm EDT) will we do our best to get the new voter a ballot however, voters will not be able to change their vote or cast a vote once the voting window closes (11:59pm EDT Saturday, September 14).

AFA does have some states with only one chapter; therefore, no State organization exists. In this case, your chapter president that resides in that state will submit their rosters. If you would like to be included on their list, please contact Field@afa.org for assistance on who to contact.

There is no delegation block voting in the elections. Each voter will be unique and cast an individual ballot. If a state does not provide a voter roster utilizing their full voting strength, the unused votes will be forfeited.